7 Jan 2021 | My running story |
After thousands of miles, runs in the dark, runs on icy pavements, dozens of muddy, slippery cross country races, tens of thousands of kerbs and almost ten years of running, today was the day when I took a tumble. Three miles into my run, I was on a riverside path...
2 Dec 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
“The organisers dubbed this race “Hell in Paradise”. I am sure that when they coined this phrase they never anticipated how right they would be.” This seven-day stage race lived up to its nickname in more ways than one. Eleven of the 27 starters didn’t make it to the...
18 Oct 2020 | Running and the menopause |
Earlier this year I interviewed ultrarunning adventurer Nikki Love about how the perimenopause has affected her running. Since 2016, Nikki has been undertaking ultra distance adventures, starting with the JungleUltra, a 5-day race through the Amazon jungle in Peru. In...
28 Sep 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
It isn’t too often that everything goes well and perhaps this is part of the attraction of the 24 hour race – the waiting for the perfect day and the perfect performance.Eleanor Adams The period from 1985 to 1990 saw top performances from Eleanor Adams...
9 Sep 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
Imagine a time when women did not run in road races. Imagine a time when women were told distance running would harm their health. Imagine a time when running in a marathon meant risking being jeered at or even assaulted. This time was in my lifetime. I was born in...
16 Aug 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
Road races in the 1950s in the UK were very different from today’s races. Most races were over 10 miles and distances varied. The only standard distances were 20 miles and the marathon. Petrol rationing ended in 1950 but the number of vehicles on the road was...
29 May 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
The first ultrarunning World Championships were created in 1987 when the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) held the inaugural 100km World Championships in Torhout, Belgium. What attracted top-class ultrarunners like Eleanor Adams to take part in this new...
20 May 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
British women have been very successful at the IAU 100km World Championships, taking seven gold medals, two silvers and six bronzes. They stand second in the medals table behind Russia who have won 19 medals. GB have won the team competition twice, placed second three...
11 Apr 2020 | Running after fifty |
Vanessa Walker chose to celebrate her 60th birthday in 2019 by competing in the Dukeries 30 ultra race with her two sons and six friends from her running club. Despite a very early start and 30 miles of running, she had enough energy left to attend her own birthday...
19 Feb 2020 | Women's endurance running history |
At 10.30 am on 27th April 1983, the New South Wales Premier fired the starter’s gun on a race that was to make a national hero of its winner and create one of the most famous Australian ultramarathons, the Westfield Sydney to Melbourne race. Eleven men lined up in the...
