The overwhelming sense you get when speaking to Jo Pavey is that she’s a woman who knows what she wants and is not about to be distracted from her goal. Her mantra – have a plan, but be flexible.

Covid-era training has tough one for Pavey, like so many athletes – especially those who use a track. Based in Devon, she’s not had the setup that more urban-based athletes might have access to.

Her local track is still closed and Pavey talks about how “one night I drove an hour to what I thought was the nearest open track, only to find that it was closed too. By the time I got home it was dark and I was frustrated, so I got on the treadmill and did a session while my daughter sat on the sofa next to me looking at me like I was a madwoman”.

Plans change and a good athlete adapts

Speaking to Jo at the launch of the Saucony Ride 13 shoe, she should have been running the Antrim Coastal Half Marathon just days later (13th) but instead she was preparing to sit in the commentators box.

She had initially planned to take part earlier in the year but 6 days beforehand lockdown happened and the race had to be postponed.

She was pumped for the season ahead and “had been getting down the track multiple times a week – I was really excited”.

So after having it all pulled out from underneath her it must be tempting to join in this time around, just to get some racing action. After all, she admits that “it’s hard to keep fitness levels when there is no competition” to drive it.

Pavey has a plan

She wants to become a 6 time Olympian and to do that she needs to qualify for team GB in the 10,000m.

But Jo knows it’s not that simple –  she’s a good deal older than the other athletes vying for a place and while experience counts for a lot, age brings with it the need to be careful.

So the plan is flexible. After a summer where she’s not been able to do her standard and much-loved test sessions of 400s but instead has been homeschooling and dealing with lock-down family life, the experienced athlete knows she needs to build carefully and not overload herself.

A niggle picked up mountain biking on a family holiday was the final nail in the coffin for the race in Antrim, though she’d already decided that she wasn’t really in race shape.

Be patient until the time is right

For now Pavey is focussing on maintaining carefully until it’s time to build for the 10,000m trials next year.

It’s a situation that in a lesser form, a lot of us are in at the moment. We’re carrying on running but with no hard goals to aim for until next year.

So perhaps it’s time to learn from the master. Jo embodies that ability to keep on churning away at the training without losing the love of the sport. As she reels off her favourite go-to sessions of 6 x 1mile, 90,60,45,30, 2x 15 tempo etc. you can hear the joy in her voice.

The Saucony endurance star talks of how she always likes to include a “fast bit” at the end of any workout and you can imagine just how that steely determination would kick in.

Finding new training routes at home

Like the rest of us she’s had to find new training routes that start from her back door, to avoid unnecessary travel. She laughs that “I discovered there isn’t more than 20 seconds worth of flat near where I live – I’ve done a lot more hill work over lockdown than ever before!”.

Jo Pavey talked to FastRunning at the launch of the Saucony Ride 13.

A “dynamic, lightweight but cushioned shoe”. Jo noted that because she has been unable to get to the track, the shoe has been ideal as it is responsive enough to do a workout but protective enough to be used all the time. Saucony provided FastRunning with a sample of the Ride 13 so we’ll let you know soon what we think of it.

The post Jo Pavey will be ready appeared first on Fast Running.

It was a fast week for parkrun with three women under 17 minutes and two men under 15. Considering Inter-Counties cross country is on the same day we normally see slower times, but such is the growing depth in British endurance running we’re seeing more and more strong performances.

International Women’s Day was certainly celebrated by fast ladies this week, but well done to all who made it out and ran or volunteered at parkrun this weekend.

Lauren Heyes was the quickest lady with an excellent 16:41 at Warrington parkrun in the north west of England. The Leigh Harrier has been in flying form in 2020 with a fifth place finish in the Northern XC Champs and eighth at the National a couple of weeks ago. After finishing 2019 with a 34:19 for second at the Percy Pud 10k we’re excited to see what the year holds for the Paul Roden coached athlete.

Kieran Clements is another athlete who we love to see running fast. With a 14:38 at Felixstowe parkrun in the south east just a week after just breaking 70 minutes at the Big Half in London, one wonders if that was just a training effort or pacing someone. The sub 14 minute 5k runner has been at the Ipswich Building Society Twilight 5K the last few years so expect another fast time there for the Shaftesbury Barnet man.

Lucy Reid is Tonbridge AC athlete and regularly breaks 17 minutes at parkrun, so no surprise to see a 16:49 run at Dulwich this morning. Reid was also in action at the Vitality Big Half in London last weekend and ran 72:49 for sixth in a really high quality British domestic field, which was also nearly a 60 second PB.

Edgar Sumskis was in action at Ferry Meadows parkrun and normally a 14:44 is quick enough for the top spot in our weekly rankings. The Latvian runner is a 3:55 1500m speedster so has some quick legs underneath him. It seems Sumskis had a tough day out at the National XC a couple of weeks back, finishing 56th after placing 23rd in 2019, but the year is young and the Newham & Essex Beagle had the whole year ahead.

Third placed female was household name Jo Pavey. The 46 year old is targeting her sixth Olympic games in Tokyo and a 16:57 at parkrun  is a parkrun PB for Pavey, who looks to have just jogged any previous morning 5k outings at the popular initiative. It’s worth adding that Pavey’s 5000m PB is actually quicker than 14:39 so around the same time that was top of the men’s rankings this week. It’s great to see a world class athlete like Pavey inspiring others by speeding around parkrun on a Saturday morning too.

After a while searching for which Dominic Jones was most likely to have run a 15:05 parkrun this weekend in Berkeley Green, a second (or maybe about 30th) glance at the results showed it to be Dominic James who had run the quick time. Thankfully we can now report than James, not Jones, is having a monster 2020 already. This parkrun best comes on the back of a 14:30 5k PB in Armagh and a 29:44 at Speedway 10k. Bravo.

Dulwich parkrun is once again our quickest event with three runners making the top ten, with a nice sprint finish for Joe Croft and Nick Torry in 15:15 and 15:16 respectively.

Men’s top 10

1) parkrun: Felixstowe
Kieran Clements, 14:38, Shaftesbury Barnet
2) parkrun: Ferry Meadows
Edgar Sumskis, 14:44, Newham and Essex Beagles
3) parkrun: Berkeley Green
Dominic James, 15:05, Cheltenham & County Harriers
4) parkrun: Alexandra, Moss Side
Arlo Ludewick, 15:08, Herne Hill Harriers
5) parkrun: Morecombe
Chris Richards, 15:14, Helm Hill Harriers
6) parkrun: Dulwich
Joe Croft, 15:15
7) parkrun: Dulwich
Nick Torry, 15:16, Serpentine RC
8) parkrun: Hove Prom
Finn McNally, 15:18, Brighton Phoenix
9) parkrun: Telford
Dylan Gillett, 15:21, Telford AC
10) parkrun: Bushy
Kurtis Gibson, 15:26

Women’s top 10

1) parkrun: Warrington
Lauren Heyes, 16:41, Leigh Harriers & AC
2) parkrun: Dulwich
Lucy Reid, 16:49, Tonbridge AC
3) parkrun: Exmouth 
Jo Pavey, 16:57, Exeter Harriers
4) parkrun: Oxford
Eleanor Bolton, 17:20, Robbie Valley Harriers
5) parkrun: Walsall Arboretum 
Kelly Butler, 17:23, Birchfield Harriers
6) parkrun: Beeston
Lauren McNeil, 17:24, Buxton AC
7) parkrun: Cannon Hill, Birmingham
Bryony Haines, 17:34, Birchfield Harriers
8) parkrun: Burnley
Laura Hesketh, 17:44, Clayton-le-Moors Harriers
9) parkrun: Burnham and Highbridge
Kate Drew, 17:45, Taunton AC
10) parkrun: Southampton 
Ellie Marie Monks, 17:48, Southampton AC

If you would like to run faster at parkrun, top tips to help runners of all abilities can be found here.

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The post 10 fastest UK parkrun times on 7th March (2020) appeared first on Fast Running.

The 37-year-old has won the last two races on the south coast, and victory on Sunday will make it an unprecedented hat-trick as he lines up for the seventh time in the world famous race.

No athlete has won three consecutive Great South Runs – and only Gary Staines has won three in total in the race’s 29-year history.

Thompson, fresh from winning his second consecutive Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run a fortnight ago, will go up against Aldershot, Farnham and District teammate Andy Vernon, who was forced to pull out of the half marathon in Glasgow owing to food poisoning.

Also lining up in the men’s race is 2012 Olympian Scott Overall, Libya’s Mohammed Hrezi and Euro XC team bronze medallist Alex Teuten.

Thompson, who competes in the New York City Marathon next month, said: “I’d be absolutely delighted to make it three wins in a row in Portsmouth. It’s a race which is close to my heart and to win it for the first time in 2016 was a massive moment for me.

“Everything is going in the right direction at the moment as New York draws near. I thoroughly enjoyed the victory in Glasgow two weeks ago and I’m determined to continue the good work into this race.”

Steel going for a double as well

Another athlete aiming for a repeat performance is Gemma Steel, who will return to the South coast a year on from her win in the 2017 staging of the race.

The Charnwood 32-year-old tasted victory in the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run 10K a fortnight ago and represented England in the Commonwealth Half Marathon staged in Cardiff last week.

Despite victories over 10K in Gateshead and Glasgow this year, Steel has struggled to replicate the form that saw her achieve the third fastest 10KM in British history, and will go up against two distance running heavyweights in Steph Twell and Jo Pavey.

Twell showed her versatility earlier this year when she represented Scotland over the 1500m, 3000m and 5000m in the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, while flexing her muscles over the half marathon in Cardiff a week ago.

She made her Great South Run debut in 2010 which remains her sole 10-mile outing to date.

Pavey, however, is no stranger to Portsmouth having won on two occasions in 2006 and 2012. The hugely-experienced Olympian is still going strong at the age of 45 and will be among the contenders for the race which is broadcast live on Channel 5.

Making her 10-mile debut will be European medallist Eilish McColgan. The daughter of two-time Great South Run winner Liz took her first senior silverware this year when she claimed silver in the 500m in Berlin over the summer. The Scottish international has not raced further than 10K in her career to date.

The Simplyhealth Great South Run is televised live on Channel 5 on Sunday from 10am until 12pm.

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The post Thompson going for three wins in a row at Great South Run appeared first on Fast Running.

Aly Dixon and Svein Arne Hansen will join Jo Pavey for a Q&A session at the Highgate Harriers’ Night of the 10,000m PBs on Saturday (May 19).

Pavey, the 2014 women’s winner, had already been announced as a speaker, and the addition of Dixon and the European Athletics President ensures the session’s line-up lives up the last year’s star trio at the Parliament Hill track.

Launched in 2013, the Night of 10,000m PBs had the ambitious hopes of improving British standards and showcasing 10,000m running in all it’s glory. When Pavey won in 2014 she qualified for the European Championships in Zürich before going on to win gold. That was the first year the event incorporated the British Championships and since then it has also acted as the British trials for the Rio Olympic Games and World Championships in 2017.

British international marathoner Dixon and her link to the Night of 10,000m PBs will always be remembered. In 2013, prior to the British Championships forming part of the Highgate Harriers’ showcase, the championships were held in Birmingham where Dixon was the only woman in attendance. As a result, the women’s race was cancelled leaving her as the sole female runner taking part in the men’s race.

This was one of the lowest moments for 10,000m running in Britain with few envisaging the glorious future that it now has thanks in a large part to Ben Pochee’s vision for the Night of 10,000m PBs.

This year’s event will also incorporate the European 10,000m Cup with some of the top long-distance runners from across the continent expected to make their way to Hampstead Heath, and the opportunity to ask the European Athletics president a question or two should not be missed.

The Q&A session will start at 6pm and as per 2017 will be held on the home straight of the track.

Meanwhile, as well as fireworks and enthused fans taking over lane three, this year’s event will have a pedestrian bridge over the track that will allow spectators to access the in-field and see the action unfold from multiple angles all of which will only add to the already fantastic atmosphere at the free to attend event for spectators.

You can watch a great recent interview with Svein Arne Hansen below where he explains why he wanted to integrate the European Cup team competition incorporated into the Night of the 10,000m PB’s.

The post Get your questions ready for Night of the 10,000m PBs appeared first on Fast Running.

The medal upgrades follow the disqualification of the results of the original medallists after their sanction for anti-doping rule violations.

Britain’s Jessica Ennis-Hill will receive the heptathlon gold medal from the 2011 World Championships in Daegu.

Jo Pavey will receive a 10,000m bronze from the 2007 championships in Osaka. It will be her first ever World Championships medal, while the original bronze medallist, USA’s Kara Goucher will be promoted to silver.

Two time 400m world champion,Christine Ohuruogu, will receive two bronze and one promoted silver medal for the 4x400m from 2009, 2011 and 2013. Ohuruogu will become Great Britain’s most decorated ever female athlete.

The USA 4x400m women’s team will also receive gold for the 2013 Moscow World Championships..

In total, 11 individual athletes and five teams from across 11 events at four previous IAAF World Championships have accepted invitations to receive their reallocated medals in London.

IAAF President Sebastian Coe commented, “I’m delighted that the athletes are properly honoured for their achievements and what better way than in front of passionate athletics fans at a major championship. For those receiving gold medals their moment in London will be all the more special as they will hear their national anthem played. Whatever their nationality clean athletes worldwide will celebrate with them.”

The post Jessica Ennis-Hill among athletes to receive reallocated medals appeared first on Fast Running.

The announcement means the USA’s Kara Goucher, who won the bronze medal in Osaka, Japan, will now to be awarded the silver, and Britian’s Jo Pavey will be awarded the bronze medal.

Today’s news will be welcomed  by both athletes, but also difficult to process no doubt, considering they most likely lost out on sponsorship deals, and sports body funding.

Since the 2007 World Championships, Goucher has went on to represent the USA in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the 2012 London Olympics.

Humbled by all the lovely messages. Thank you. It will feel real when I can hold the medal in my hands. pic.twitter.com/anvAiw8dNu

— Kara Goucher (@karagoucher) March 29, 2017

Reacting to the news, Goucher thanked fans for all their messages of support and said: “It will feel real when I (she) can hold the medal in my (her) hands.”

For Pavey’s, today’s news means she will be awarded her first global medal. The five-time Olympian has won Commonwealth and European medals.

Pavey said: “It is frustrating. I am thrilled with the news but it is kind of bittersweet because when I think back to those championships I was running as hard as I could, I had got myself in the best shape and it was a hot and humid day. I was in a medal position right until the line but couldn’t hold on.

“Instead of being a moment where I was thrilled at getting my first medal, I was lying on the track feeling totally despondent and frustrated, I felt that I had let everyone down,” Pavey revealed.

Thrilled to be confirmed 2007 World Champs Bronze medallist. Upsetting to have missed the moment & podium. Thanks for the lovely messages.

— Jo Pavey (@jopavey) March 29, 2017

It will be a boost for 43 year old Pavey, as she heads into the London Marathon next month, aiming to qualify for the 2017 World Championships this summer.

The post GB’s Jo Pavey and USA’s Kara Goucher are awarded 2007 World Championships medals after doping breach appeared first on Fast Running.