“The time was three,” McWhirter intoned as he reached crescendo, at which point the rest (presumably “minutes 59.4 seconds” – we’ll just have to take his word for it) was drowned out by the cheers of the crowd.

When Lachlan Kennedy ran 9.98 seconds for 100 metres in Nairobi last weekend (31 May), his joy at breaking a significant barrier may have been as great as Bannister’s but he didn’t have a mate on the trackside public address (as far as we know). Nor was his time a meeting or track record, a national record, an area record or a Kenyan all-comers record. The British Empire having joined the dead parrot in no-longer existing, nor was it either an Empire or Commonwealth record.

Kennedy himself summed it up succinctly. And in a manner resonant with McWhirter’s announcement on that momentous mile occasion, it took just one number to do it.

“I can finally say I ran nine,” he summarised. Yes indeed, and just the second Australian to be able to say so. Patrick Johnson’s national record 9.93 may be living on borrowed time. As this columnist observed recently, Bannister is defined by the number three, uniquely so because he was the first to break four minutes. Now Lachie Kennedy joins Johnson in being defined by the number nine. With Usain Bolt’s world record 9.58 so far unchallenged, much less bettered, the Australian pair are likely to be nine-defined by this number for a while yet.

So, what does Kennedy’s performance mean. Many things but let’s have a stab at some. In absolute terms he ran his 9.98 in Nairobi which sits around 1800 metres above sea level. He ran into a 0.7 metres per second headwind. According to the wind/altitude conversions readily findable via your search engines, the two factors roughly cancel each other out though there is a slight net benefit.

The Kenyan all-comers record is held by America’s Trayvon Brommel who beat the third placegetter in Kennedy’s race, Ferdinand Omanyala, by 0.01 in the 2021 edition of the Keino Classic in 9.76. Splitting Kennedy and Omanyala last weekend was South Africa’s Paris Olympic relay gold medallist Bayanda Walaza. Omanyala’s PB is 9.77, Walaza, who won the 100 and 200 metres double at last year’s world U20 championships (beating Gout Gout in the latter), had run 9.94 the previous weekend. Very credible opposition, too.

Ten seconds for men’s 100 (or 11 for women’s) is also the benchmark for true world-class sprinting. Sub-10 puts a male sprinter in almost every Olympic and world championships final ever run (and, as they say, anything can happen in the final). The slight downer there is that the one final of the past four global championships where this did NOT apply was Paris24. It took times of 9.91, or faster, to take one of the two automatic final spots from the three semi-finals while 9.93 was the slower of the two non-automatic qualifiers. But 9.98 would have made the Tokyo20 Olympic final and the world championships final in Eugene and Budapest.

Twenty Feet from Stardom, a film which won the best documentary Oscar in 2014, details the experiences of the back-up singers (overwhelmingly female) who support some of the biggest names in popular music but for various reasons never quite attempt or complete the jump to individual stardom. Twenty feet refers to the distance they stand behind the stars.

At 10-second 100 metres speed an athlete covers about 10 metres per second, one metre per 0.1 seconds, 10 centimetres per 0.01. Before last weekend, with a 10.00 PB, Kennedy was 10 centimetres from stardom. Now, he is in the mix to make the final at the world championships later this year. Not yet superstar status, but in the constellation of potential medallists.

Another positive factor in Kennedy’s sub-10 is it represents the continuation of an upward trend in Australian men’s (and women’s) sprints. Again, Kennedy alluded to this himself in his post-race comments. In short succession Gout Gout has run two just-windy 9.99 times of 9.99 at the national championships, a resurgent Rohan Browning 10.01 to edge Kennedy (also 10.01) to win the senior national title and Kennedy has taken the silver medal in the 60 metres at the world indoor championships and dipped under 10.

Added to that is the 37.87 national record in the 4×100 relay at this year’s Sydney Track Classic. The group of young sprinters – men and women – is nothing if not collegiate and as Kennedy said in Nairobi they all take pleasure from the performance of the others. The men’s 60, 200 and 4×100 national records and the women’s 60, 100 and 4×100 national records have all been broken since the start of 2024 (some of them more than once). Things are bubbling along very nicely indeed.

Australian women have done fantastically well in Olympic and world championships 100 metres with gold medallists in Marjorie Jackson and Betty Cuthbert and further medallists including Marlene Mathews and Raelene Boyle. Men’s pickings have been slim to the point of malnourishment. Stan Rowley was third in the 100 (and 60 and 200) at the Paris 1900 Games, John Treloar a finalist in Helsinki in 1952. Hec Hogan’s bronze in the Melbourne Olympic 100 is our only medal in that event since Rowley and Paul Narracott made the 100 final in the first world championships in 1983.

Nothing since. Can Lachlan Kennedy – anyone, really – turn that around in Tokyo this year.

The post Ten centimetres from stardom | A column by Len Johnson appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

This was only her second time competing in a six-day event. The first came a year earlier in Milwaukee, where she logged just over 526 miles on a 443-meter indoor track. That performance, while victorious, revealed how sleep and fatigue could chip away at endurance.

In France, the approach was different. Training focused on sleep deprivation, mental resilience, and meticulous pacing. Her goal: break the 600-mile mark. Everything was built around one number, and hitting it would mean more than just a personal best.

Endurance sports don’t usually make headlines, but when someone breaks a world record by more than 40 miles, people notice. It’s the kind of result that draws in not just fellow runners but fans who follow the numbers closely, from pacing splits to cumulative gains, and even those watching from a distance through prediction markets.

Over the past few years, online bookmakers have started to reflect that interest, quietly adding more ultra-distance events to their offerings as niche followings grow and outcomes become less predictable. The foundation is stronger now: more money in the pot, more ways to stay connected, and all popular payment solutions.

Even the smallest details—weather shifts, nutrition plans, a few lost seconds—can end up shaping the final outcome. In Eckert’s case, rain hit early and set the tone.

By the second night, she was so sleep-deprived she drifted off mid-stride and ran into a bush. A nearby runner caught it and steered her back on track. Through it all, her pace never fully slipped. Her husband, Joe, stayed on task—handling meals, monitoring rest, and keeping her focused hour after hour.

The course in Vallon-Pont-d’Arc may have looked simple on paper, but it delivered its own kind of punishment. Each lap included three speed bumps that, over time, turned from minor inconveniences into constant reminders of fatigue.

As the miles stacked up, the toll became more obvious—blisters opened, shoes wore down, and concentration narrowed to a single task: keep moving. Eckert limited her breaks to a total of 33 hours across the six days, meaning she spent 111 hours in motion, running through pain, sleep deprivation, and everything in between.

By the fourth day, it became clear the record was within reach. She passed Camille Herron’s 560.330-mile benchmark with room to spare, then moved beyond Stine Rex’s unratified 567.688. The 600-mile mark, once the goal, became just a checkpoint.

On May 4, Eckert became the first woman to officially pass that mark in a certified six-day event. With all required drug testing complete and four official referees on site, the result now awaits formal ratification from the governing body.

Back in New Mexico, returning to a normal rhythm has proven difficult. Her legs may be still, but the body remains on edge—wide awake by 3:30 a.m., crashing by early evening, still responding to the physical echo of the race. Running is on hold for now, replaced by short hikes and the slow reintroduction of routine.

Outside the competitive spotlight, Eckert balances her work as a special education teacher with her role as a high school track coach. Her training doesn’t rely on any elaborate plan—just consistent volume, strategic fatigue, and back-to-back runs that prepare the body to go long under pressure.

Most weeks include multiple run commutes, a longer trail session on weekends, and little room for shortcuts. That kind of structure, built over the years, laid the groundwork for what she was able to do in France.

Her resume already included major wins—a 270-mile backyard ultra, 362 miles at Big Dog’s in Tennessee, and 218 miles logged over 55 hours in Texas—but none of those efforts demanded the level of pacing, strength training, and mental steadiness this one did.

Even with the record behind her, the momentum hasn’t faded. She’s already thinking about what’s next.

A return to Milwaukee is likely. A ten-day race is starting to feel possible. The recovery will take as long as it needs to, but the mindset hasn’t shifted—there’s still more to test.

The post A Teacher’s 603-Mile Run Into the Record Books appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Brad has a consistent week of training.

Julian goes through shoes and leaves the dog on guard duty.

Brady tries to keep things measured under the new coach.

This week’s running news is presented by Axil Coffee.

Launceston Running Festival Stewy McSweyn wins the 10km race on his birthday, running 27:58 ahead of James Hansen and Matt Buckell. Tasmanian Ruby Smee was the 10k winner in 32:57 with Jenny Blundell and Kate Spencer following.

Teruki Shimada ran the second fastest half marathon on Australian soil, winning in 1:01:12 with Isaac Heyne just behind him with Brett Robinson in third, with the top five finishers all under the previous course record. Jess Stenson won the half marathon in 1:09:51 ahead of Yumi Yoshikawa from Japan, both under the previous course record with Caitlin Adams in third. Launceston Running Festival Results  

Jess Hull placed second in the 1500m in 3:58.36 and then third in the 800m with 1:59.63 to place second overall in the Short Distance group at Grand Slam Track Philadelphia. Abbey Caldwell ran a season best 1500m of 4:01.54 for fifth place and then 2:00.57 for fourth in the 800m to place fourth overall. Ky Robinson ran 8:01.92 in the solitary 3000m with Nico Young winning in 8:01.03. Grand Slam Track Results

Linden Hall opened her European season at the Irena Szewinska Memorial meet in Poland, running the 1500m in 4:02.11 for second place, right behind winner Weronika Lizakowski. Jye Edwards ran 3:35.92 in the 1500m while Cara Feain-Ryan was third in the steeplechase in a personal best of 9:22.01, moving to #5 all-time. Results via World Athletics

Jarryd Clifford set a new T12 World Record of 3:40.39 in the 1500m at the Meeting Nikaia in Nice, France. Ed Trippas also ran 8:23.19 in the 3000m steeplechase Results via World Athletics

Adrian Potter took out the SA Road Running Championship 10k in 29:53.92, with Tiana Cetta winning the title in 34:30.89 Athletics SA Results

The Brisbane Marathon was won by Takaki Mori in 2:21:38 and Kathryn Parkinson in 2:43:44, both course records. Gishe Abdi Wake of Ethiopia won the half marathon in 1:06:44, while Riine Ringi won in 1:15:32. Results

Peter Bol held off Adam Goddard to win the Leonora Gift Road Mile in 4:06.43 with Matt Ramsden in third. Zoe Melhuish won the final in 4:4.79 with Stephanie Kelly in second and Georgia Winkcup in third place. Athletics West Results

Enjoy 20% off your first Axil Coffee order! Use code IRP20 at checkout. Shop now at axilcoffee.com.au

Moose on the Loose lays down the long run law: don’t lead if you can’t navigate the course.

This episode’s Listener Q’s/Training Talk segment is proudly brought to you by Precision Fuel & Hydration. This week what is a fuelling mistake runners make too often, and what is the simplest fix?

Visit precisionhydration.com for more info on hydration and fuelling products and research, and use the discount code given in the episode.

The post Inside Running Podcast Episode 396: Launceston Running Festival | Grand Slam Track Philadelphia | Common Fuelling Mistakes  appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Kennedy’s landmark run earned him a gold medal and placed him in one of the most exclusive clubs in athletics. The 21-year-old Queenslander, who manages type 1 diabetes, described the race as a moment of pure joy and a culmination of years of effort.

Despite challenging track conditions, Kennedy felt relaxed and confident, attributing his success to a strong mental state and supportive Australian athletics culture. He expressed excitement for future races and vowed continual improvement, aiming eventually to surpass Johnson’s national record.

Kennedy’s rise highlights the resurgence of Australian sprinting, with emerging talents like Gout Gout and Rohan Browning also making waves. Kennedy’s milestone not only showcases his own athletic prowess but also signals a promising new era for Australian track and field.

For a visual of Kennedy’s historic run, you can watch the race here:

The post Lachlan Kennedy Breaks 10-Second Barrier in 100m Sprin appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

It calculates exactly how much carb, sodium, and fluid you need to smash your goals. Listen to the show for an exclusive discount.

Brad enjoys a solid week of training by himself.

Julian recovers from Great Ocean Road Half.

Brady commences a new program and takes in a lot of new metrics.

This week’s running news is presented by Axil Coffee.

Beatrice Chebet ran the #2 World all-time 3000m of 8:11.56 in Rabat Diamond League Morocco, while Tshepiso Masalela of Botswana posted a 800m World Lead of 1:42.70.
Sarah Billings posts a 1500m season best of 4:02.93, while Jude Thomas a personal best of 3:33.35, 9th fastest all time and just missing the World Championship qualifier
Rabat Diamond League Results

Linden Hall ran a significant personal best of 14:43.61 winning the 5000m at the Sound Running Track Fest Meet in Los Angeles, which is a World Championship qualifier moving her to #2 all time. Maudie Skyring also ran 15:15.15 and Lauren Ryan ran 15:23.84.
Ky Robinson ran 13:05.23 behind winner Eduardo Herrera who was the first Mexican man to run under 13 minutes for 5000m in 12:58.57.

Ed Trippas 8:27.58 in the steeplechase behind Olympic silver medallist Kenneth Rooks winning in 8:14, while Amy Cashin ran the steeplechase in 9:42.76.
Results

Ed Marks won the 12k Myrniong cross country race of XCR25 in 37:00, ahead of Liam Cashin and Will Garbelotto. Western Athletics were the winners of Men’s Premier Division ahead of Sandringham and Melbourne Uni.

Katherine Dowie won her second race of the season in 44:29 ahead of Saskia Lloyd and Bianca Puglisi. The Women’s Premier Division was won by Sandringham, then Geelong and Melbourne Uni.
AthsVic Results Hub 

Alex Harvey won the Noosa Marathon in 2:28:26, while Olivia Beck won in 2:54:54. Hamish Hamilton took first place in the half marathon 1:07:36, while Samantha Vance won in 1:18:08.
Results

Enjoy 20% off your first Axil Coffee order! Use code IRP20 at checkout. Shop now at axilcoffee.com.au

The upcoming Mizuno Neo Vista 2 is released on June 3 and the boys give their thoughts on the newest super trainer’s build, look and ride after putting it through its paces.

The incoming Whispers dispute a physios diagnosis from last week and swirls in unsolicited advice, thenMoose on the Loose harsh selection policies based on potential success over long-term growth.

This episode’s Listener Q’s/Training Talk segment is proudly brought to you by Precision Fuel & Hydration.

This week’s training talk asks for a marathon workout to see how you are tracking a month out from race day.

Visit precisionhydration.com for more info on hydration and fuelling products and research, and use the discount code given in the episode.

The post Inside Running Podcast Episode 395: Rabat DL & Sound Running | Myrniong & Noosa | Mizuno Neo Vista 2 Review appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

In the women’s final, rising star Zoe Melhuish delivered a blistering performance, crossing the line in 4:42.79 to claim victory. Melhuish, who clocked 5:03.09 in the prelims, timed her run to perfection in the final, holding off Stephanie Kelly (4:45.93) and experienced campaigner Georgia Winkcup (4:46.99) in a tactical and fast-finishing race.

Rebekah Newton (4:50.43) and Hannah Doyle (4:54.16) rounded out the top five, with strong efforts across the board in a race showcasing depth and emerging talent.

In the men’s elite mile, Olympian and crowd favourite Peter Bol reminded everyone of his class, powering away in the closing stages to win in 4:06.20—a solid time given the heat and tactical nature of the race. Bol led home a quality field, with Adam Goddard taking second in 4:07.87 and Matthew Ramsden rounding out the podium in 4:08.36, just edging out New Zealand’s Brad Mathas (4:08.79) in a photo finish for third.

The annual outback spectacle once again proved its place as a truly unique and elite event on the Australian running calendar, with $12,500 going to each of the winners and a field that included Olympians and national champions.

With its mix of street racing, atmosphere, and serious prize money, the Golden Gift continues to cement itself as a must-watch and must-race event for Australia’s top middle-distance athletes.

The post Bol and Melhuish Shine in 2025 Leonora Golden Gift Elite Mile Finals appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Along with the individual performances, the table lists how the result impacts the athlete’s position on the World Athletics rankings. As you may remember, the world rankings now play a major role in determining which athletes can go to the major championships. An individual’s ranking is one of the two ways in which athletes can qualify. The first is by achieving a tough qualifying standard; the rankings then top up the number of entrants in line with the capped entry number for each event.

The aim of the qualifying system is to select half the field through the automatic qualifying standard and half through the next best rankers. The system was first mooted for the Doha 2019 world championships, but the unease generated by its abrupt (and belated) announcement saw it postponed until the Tokyo Olympics. It has been in use since. For better or worse, one could add, but that’s another matter.

The rankings system was designed to further several outcomes. It would generate narratives of its own, follow the progress of athletes as they strive to qualify for the major championship of the year. Not sure what was expected there, but in terms of mainstream media I’ve not seen, heard or read many stories specifically on the rankings. To be fair, there’s not that many such stories in tennis and golf, two other sports with long established rankings which determine entry into events.

It was likewise designed to encourage athletes to compete more. That works to an extent, but once an athlete has achieved the Big Q, the automatic qualifying standard, they don’t have to worry as much about where and when they compete. And the sort of athletes you want competing more frequently – your Duplantises, McLaughlin-Levrones and other meeting headliners – usually don’t have to worry too much about their ranking as the automatic standard is easily withing their grasp.

To make the system more equitable – athletics is a world sport, after all – there has been a proliferation of permit events. That’s broadly a good thing, but the system has a hierarchy of events which might give more equity but doesn’t make more sense. All area championships carry the same bonus points, all national championships likewise, when they palpably should not.

In terms of the automatic qualifying standards, some events offer greater opportunities than others. It’s relatively common for up to 10 (or more) athletes in a Diamond League middle-distance event to better the automatic standard but is someone running fast in tenth place more worthy of being in a world championship field than someone winning their national title.

What the system has encouraged, it appears, is more competitions where the aim is to get a performance than competitions where everyone’s aim is to win.

Anyway, let’s leave the qualifying system and the world rankings to another day. I’ve got misgivings about both but they fly out the window as soon as the weekly update mentioned way up above lands in the inbox. I don’t know about you, but I’ve rarely met a list into which I could resist the urge to dive. Ten best/worst films, 10 greatest albums, best places to travel, best trains to catch – you name it, I’m there.

And the performance update of which we speak is much more than just a simple list of performances. It also tabulates how these performances have impact on qualifying. Is it a Big Q? Does it produce a net improvement of the athlete’s position vis-à-vis getting to Tokyo25 (it’s possible for an individual improvement to actually leave the athlete worse off if they are swamped by a host of other superior performances around the world in the same period). Where does the level of the last athlete currently inside the field cut-off stand. 

Who’s on the rise? Who’s on the wane? On and on it goes until the final date for entries.

And we study the chart in detail. We’ve all become – I don’t know, what’s the word for obsessives who study tables and lists? Chartists? Tabulists?

The rankings update has become the new stock market listings. Or the racing form guide, complete with betting details. You can’t call it a road map; it records the journey without showing the destination.

Whether or not the rankings system is hooking any new fans into athletics is a moot point (probably not, is my best guess). But it’s irresistible bait for the committed fans.

The post Playing the market | A column by Len Johnson appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Origins and evolution

What began in 2003 as a celebration of a multimillion-dollar main-street upgrade has grown into a fully sanctioned carnival that has lured more than twenty Olympians over two decades. A decisive boost in 2022 lifted the pool to A $65 k, and council minutes show half of a subsequent A $10 k funding increase was funnelled directly into the elite prize ladder.

Prize ladder

1st A $7,500 + gold nugget (≈A $2,400)
2nd A $4,500
3rd A $2,500
4th A $1,700
5th A $1,250
6th A $1,000
7th A $ 650
8th A $ 350

The course

Tower Street is a 1,609-metre, bitumen-straight circuit featuring six 180-degree turns: athletes run 120 m from the gun, wheel through the first hairpin, then alternate between 290- and 310-metre straights before a final 400-metre run-in that feels twice as long under a desert sun. Stewart McSweyn’s 4 min 05 sec in 2021 is the course record, remarkable given the braking and re-accelerating demanded by each turn. The women’s best, 4 min 47.25 sec, belongs to Rio Olympian Zoe Buckman, who prevailed here in 2022.

Format

Men: three heats on Saturday; the first two in each plus the next two fastest qualify for Sunday’s eight-man final.

Women: two heats; the top three in each plus the next two fastest progress. Those eliminated from the men’s heats may enter the open mile; women may step into the open 600 m. Heat lists will be published on Runner’s Tribe’s Facebook page on Friday evening and updated again after late scratches.

Men’s elite mile: the principals

Peter Bol (Vic, 30) arrives with the fastest two-lap résumé in Australian history: a 1 min 43.79 sec national 800-metre record set in Perth in April. His 1,500-metre best, 3 min 34.52 sec, suggests he can hold form deep into a four-lap race. Bol’s strength is rhythmic pace; if the field permits a metronomic 58-second opening quarter, he will be difficult to unseat.

Matthew Ramsden (WA, 27) supplies the pure metric-mile pedigree. A nine-time national team representative, he owns a 3 min 51.23 track mile and pushed McSweyn to that 4 : 05 course record three years ago. Ramsden’s hallmark is a sustained drive from 500 m out — a tactic that neutralises the late kicks of 800-metre men. His 3 min 34.08 1,500 m in Oslo 2023 is the fastest PB among entrants.

Luke Shaw (WA, 23) is the local dark horse. The Curtin University student brought his 1,500 m down to 3 : 40.84 this season and added a 1 : 47.27 personal best over 800 m. That range, plus sand-hardened legs from Kalgoorlie upbringing, mark him as a spoiler if the early laps grind.

Brad Mathas (NZL, 30) is an eight-time New Zealand 800-metre champion with a 1 : 45.59 best. Training in Melbourne under Justin Rinaldi, he regularly shares sessions with Bol and will not be overawed. Expect Mathas to roll the dice early; a sub-two-minute first half would tilt the odds toward his two-lap power.

Other names to watch

• Kiran Tibballs (NSW) — 3 : 41 1500 m and a crisp 55-second last lap at Zatopek 10,000 m pacemaking duties.
• Jack Wilson (WA, 19) — world U20 800-metre finalist, raw but fearless.
• Mark Midgley (SA) — 4 : 00 road mile in Riga last October, relishes narrow courses.
• Max Shervington (Qld) — 3 : 42 this year, 1 : 48 speed, ideal for time-qualifier raid.

Women’s elite mile: the principals

Georgia Winkcup (NSW, 27) swapped the 3,000-metre steeple for the mile last season and has since reduced her 1,500 m to 4 : 16.21. Her strength is an unrelenting 600-metre surge launched well before rivals can organise a response — perfect for strung-out street racing.

Brielle Erbacher (Qld, 26) brings the endurance of a 9 : 32.96 steeple personal best and the resilience born of 35-degree track sessions in Toowoomba. Steeplers handle rhythm changes better than most, and Leonora’s hairpins serve up exactly that.

Zoe Melhuish (ACT, 22) sliced her 1,500 m to 4 : 19.37 and mixed in a 33 min 32 sec 10 km road run. The combination of speed endurance and road-race nous could yield a podium if she clears traffic early.

Stephanie Kelly (Vic, 29) — a past Leonora podium finisher — is the canny tactician every favourite fears. In 2021 she won heat 2 in a slow 5 : 00 yet still closed the last 400 m in 63 sec. Expect Kelly to hover at the back, ready to capitalise on any stumble at the final hairpin.

Macey Hehir and Kayla van der Linden represent the pure 800-metre threat; Cassiana Papadoulis has outsprinted bigger names on the Athletics West circuit; Scarlett Whyte’s 4 : 23 at age eighteen puts her on every scout’s list.

Tactics and conditions

Leonora sits at 28 °53′ S and 378 m altitude. Desert highs can still reach 30 °C in late autumn and, after midday, a head-breeze off the Gibson plains rolls unchecked down Tower Street. Veterans hug the inside curb on outbound straights to avoid crosswinds, then sling-shot wide at each 180° turn to protect ankle ligaments. The opening 250 m is commonly the slowest; mid-packers jostle for balance on loose white lines and the field settles only after the third turn.

A fast race usually materialises when an 800-metre specialist dictates from the front, forcing negative-split milers to chase. McSweyn’s record 4 : 05 came off an honest 1 : 58 first half. In the women’s race Buckman won her 4 : 47 by accelerating to 70 sec laps before the field knew a breakaway was forming.

Predictions

If the men’s final breaks 4 : 05 the winner will almost certainly come from Bol or Ramsden. Bol’s aim will be a steady grind to blunt Ramsden’s planned long drive; Ramsden’s counter is to punch the throttle with 700 m left, betting that Bol’s track-tuned rhythm falters at the fourth about-face. Behind them Shaw, Mathas and Tibballs could steal the gold nugget should the favourites mis-count turns or clip barriers.

In the women’s event Winkcup thrives on attrition. Expect her to increase gradually from the second hairpin, daring Erbacher to follow. If the early pace hesitates, Kelly’s economy and Melhuish’s 10 km stamina could catalyse a kicker’s finish reminiscent of Buckman’s 2022 triumph.

Whatever the storyboard, Leonora’s unique blend of hard money, harsh climate and small-town hospitality ensures every metre of Tower Street will again echo with footfall, cowbells and the chaotic roar of Australia’s most lucrative mile. A gold nugget glitters at the finish, but the real treasure is the instant folklore forged when elite middle-distance talent meets red-dust grit on an outback strip.

The post Bol, Ramsden, Winkcup Headline Australia’s Richest Mile at the 2025 Leonora Golden Gift appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

As I can’t resist the urge to point out every time I have cited that report over the years, the sport did neither. Athletics in Australia didn’t change (not much, anyway). Nor did it die. It’s still very much alive, thriving, in fact. Part of the explanation for this state of affairs is that the 2032 Olympic Games will be staged in Brisbane and, if I’m not telescoping the timescale too much, Sydney was awarded the 2000 Olympics not that long after Landy’s report.

Tentative conclusion then: Olympic Games hosting is an excellent way for Olympic sports to dodge death.

Leaving that aside, however, it seems that we are tossing on a stormy sea of change at the moment. World Athletics has been all activations and innovations for a few years now: I date it back to the world indoor championships in Portland, Oregon in 2016. That was the first time I noticed things like athlete entry to the track being accompanied by a volley of gas guns and selected events being contested outside the stadium, but I may have been slow to notice. Shot putters and pole vaulters nowadays see more of the host city’s squares and railway stations than they do of the stadium.

And to come next year is the Ultimate Championship, a ‘really big show’ as presenter Ed Sullivan would ritually atone each Sunday night in the early days of US network television about the line-up of guests for his weekly variety show. No doubt we will hear more and more of this event as we draw closer to it, but for the minute we must be satisfied – largely – by the assurance that it is ‘the ultimate’.

That’s going along with the innovation agenda as tested in several meetings already and which includes things like a one-metre take-off zone in the horizontal jumps, innovation upon innovation by adding a mixed 4×100 relay to the previously introduced mixed 4×400, tinkering with the false-start rules, the 200 metre hurdles, a one mile steeplechase – the four-minute barrier (for men, anyway) added to the traditional five barriers per lap, and heaps more.

Then there’s Grand Slam Track, which we could summarise as a concept built on providing heaps less. Track events only. Just one thing happening at a time. Athletes running in two events over three days (reduced, already, to a two-day format so now twice in two days). Why no field events? Well, as Michael Johnson put it, he can maybe save track but he can’t save track and field. Not yet, anyway.

Grand Slam Track appears mostly about presenting the traditional elements of track – some of track, anyway – in a more attractive package. More head-to-head competition by signing star athletes to compete a fixed number of times, namely eight over its four meetings in the inaugural season. As mentioned here a couple of weeks back, it already has Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone competing more times this year than she has in the previous two. So, that can’t be a bad thing, although not having Mondo Duplantis compete at all is definitely NOT a good thing.

But, as also mentioned then, it’s too early to judge the impact.

Most of the innovation drive seems directed at getting fans to focus on one thing at a time, focusing attention through presentation and, in the case of GST, elimination of events judged surplus to requirements.

What if, though, part of the appeal of athletics is its ability to showcase several things at once. I was first struck by this thought when I came across a report on Melbourne interclub competition back in the 1950s. This was in the lead-up to the Melbourne Olympic Games, too, reinforcing the suggestion that the way to save the sport is to have the next Olympics.

Anyway, our observer went to an interclub competition in November 1953. Maybe they saw Landy race in pursuit of the four-minute mile. Regardless, it wasn’t any one thing that entranced them.

“No other city in the world can match Melbourne’s weekly, non-stop athletic carnival,” our columnist enthused. “You’ve got to see one of these interclub meetings to believe it. It’s nothing to see five events going on at the same time, with each set of competitors oblivious to the others. But it’s a spectacular sight for spectators.”

Of course, if Landy was there and racing that day, most of those spectators had come to see just one thing. No matter, they were also exposed to the others. You can’t watch five events at once if there is only one going on.

But the writer’s thoughts mirrored my own the first time I attended the Zurich Weltklasse (no events at the railway station that year: Sergey Bubka was in the Letzigrund, contending with several other events). Likewise at my first indoor meeting, the world championships at Maebashi, Japan, in 1999. Or the way the epic shot put battle between Tommy Walsh, Ryan Crouser and Joe Kovacs at the world outdoor championships in Doha in 2019 grabbed the attention amidst all the potential distractions. That competition was made better by the other events competing for fans’ eyeballs.

Only one opinion, but I reckon the appeal of track and field is first its simplicity – fastest, highest, strongest; the immediacy of the result; then its variety. Something for everyone, every minute. A carnival of excellence competing for our attention.

The post A day at the circus | A column by Len Johson appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

This weeks episode is sponsored by Precision Fuel & Hydration,  their free online planner has you covered!

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Brad keeps his maintenance going.

Julian recaps his week and his race at the Great Ocean Road Half Marathon.

Brady checks in with the physio ahead of his new training program.

This week’s running news is presented by Axil Coffee.

Brett Robinson placed 7th in the Great Manchester Run, running in 10km in 28:27 which was won by Selemon Barega in 27:49. Izzi Batt-Doyle placed 5th in 31:30 as Medina Eisa of Ethiopia won in 30:42.

Lissy Duncan won the Great Manchester Half in 1:16:27
10k Results via World Athletics

Danielle Rogan won the Great Ocean Road Marathon in 3:08:55 with Caitlin Duncan second and Gemma Dennison in third. Dion Finocchiaro won another title in 2:34:42, followed by Sam Toll and Dylan Newell.

The Half Marathon was won by Sebastian Asher in 1:10:12 ahead of Andre Waring and Brett Ellis. Amanda Wilson was the winner in 1:27:24 ahead of Maisie Bird and Frances Arnott.

The 14km Paradise Run was won by Andre Waring in 40:23 and Charlotte Wilson 47:46, while Grace Tame went back-to-back winning the 60km Ultra Marathon.
Official Results

Sydney 10 won by Holly Campbell 32:18 ahead of Jenny Blundell and Zoe Melhuish. Aidan Veltan won in 29:34 ahead of John Maguire and Michael Roeger.
Results

Cara Feian-Ryan runs 9:38:07 in the 3000m steeplechase in the Doha Diamond League.
Results

Jude Thomas won the men’s 3000m in 7:39:69 at the Tokyo Grand Prix while Rose Davies did the same in the women’s 3000m in 8:43.38.

Georgia Griffith won the 1500m in 4:01.10, with Sarah Billings third in 4:06.75.
Matt Clarke ran 8:23.60 for fifth in the Men’s Steeplechase with Ben Buckingham scoring 8:27.44 for seventh.
Results via World Athletics

James Hansen and Milly Clark won the 12k City to Casino in Hobart, Tasmania.
Results

Grand Slam Track announced schedule changes ahead for Philadelphia, reducing the three day event to two, 5000m races axed.
Press Release

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Moose goes on the Loose on the overzealous massage therapist who potentially derailed his race, while Whispers about the discourse around the ultra run world record across Australia.

The post Inside Running Podcast Episode 394: Great Ocean Road Marathon & Sydney 10 | Great Manchester Run | Tokyo Grand Prix  appeared first on Runner's Tribe.