A Column By Len Johnson

Len Johnson wrote for The Melbourne Age as an athletics writer for over 20 years, covering five Olympics, 10 world championships and five Commonwealth Games.

He has been the long-time lead columnist on RT and is one of the world’s most respected athletic writers.

He is also a former national class distance runner (2.19.32 marathon) and trained with Chris Wardlaw and Robert de Castella among other running legends. He is the author of The Landy Era.

Phooey! Imagine being in Harry Summers’ shoes last Sunday. First, he won the City to Surf. If he saw it as he flashed under the gantry the clock would have told him he just missed Steve Moneghetti’s race record – 40:05 it would have read. Mona’s record is 40:03. Then, confusion. The...
Len Johnson Reporting from the World Champs, London – Runner’s Tribe Day six at the world championships and it was one of those this way, thataway, haven’t we been here before scenarios so beloved of film directors. Sliding doors, chances taken, chances missed – that sort of thing. One place we definitely...
One day at the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games, I watched on as the American 5000 metres representative, Duncan MacDonald, did a training session. My billet was a few metro stations beyond the Olympic stadium. A relatively short run took me down to the stadium and Village precinct. I ran there...
Well that didn’t take long, did it? Tucked away somewhere in all the reportage on Armand Duplantis’s current assault on the men’s pole vault world record was the question of whether he would continue to raise the record one centimetre at a time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QFUh2P9_Bg&t=6s Now there’s a few things you could say...
A column by Len Johnson (reporting from Doha) - Runner's Tribe There is no rest day in the world championships program. Hasn’t been for a while now. For long periods, however, day six seemed intent on being as restful as possible. Oh, there were sparks – a couple of quite physical...
A column by Len Johnson Here’s a sentence this observer never thought he would write. Australia is dominating the men’s 60 metres sprint. No, really. We’re up there in the women’s 60, too. That’s right, in the blue riband indoor distance to be contested at the world indoor championships in Nanjing...
Is it just me or is Cam Myers channelling Herb Elliott
All the talk had been Shaunae Miller-Uibo. Couldn’t do the 200 due to the timetable. Would have won. Ran two lovely, languid races in her heat and semi-final of the 400 leaving us to wonder how fast she might go if pushed in the final.
The Games have begun – at last. All us track and field fans know that the Olympic don’t really begin until athletics starts next Friday, but sports are being contested and medals being won (including some by Australians. Hooray!). Rio pulled off an opening ceremony which, while avoiding the financial extravagances...
Frank McMahon lived a long and fruitful life. He will be remembered – and thanked - every time we go for a run at Ferny Creek.