- 6 months ago
The latest episode of the Athletics Weekly Podcast sees host Euan Crumley joined by Jason Henderson to assess the recent national championships that have been taking place across the globe. From the UK to the US, athletes have been battling it out to qualify for next month’s World Championships – producing some superb racing, a few surprises and a clue or two about what we can expect in Tokyo.
From Britain’s Amy Hunt hinting that she might be about to deliver on the sprinting promise she showed as a junior, through to the 800m exploits of 16-year-old American Cooper Lutkenhaus over 800m and plenty more besides, there is much to discuss.
This episode also looks at the new issue of AW, which delves into the big moments that have taken place in athletics during the magazine’s 80-year lifetime since its launch in 1945. It’s a rich history indeed.
Visit: athleticsweekly.com
From Britain’s Amy Hunt hinting that she might be about to deliver on the sprinting promise she showed as a junior, through to the 800m exploits of 16-year-old American Cooper Lutkenhaus over 800m and plenty more besides, there is much to discuss.
This episode also looks at the new issue of AW, which delves into the big moments that have taken place in athletics during the magazine’s 80-year lifetime since its launch in 1945. It’s a rich history indeed.
Visit: athleticsweekly.com
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SportsTranscript
00:00Hello, my name's Ewan Crumley and welcome to the latest episode of the Athletics Weekly
00:12podcast. In each show, we bring you everything you need to know from the world of run, jump
00:16and throw, analysing the biggest stories and speaking to key names from the sport. After
00:21a short summer break, we're back and ready to get our teeth into what is going to be
00:25the climax of this year's outdoor season, the World Championships in Tokyo. An array
00:31of national championships, also serving as the trials for Tokyo in many cases, have
00:35just come to a close and there's much to pick through from those with a few hints as to what
00:40might lie in store in Japan. The August issue of AW is out now too and the focus of that
00:46is the past, given that this year represents 80 years since the first iteration of the
00:52magazine was published. This issue looks at 80 big moments and talking points from down
00:56the decades. So there's much to discuss and to do all of that, I'm joined by AW Head of
01:02Digital, Jason Henderson. Hi, Jason.
01:05Hi, Ewan.
01:06So we are recording this not long after the British champs have wound up. We were both in Birmingham
01:14to see them all play out at the Alexander Stadium. And there was certainly plenty going on there.
01:22The main headlines were that five championship records fell. The women's and men's 200 championship
01:29records fell. That was Dina Asher-Smith and Zarnel Hughes. And there were also championship records
01:35in the discus for Laurence Okoye and a purchase in the Hammer and Elise Thorner in the women's
01:41steeplechase. Jason, what were your general thoughts overall on the championships?
01:49Firstly, well done on remembering all those because I'm not sure I would have managed to
01:52remember them all off the top of my head. But it shows the rising standards, doesn't it? I mean,
01:58often you'll get doom mongers who say that the athletes weren't as good as the ones from
02:03yesteryear. But when you have championship records falling left, right and centre, then it shows that
02:09the athletes are basically getting better the whole time. I think Laurence Okoye's record
02:14as well was a 40-year-old championship record that he broke there. So the championships were
02:21a very high standard. Weather wasn't fantastic either. It wasn't really that hot or warm enough
02:31for the sprinters. I don't think it wasn't ideal for them. It was a bit blustery as well, a little
02:37bit of a wind swirling around. And then it was a little bit damp as well on the second day of the
02:42championship, although it wasn't quite as the big thunderstorms that were predicted didn't quite
02:48come to fruition, but it was still a little bit damp. So yeah, in conditions that weren't perfect,
02:55I thought the athletes did really well. And there's always that excitement factor as well, isn't there,
02:59when athletes are battling for places in the team for the major championships of the year.
03:04It always adds an element of jeopardy there. And yeah, it was a good, enjoyable weekend we
03:10had sat next to each other with the best seats in the house, surveying the action in the grandly
03:18new, rebuilt Alexander Stadium.
03:21Yeah, I mean, there was, as you say, lots to be positive about. I think potentially the only
03:27drawback was because there are, you know, so many different routes now to make your way
03:33onto a national team into the championships, whether that's world rankings, you know, all
03:40sorts of ways to get in now. As much as there were events that there were the top two, the
03:46criteria, obviously part of that was you have to have the standard and you need to finish top
03:50two at the championships. But there are other ways to get in. So in some events, it was very
03:59obvious and there was plenty of jeopardy that there was those top two places were absolutely
04:04crucial. Whereas in others, you knew there was maybe a bit of a margin for error. I guess
04:09it always, when the US championships is happening at the same time, which is far more cutthroat because
04:14of the depth that they have to play with. It just, it's a, it's an interesting comparison
04:21to make.
04:23Yeah, no, definitely. It's, it amuses me that the sport, the sport of modern athletics has
04:29been going for, I guess, well over a century. And yet, I don't think national federations
04:37really quite know when the best time to pick a team is. So if you leave it until two or three
04:43weeks before the championships, then you pick people that are really in form, but at
04:47the same time, it doesn't give people much time to prepare if they know they're in the
04:51team. Whereas if you pick the team a lot, a lot sooner and earlier, it gives people longer
04:55to prepare. But then of course they might lose their form by the time the championships comes
04:59along. So, you know, here we are about a month before the championships with national federations
05:04picking their team. But is it, is it the right time to pick the team? Who knows? Nobody
05:08can never really put their finger on it. And at the same time, qualification for championships
05:14as well. I mean, we were talking over the weekend about it being so complicated these
05:19days, certainly for British athletes. You know, you have, we have world rankings, points
05:25and finishing in the top two, if you've got a standard and there's world athletic standards
05:30and UK athletics consideration standards. And, you know, it's, it's just quite, it's
05:36quite complicated for the, for the average fan who just wants to sit there watching the
05:40action and wants to be able to easily understand who's qualified for the major, major events.
05:45So, you know, both of those things, I don't think the sport has particularly nailed it that
05:50well when it comes to, you know, sorting out the best way to do it. And maybe there isn't
05:56a best way to do it. Maybe there's just different ways to do it. And as we move through,
06:00the history of the sport, things are done in different ways through different generations,
06:05who knows? But one thing's for sure, there'll always be selection scandals. You can always,
06:10you can always guarantee. So I'm sure when the British team is named, there'll be, there'll
06:14be some athletes who are up in arms and fans who are criticising it and so on and so forth.
06:20But that's, that's happened since, since the, since the dawn of time. So I don't think
06:26that will change.
06:27Absolutely. A good place to start in terms of looking back at the championships would
06:32be the sprints. And on the men's side, Zarnel Hughes was a convincing winner of both the
06:38100 and the 200. He looks like he's finding his form at just the right time.
06:44Yeah, Zarnel ran, ran really quickly. 994 in the 100, 1990 in the 200. I mean, these are
06:53really quick, quick times. And he just looked superb. He looked like he was really enjoying
06:58himself out there. Probably didn't really need to do the trials in order to qualify for
07:04the team. You know, he's that good. He's the British record holder. I'm sure he would have
07:08got picked anyway, but he said he just wanted, he wanted a run out, you know, he wanted to
07:12compete and fair play to him for doing that. I thought Zarnel was, was one of the absolute
07:18stars of the championship, if not the star.
07:20Yeah. And on the, on the women's side, there were some very interesting developments in that
07:26obviously Dina won the, the 200 championship record, but it was by fractions of a fraction
07:33of a fraction from, from Amy Hunt, who was, who was brilliant, obviously won the 100 and then very
07:41close to winning the 200 as well. And, you know, she was someone that sort of burst onto the scene
07:46back in sort of 2018, 2019 with her 200 meter exploits as a, as a junior. And, you know, she's had
07:55a few injury issues. She's completed her, you know, degree at Cambridge and things. But since moving
08:03out to, to Italy, to work with Marco, I rally, it's the, the, or sort of the fruits of the,
08:11the work that she's been doing with him there in Italy are, are starting to, starting to emerge.
08:17She's, she's been starting to show a lot of consistency.
08:22Yeah, no, it's great to see. I mean, as, as everybody knows, lots, lots of the, the so-called
08:27teen prodigies, you know, often fizzle away and kind of fall by the wayside once they get into
08:33the senior ranks, but Amy's not doing that. You know, Amy's really solidifying her career now
08:38as a senior athlete. I mean, she had a great weekend in Birmingham. She's had a great season,
08:42full stop. I mean, we've seen so many teenage talents kind of burn away and fall away. I mean,
08:49even in her event alone, I remember when I started Athletics Weekly, there was a sprinter called Sarah
08:55Will Helmy, who was touted as the next, the next big thing. Venetia James, another British 200 meter,
09:02one of these are all in, all in Amy Hunt's event. Venetia James won a world junior 200 meter title
09:10at the same championships where Usain Bolt broke through and Bolt obviously went on to do what he
09:15did, but Venetia just, just fell away, you know, injuries and various issues got in the way.
09:21You know, there have been so many teenage talents who fall by the wayside, but Amy Hunt's managing
09:27to, you know, she's emerged from the other side. She's come through that junior period and that
09:33difficult transition into the senior ranks, and she's really mixing it with the best now.
09:37And as you suggest, Ewan, we were, the 100 meters that she won at the weekend, we were kind of denied a
09:43little bit of a clash with Daryl Nita there because Daryl false started. But we then got the clash that
09:49everybody wanted the following day in the 200 with, with Amy versus Dina Asher-Smith and Daryl in the
09:56race as well. And, and it was a, yeah, it was a great, great race, which, which Dina just, just
10:01managed to win, but only just. Yeah. Well, another interesting development as well was that, that Dina,
10:06you know, mentioned that she's moved back to London, that she's, she's not working with Edric
10:12Florial in, in Texas anymore. So it'll be interesting to see how much of an effect that, that has leading
10:18towards the championships. Yeah, I think they always say a happy athlete is a, an athlete
10:24who's gonna, gonna perform well on the track and in the field. And I think Dina, I think she said at
10:30the weekend that she's a, you know, she's a London girl, really. She loves, loves London. She loves,
10:35loves being at home. So I'm sure, I'm sure she'll be happier now and, and, and, and will perform well.
10:41I mean, she was great at the weekend, so I'm sure she'll go on to have a, a really good rest of the
10:46season, fingers crossed. So Daryl Nita had a, you know, had a good run in the 200 as well. And it,
10:53it just all makes things look quite exciting. Whereas, you know, in terms of where the,
10:58the relay prospects as well, they've got quite a few athletes on form now.
11:03Oh yeah, definitely. I think, I think Dina and the rest of the athletes were saying at the weekend
11:07that the, the relay prospects are just looking really good now. So yeah, Britain's gonna have a,
11:13a really good, strong, certainly women's sprint relay at the world championships in Tokyo. And I
11:18think most of the other relay squads as well will be pretty strong. They'll, they'll all be in the
11:22middle mix. Yeah. And, and whenever there's a British championships, the middle distances are
11:27always a, a big focus. And we had in the, the men's 800, Max Bergen, uh, back in action again.
11:36Our concern with him has always been that he shows flashes of brilliance and then his body lets
11:41him down or injury lets him down, but feels slightly different this year. He said,
11:46hoping he hasn't just jinxed it.
11:49Yeah, no, it definitely does. I mean, Max, Max is another teenage prodigy. He was trying to emerge
11:54from the, into the other side, into the senior ranks, uh, unscathed. And again, he seems to be
11:59doing it now at last. Um, I mean, he really, let's not forget he breached the Olympic final last year.
12:04He had a, he had a good year last year, but so often in recent seasons, we've, we've seen him
12:09come out all guns blazing early in the, early in the summer runs really fast and then just gets
12:14injured straight away. Um, world championships, uh, when was it three years ago now? I think he
12:20and he ended up in a, in a mobility scooter due to a kind of, um, it was a deep vein thrombosis
12:28issue in his, in his leg, which he's picked, which he'd picked up on the flight. I mean, he just,
12:32he just has until now seemed to be a disaster zone when it comes to injuries and problems.
12:37And his latest one has been, uh, what's known as the sorel nerve that goes down the calf and
12:43the Achilles area. And that's been causing him a lot of problems. Um, but I died quite a long chat
12:49with him and his dad who coaches him at the London Diamond League. And they're fairly confident that
12:53it's under control. It's not gone away entirely. He gets some problems from it, but he does,
12:59he does manage it and, um, obviously running really well this, uh, this summer and he's had
13:05quite a few races now, ran a big PB in London and, uh, at the, uh, the British championships
13:12at the weekend ran just inside one 44, narrowly missed the championship record. And, uh, it was
13:19a really impressive run in blustery conditions. Uh, although it was somewhat, somewhat, um,
13:25um, putting, uh, well, made to look fairly ordinary later on that day when, when, uh,
13:31we had some, some, uh, certain results at the U S championships in Eugene, which I'm sure
13:36we'll come on to talk about in a moment where, uh, where a 16 year old run run even quicker,
13:42much quicker, in fact. Uh, but yeah, we'll come on, we'll come on to that in the second year.
13:46Oh, we absolutely will. I mean, and just quickly going on to the women's 800 side of things, Georgia
13:53Hunter Bell was another convincing winner and she's got, uh, a dilemma or a decision to make
14:00in the next couple of weeks about whether or not, uh, to go for the 800, the 1500 or both.
14:06And she's obviously, she's an Olympic medalist in the, in the longer distance. Um, it's just,
14:11it's quite a measure of how quickly, how, you know, quickly she's made progress since
14:16coming back to the sport, uh, you know, barely 18 months ago, if that, that she's,
14:21she's not only looking at being at another major championships, but that she has these
14:27big choices to make. Yeah. What, what do you think she should do? That's the big question.
14:3380 or 15? Uh, I, I think she has, there's a, the way the 800 is shaping up at the moment. I think
14:40there's a very real opportunity for her there at the moment that feels more open than the 1500.
14:46That's not to say that I don't think she has the chance of, of winning a medal in the, in the 1500
14:53as well, but the 800 feels like an opportunity for her. Yeah, no, I agree. I mean, if the timetable
15:00allows it, then why not do the double? I mean, I always think the double is a, is a classic option,
15:05which, which we obviously saw people like Cohen Ovette do years ago and Kelly Holmes and, and others,
15:10um, athletes don't seem to do it as much these days. I think it's partly because it's the,
15:15the timetable is, is not that, not that double friendly, but, uh, but yeah, if it's, if it's
15:20possible, then, then why not? Let's go for the double. Yeah. She seemed quite confident that it
15:25would, uh, it would work out. So yeah, yeah. It's in for a, in for a penny and all that. Um, and, and when it
15:33comes to the 1500, we had one of the great stories of the, of the UK championships weekend.
15:38Um, we saw Laura Muir sort of back in action and she looked like she was about to, um, to take the
15:44title. And then out of the corner of her eye, um, Sarah Calvert appeared on the outside and,
15:51and just pipped her to it. That was, that was a fantastic story. Yeah. Great race. I think that,
15:56I think there were quite a few good, really good races at the British champs, but yeah, that was
16:00certainly the, the, the pick of the bunch and a bit of a surprise as well. Really good breakthrough,
16:05breakthrough for Sarah. It was nice to say. Yeah. Yeah. And it was, uh, yeah, there was a
16:10heavy Scottish contingent, shall we say, battling it out for the, uh, for the prizes. Um, how good is it
16:17to see, uh, Laura back? I mean, I know she's only been, uh, she's only has a couple of races under
16:24her belt, but there were signs again in Birmingham, um, you know, that, that she, the fitness is starting to
16:29come back after her injury problems this year. Yeah, sure. I think, I think maybe Laura's been
16:35a little bit overshadowed in the last year or so, you know, partly due to the, the rise of athletes
16:40like Georgia Hunter-Bell and Keeley Hodgkinson, obviously over the 800. Uh, but she, you know,
16:45Laura's the real deal. She, she, if she's in shape, she's a major championship medal contender,
16:51for sure. Um, and she's, she, you know, she's really experienced now as well. So I'm sure she'll
16:55know how to play these last few weeks in the run-ups of the world championships to get herself
17:00in the best possible shape. And, and, uh, you know, if she ends up being the top, the top Brit
17:05at the world championships in the 1500, then I, I wouldn't be surprised at all because she's a,
17:09she's a class act. Yeah. And in the, the men's race, it was slightly different in that there was no
17:16Jake Whiteman due to illness. Um, George Mills wasn't, uh, wasn't running given his, uh, his,
17:24the problems with his wrist that he'd had, uh, Josh Kerr adopted to run the 5,000 meters given
17:29that as the world champion, he already has the qualification into the, into the world championship.
17:35So it was a, it was a slightly diluted field, shall we say, but there was a brilliant finish
17:41to it when, uh, Neil Gurley and Elliot Giles had a bit of a joust when Elliot fully admitted
17:47that he, he stepped out into Neil's path. And I think as we were talking about at the weekend,
17:53um, I think it was the first photograph I've ever seen where you can lip read exactly what,
17:58what, what one of the athletes thinks of it.
18:02Yeah. I think Neil Gurley had a few words with Elliot Giles immediately after the race,
18:06but I think they, they seem to get on quite well generally. So I think, I think, you know,
18:10it was, it was handshakes and making up, you know, literally five minutes later. I don't think
18:15there's any, I don't think there's any bad blood there at all. Um, yeah, I mean, we, we were saying, uh,
18:20uh, over the weekend that the men's 1500 meters has kind of gone from being the,
18:24you know, the, almost the blue ribbon events of the British, British championships with,
18:28because it's so stacked with, with quality and big names into being a, you know, as you say,
18:33a slightly diluted affair, you know, lots of the, lots of the big name athletes not in it,
18:37but it was still a great race. And, um, I mean, Elliot, Elliot was, uh, you know, a bit,
18:45a bit naughty to drift out like that. And, and, um, you know, he, he, he was, uh, it wasn't the
18:52right thing to do, but I think it's so easy, so easy to do. I mean, you can forgive him. I mean,
18:56when, when athletes are exhausted like that in the final 30, 40 meters of a race, and I think a
19:01little bit of kind of desperation kicks in the tying up, I think almost your body, your body kind of does
19:07things that, that, uh, that you don't expect it to do. You know, the body, the body takes over the
19:11brain. And, um, yeah, I think, I think we, we see athletes do that at all levels, you know, from
19:17grassroots right the way through to elite the whole time. It's very easy to do. And luckily nobody,
19:21nobody went over, you know, somebody had actually fallen. Um, and actually Elliot would have been
19:27probably most likely to have fallen in those circumstances, you know, that would have been
19:30a disaster, but it didn't happen. So yeah, it was a good race and it made for an exciting, uh,
19:36finish to that, to that race and made for some great photos as well. I think that the photos of,
19:41uh, of, of that little incident with a few meters to go, uh, were quite dramatic.
19:47Yeah. And what do you make of the 1500 meters, uh, generally this year? It's very different in that,
19:54you know, last year we were very used to the sort of soap opera between Jakob and Brixton and Josh Kerr
20:00and the war of words. And it's been, it's been much quieter. Obviously, Jakob's been injured.
20:05Uh, Josh has raced a bit, you know, we've seen things like the, you know, at the, the US trials,
20:13Jared Negus isn't even going to make it to the world championships. It's a very different
20:17sort of feel to it this year.
20:19Yeah, no, it does. Um, well, I guess things never stand still. So, you know, you'll, you'll always
20:25have newer athletes will come through. And I mean, as, as a Dean Habs, the Frenchman has, has been in
20:30really good shape, shape this year, for example. Um, there's others as well. Uh, and then I think
20:37maybe a bit of post Olympic, uh, syndrome as well, you know, there's, there's always a little,
20:42little bit of a post Olympic hangover and athletes would probably do things this year that they
20:48wouldn't do in Olympic year. I'm not sure someone like Josh Kerr would have, would have done lots
20:52of races in, in April, you know, April, May at Grand Slam track meetings, if it was an Olympic
20:58year, but because it's post Olympics, you know, he, he can, he can try and experiment with a few,
21:03a few things like that. Um, so, so maybe it's just, you know, it's a non-Olympic year.
21:09Things change the whole time. It is different though. Um, it's, it feels quite strange not to have
21:14seen Jakob Ingebrigtsen on the circuit this summer, uh, but I'm sure he'll be back during the,
21:19the tail end of the season. And I'm sure we'll see him firing on all cylinders in Tokyo. Um, and,
21:27uh, yeah, I'll just be really, I'm, I'm, I'm sure when they all line up to the 1500 meter final again
21:32in Tokyo, it will be a must watch event. I mean, whoever's in it, you know, there might be one or
21:37two of the bigger names like Yarad and the Goose missing, but it will be an absolute must watch
21:41event and possibly one of the biggest talking points of the entire week. So yeah,
21:46it's going to be slightly different, but still superb. I reckon.
21:50Yeah, I, I, yeah, I would agree with that. And it's, yeah, we're expecting to see Jakob racing,
21:56uh, later this month. So we'll see what sort of shape he's in. And I guess the same with
22:00Kayleigh Hodgkinson, who we haven't seen since the Olympic final, um, her, her winning performance
22:07in the Olympic final, which incredibly is, uh, is a year ago now.
22:13Yeah. Um, I mean, again, are these injuries to people like Inga Britson and Keeley Hodgkinson,
22:19is that a little bit of post Olympic, post Olympic, uh, syndrome or, or whatever the best word might
22:25be? I don't know. Would these injuries just have happened anyway? It's, it's hard to tell.
22:28Um, but either way, we, we hear that Keeley's back training now in good shape, you know, building
22:34up towards these, these, uh, races in the second half of the season and then the world champion
22:39championships in Tokyo. So, um, so yeah, it's, again, it feels slightly odd not to have seen
22:45Keeley race during the first half of the summer, but these things happen. Athletes get injured,
22:50don't they? So it's, uh, you're always, you're always going to have a few big names on the circuit
22:54missing at any one time. Yeah. And as you alluded to earlier on the, yeah, there was some interesting
23:00things going on at the U S championships, probably the biggest headline or one of the headline
23:05performances was in the men's 800. And we had the, when we had the 16 year old, uh, Cooper
23:12Luke in house, I hope I've pronounced that properly. Um, when he came second to Donovan, uh,
23:18Brazier. And so he's, he's now going to be the, the youngest ever U S athlete to, to compete
23:23at a world athletics championships. That's, that's quite a story.
23:27An incredible story. Yeah. Uh, I mean, we, we were still catching our breath from the,
23:33the UK champs on Sunday night and finishing our reports and stuff. And then the, then the news
23:38dropped of, of looking houses. What was it? 142, 27 at the age of 16. He's like 16 and a half years old.
23:47Um, I mean, I'm, I'm so unfamiliar with him. I found myself with our, if I was writing about
23:53him over the subsequent hours, I was having to look up his name again, just to check I'd
23:56spelt it right. Because I just wasn't familiar, familiar with his name. As an athletics writer,
24:01I can, I can write things like, uh, Big Gosh or, or Adam Kashot off the top of my head without
24:07having to look them up. But I had to look up this young lad's name because I'm just so unfamiliar
24:11with him. Um, but yeah, he's, he's going to be a name that everybody is going to know now going
24:16into the second half of the season. And it'll be fascinating to see how he, how he carries himself at the
24:22world championships in Tokyo. Um, I'm not sure whether anyone's even asked him this question
24:27yet, but I wonder whether he's even ever been outside the USA yet. Um, I mean, lots of Americans,
24:34they're not, they're not famed for their, their traveling outside of America. I mean,
24:39he may have been, I don't know, but I wouldn't be surprised if this is maybe his first, first, uh,
24:44international trip, certainly from a racing point of view. I can't see that he's done any races
24:49outside of America. Every race has been in the U S. Um, so yeah, it's going to be,
24:54it's going to be a real adventure for him and, and, uh, everybody's going to be glued to his
24:58800 meter heat in Tokyo in a few weeks time. It's going to be, going to be fascinating to watch.
25:03Yeah. The 800 is going to be definitely going to be another must watch and, and Donovan Brazier
25:10coming back to form as a, as another great story in itself. He was obviously the world champion in
25:152019 and then had all manner of injury problems that, that stopped him in his tracks. So to see
25:21him back as well and adding to this mix of, uh, incredible runners is, is great to see.
25:30Yeah. One of my, one of my old friends in the sport, uh, a physical therapist called Gerard Hartman,
25:35um, who lots of listeners all will be familiar with because he, he treated Paula Radcliffe.
25:40Um, he, he got Kelly Holmes onto, onto her first Olympic podium in Sydney in the 800 meters. She
25:47won a bronze there after she'd had Achilles problems. He, he managed to use his, his healing
25:52hands to get her, her in, in good physical shape to actually get on the podium. And I believe he was
25:59helping to treat Donovan Brazier in the past two or three years as well, uh, during his rehab from,
26:05from, from surgery. Um, so I think, uh, I think in the background that there have probably been quite
26:10a few people who have helped, uh, Brazier get back on track. And one of them is Gerard Hartman,
26:15who, uh, who's one of the best, the best therapists in the business, if not the best therapist. Um,
26:21I'm, I'm sure, uh, Brazier will sit down at some stage with, with somebody, hopefully AW and
26:27all, uh, recount the whole story of the comeback because, uh, yeah, it's a, it's a, he's been out for a long
26:33time and come back to run, not just as, you know, not almost as good as before, but better than
26:40before. He's run better, quicker than before. Uh, so it's really, really impressive. And again,
26:46it'll be fascinating to see how he gets on in Tokyo because he was a world champion, what,
26:51six years ago now. Um, so can he obtain a world, a world title six years later after spending much
26:57of that time on the sidelines with injury? It'll be really, really interesting to see.
27:01Yeah. And the, the sprinting side of things in the U S is never dull. And we saw, um,
27:08Noah Lyles and Kenny Bednarik, if, if Neil Gurley and Elliot Giles were having a bit of a joust in
27:14the 1500, then this, this pales in comparison compared to, um, Bednarik and Lyles who were sort
27:21of doing the old stare down and the shoving and the, yeah, having a bit of a war of words afterwards.
27:26It just builds everything up really, really nicely for when, uh, for when it comes to the,
27:31the championship events.
27:34Yeah. I mean, as a, as a Brit watching these results from, from abroad, I've noticed,
27:40I noticed, uh, something that said that it made the, the ESPN sports news roundup or something,
27:46uh, with the implication that the athletics doesn't often get into those kinds of roundups,
27:52but the Noah Lyles, Kenny Bednarik, you know, kind of stare off, um, managed to get their attention
28:00and made, made that news. Um, so it's interesting how media organizations get attracted to these kinds
28:06of things. Um, I have to say, it reminded me a little bit as well of, of Lance Armstrong's famous,
28:13it was described as the look, uh, where he, he was just about to sprint away from Jan Ulrich in the
28:18Tour de France years ago. And he, he just glanced over his shoulder and, and gave Ulrich a stare
28:25for, you know, two or three seconds before then just taking off up the mountain. Um, I think Armstrong
28:32has since denied it and said that it's just the way the cameras caught it and the way that the
28:36commentators talked about it at the time. And apparently he reckons he was just looking around
28:41to see where his teammates were. So he's kind of played it down in, in very recent years, but it is
28:46an iconic moment from the world of cycling. And yeah, Noah Lyles is, uh, look or stare was,
28:52was quite reminiscent of that. Yeah. Yeah. And on the women's side, uh, Melissa Jefferson Wooden looks,
28:58yeah, she's an incredible, um, incredible shape. And then on the other side, we've got,
29:05you know, Shikari, uh, Richardson, who, yeah, it's never dull when, when she's around,
29:11she was, she's around as well. She was arrested for, uh, allegedly assaulting her,
29:16her boyfriend, Christian Coleman. So, I mean, there are so many subplots and stories going
29:21around with these, uh, sprint races. There's certainly plenty to keep everyone interested
29:26in what's going on.
29:27For sure. There's never a dull moment in athletics. That's for sure.
29:31Yeah. I think we all saw the Shikari Richardson, uh, story and we were just rolling our eyes and,
29:37but, you know, amazed, but at the same time, not surprised. It's, you know, controversy seems to
29:43follow her around a little bit. And, um, you know, at least she'll be at the world championships as well,
29:47though. She has a bite of the championships. So she, she pulled out of the U S trials, but she'll
29:51be at the world championships. So, so, uh, yeah, we'll, we'll see what happens with her there.
29:56Uh, she's, she's not been in great shape, uh, this summer so far. She hadn't run that well,
30:00um, but there's still a few weeks to go before the world championships. So there's enough time
30:04for her to, to turn her form around.
30:06The AW Track and Field Legends Series is available now at athleticsweekly.com.
30:12In these exclusive interviews, Olympian and broadcaster Tim Hutchings speaks to figures
30:17who have shaped the sport. In the latest episode with Steve Cram, it's out now. Plus,
30:22you can also hear from Colin Jackson, Brendan Foster, Peter Elliott, and Sally Gunnell.
30:28These all form part of the new look athletics weekly subscription.
30:32To find out more, visit athleticsweekly.com. Now, as I mentioned earlier, the new issue of
30:38AW is out now, and we're having a good old fashioned wallow and nostalgia with this issue.
30:43Um, we've gone decade by decade to look at some of the biggest, best, most memorable,
30:48and most controversial moments during AW's lifetime since it first began in 1945.
30:54Um, putting it together was very much like stepping back in time, and so much has changed
30:59and evolved in that time. Um, there will almost certainly be something you'd disagree with about
31:04our list or think we've missed. So, uh, let us know what your top moment would be via our social
31:10media channels or email haveyoursayathleticsweekly.com. Um, Jason, you've got a long history with this
31:18magazine. Um, are there any moments during your time with AW that stand out to you, whether that's
31:24someone you've interviewed, an event you've seen, or something that meant the most to you?
31:29Um, I think for me, it's always Roger Bannister and the sub four minute mile. I mean, his performance
31:36always, or very often comes out top in, in polls that have been done like this over the years.
31:42Um, so, you know, it's hard to, hard to dislodge him from the number one spot in my mind, at least,
31:49but, you know, everybody has their own opinions on these things. Everybody has different views.
31:52Um, I mean, I kind of grew up during the Cohen Ovet era as well. So for me, you know, Cohen Ovet's
31:59clashes in, in Moscow in 1980 in particular were, were iconic. Um, but you know, everybody, you know,
32:07top moments mean different things to different people. Um, it would very much depend on what,
32:12what your event is, you know? So we, we've got listeners who are jumpers and throwers and sprinters
32:18and, you know, they, they, they would be probably likely to pick, pick top moments from, from those
32:24events. Um, you know, some people might have a top moments, which might be their training partner
32:30winning a, you know, setting a course record in a local 10 K race up the road, or, or maybe they,
32:35maybe they, they don't compete, but they stood as a spectator at the, uh, at the London marathon
32:41roadside, um, or, or maybe went to the London 2012 Olympics during one of the big sessions
32:47and spectated there. And that would, that would be their top moments. I mean, everybody has their
32:51own, their own particular special moments. And I think that's why this issue will be
32:56really popular because we're pulling in eight, you know, 80 years worth of, worth of
33:02athletics moments from not just in Britain, but around the world. And, and, uh, it's just the kind
33:08of thing that, that provokes debate, doesn't it? And I wouldn't be surprised if we get, if we get
33:13mildly inundated with lots of, lots of replies, especially on social media with, with people
33:19giving their, uh, giving their view. Yeah. We definitely want to hear from, from anyone who
33:24has, has thoughts about it. I mean, as you say, Jason, it's a very personal thing. And I, I think
33:30part of what the issue is, is trying to do is just to, to make the readers think about, about those
33:37moments of the past and, uh, to think about the sport and what it means to them and the, the athletes
33:42that, that mean the most to, most to them as well. Uh, I mean, it's hard to see past,
33:48as you say, sort of Roger Bannister. Um, but in terms of sort of moments that stick out in my
33:55mind as well, I'll never forget, um, many years ago, turning on the TV on a, early on a Saturday
34:01morning and hearing the news about Ben Johnson, uh, being disqualified from the, from the women's,
34:07from, from the men's hundred, um, after that incredible race, I remember that race and just
34:13being absolutely blown away by how fast, uh, it'd been run and how incredible it, it looked.
34:19And then, uh, and then you find out the following day, what, what exactly had happened.
34:23That's, uh, that was a, that was a story that had the headlines for the, the wrong reasons,
34:28but, but stands out, um, uh, as a sort of a key moment in time, I think. Um, and in terms
34:35of something that I've, I've been at and seen and witnessed, it's, uh, Jake Whiteman at the,
34:41at the world championships in 2022 winning while, whilst his dad Jeff was commentating in the stands,
34:47I think that's, that's a moment that's gonna, gonna live with me for, for a while. But, um,
34:52yeah, there's, there's so much. I think that's part of athletics charm is that there is such a depth
34:59of history to it as well. And, and looking back through, it can be, uh, can be a lot of fun.
35:07Yeah. And certainly, you know, anyone who's got an interest in all these classic moments,
35:11they should, they should go out and buy this issue if they don't subscribe already, because
35:15it's just, you know, it's just packed full of great photos and, and, you know, good summaries
35:20of the various moments and, and, uh, there's other stuff in the magazine, you know, we've got a
35:25lot of the regular columns as well, but the, the thrust of the issue is, is, you know, these 80
35:31moments and, uh, yeah, it's a great, great commemorative issue. And, um, we've, we've
35:37obviously moved a few years ago now from a weekly magazine to a monthly, but the monthly magazine is
35:42just a lot chunkier and glossier and, and, um, yeah, I mean, any, any fan worth their salt should
35:48have a copy of this issue, really. It's, uh, really a great read.
35:53Yeah. And it's also a reminder that you can look back through the past 80 years of the
35:58sport, thanks to the AW Digital Archive, uh, which features every issue of the magazine
36:04going back to 1945. And you can find out more about how to access that at athleticsweekly.com.
36:11Um, so that's it for this episode. Uh, thank you, Jason, for joining me. And we'll be back
36:16next month for more from the Athletics Weekly podcast, as we get ready for those world championships
36:22in Tokyo. Uh, we're in the midst of putting the world champs preview issue together as we speak.
36:27So keep a lookout for that one too. And in the meantime, don't forget that the August issue of
36:32AW is out now available via athleticsweekly.com and selected retailers. Please also like and
36:39subscribe to the AW podcast on your usual podcast platform. See you next time.
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