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.

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...
“It seems crazy,” Kerr responded, comparing the 40,000 to money on offer in other sports and against the appearance fees paid to some of the world indoor gold medallists – Noah Lyles, Grant Holloway and Femke Bol three he name-checked – to compete at other meetings (guess Kerr’s implying it’s less?).
Cheptegei doubles, Kipruto orchestrates sweep By Len Johnson reporting from the Gold Coast It’s getting harder to write new things about Joshua Cheptegei. When he won the 5000 metres at the Commonwealth Games last Sunday, it was easy to dwell on the development of the young man who had crashed and burned...
Japan’s Fukuoka marathon used to be the best non-championship marathon of the year.You knew when it would be run: the first Sunday in December each year. You knew who would be running: the best six international runners organisers could get on a ‘start at the top and keep going until six men have said ‘yes’’ basis; the best six Japanese runners (few of whom ever said ‘no’ to Japan’s most prestigious race); anyone else around the world who had bettered the 2:27 qualifying time and was willing to pay their own way.The Olympics were the only global championships back then, so most years Fukuoka might bring together the European and Commonwealth champions, the winners of traditional races like Boston and the English AAA championship and others burning with ambition. Before there was a world championships, the Fukuoka marathon was the next-best thing.
Jessica Hull was pretty excited about smashing the Australian 1500 metres record at the Golden Gala Diamond League meeting in Florence last week. So she should be, too. Hull’s performance continued the rich vein of form she has been in to date in 2023. A bronze medal in the mixed...
Kenenisa Bekele leaves us wondering as the marathon humbles one of its most prestigious challengers. A Column By Len Johnson - Runner's Tribe Say what you like about Kenenisa Bekele, but the man sometimes known as ‘King Kenny’ is never boring. Bekele’s latest interesting decision saw him jump into the Dubai marathon,...
Ryan Hall: best actor in a supporting role | A Column By Len Johnson Ryan Hall never quite achieved the stardom for which he seemed destined, but if the best actor Oscar somehow eluded him, the American marathoner certainly has a sound claim to a gong as best actor in...
A Column by Len Johnson - Runner's Tribe While we’ve been wondering who might ever beat Mo Farah, not to mention how they might do it, a quiet revolution has been going on in distance running. That would be women’s distance running we are talking about. World records are being broken,...
A look at the latest breaking 2 project. When it comes to second chances, you can pick your won cliché. Some old sayings take the glass-half-full perspective; others look on the gloomier, glass-half-empty side. “A soufflé doesn’t rise twice,” former Australian prime minister Paul Keating observed scathingly of a political opponent...
Brett Robinson, Jessica Hull and Stewart McSweyn made it a good week for Australian distance running this week, but it’s the sometimes under-rated Robinson who should be singled out. It was hard not to notice Hull and McSweyn, who did their magic at the Melbourne Track Classic. The meeting may...
                   

Brilliantly

SAFE!

2022