Firth. One of them asked, “Shall we walk for a bit?”“I’m not stopping,” I replied, and I carried on and won. From that point I thought of myself as a runner, and since then I’ve run eight or nine hundred races and covered 100,000 miles in racing

before a 10K, half-marathon, or marathon. The pace in these longer races will seem slow and easy by comparison.Goal: 5K for fun and fitnessHow often: Sixteen to 20 times per year.Why: If you hate speedwork, run a 5K every other week or so. It will help

-country 3%Triathlon 2%Trail races 2%Fell 1%Adventure 1%Ultra 1%I take part in races... Never 21%1-11 times a year 68%12-24 times a year 9%25-52 times a year 2%More than once a week 0%I also do these sports... Gym 16%Swimming 18%Walking (hill walking

Many elite runners plan their racing calendars a year or more in advance. There are some right now who know that in order to be on the starting line of an Olympic final in Beijing in August 2008, they need to hit an A-standard qualifying time in a

track, which cost close to £1 million to install, was mostly funded by Halifax Council and lottery funding, but the club itself raised £100,000towards the cost. "About six years ago our chairman decided to take the bull by the horns. He set about

the race has evolved into a perfect mixture of challenging yet rewarding half-marathon and 10K courses, electric atmosphere and strong PB-breaking potential. Glasgow also boasts 1.5K and 3K kids races that are the perfect way to introduce youngsters

in advance, you can never be too prepared for a race.Neil TillottTHE SHIRT New York City Marathon, 2000I ran my first marathon at London in April 1999, and so for 2000 I decided to tackle two 26.2-milers in a year. (I was 19, so it seemed like a really good

Q I know that long runs should be run slower than race pace, but can you explain why. I want to race at eight minute/mile pace at next year’s Flora London Marathon, so surely I should train at that pace? Also, if I run a half-marathon in January

runs, but add a weekly repetition session, such as 4-5 x 1-mile efforts, or 12-20 x 400m (with one-minute jog recoveries).3. Competition phase (four to six weeks), which should include some foundation and preparation work, followed by easy running

for the pleasure of running. Years running: 27 Hard training and application can take you a long way. On January 28, 1989, I ran 13:27 for 5000m indoors, winning the race by over 150 metres. I’d been running seriously for almost 15 years, but only then did I