Running News Daily

The 46-year-old sprinter explains why he still enjoys racing after being voted AW masters male athlete of 2024.

When Dwain Chambers settled into his blocks at the start of the 60m final in the M45 age group at the European Masters Championships in Poland this year, he felt as nervous as ever. At his peak, he won world and European indoor titles in 2009 and 2010 over the same distance, yet racing against fellow veteran sprinters in Poland, he was the big-name athlete whose scalp everyone wanted.

“I took it very seriously because I knew I could lose,” he says. “I was two or three metres ahead on paper but I still had to go in and prepare the same way. I knew I couldn’t slip up, as one of the other Brits would steal my glory. They were raising their level to compete with me, but I also had to raise my game.

“I was still just as nervous as always before the race. I still had to go to the toilet the same number of times before the race! It wasn’t easy.”

Chambers prevailed in 6.93. A few weeks earlier he had run even quicker, too, with a world indoor record for his age group of 6.81 at Lee Valley. The performances were enough to see him voted AW Readers’ Choice Male Masters Athlete of the Year. 

He first shot to fame as a talented teenager in the 1990s with a couple of victories in the European Junior Championships over 100m. A rollercoaster career ensued with a much-publicised brush with the anti-doping authorities. In more recent years he has impressed onlookers with his ageless athleticism, often beating athletes half his age as he continues to streak to super-fast times in his forties.

How did he find the masters scene? “After years of big crowds as an international athlete, I thought ‘what’s it going to be like?’” he says. “I promised myself for years that I was going to do a masters event and I was overwhelmed with the support I got and also seeing all these older athletes still doing what they love.

“Okay, they’re not running crazy fast times but they’re out there doing their best. They’re all having fun and enjoying it, which reminded me why I loved the sport so much as a younger athlete before it got to a point where it wasn’t so much fun for a while.”

Did he ever imagine as a young athlete that he’d one day do masters athletics? “Not at all,” he admits. “It didn’t cross my mind as a youngster. You just live in the moment. You move from race to race and if you have a short break then you have a holiday and you’re back on the ride again soon afterwards.”

Chambers believes more former elite athletes should give masters competitions a go, too. “I think masters competitions should be part of an athlete’s responsibility as it helps raise the profile of the sport and helps with longevity and keeps you going,” he says.

“It can help athletes who are close to retirement but maybe don’t know what they’re going to do during the rest of their lives. They can keep their foot in the door by doing masters athletics while figuring everything out. Once you go from being disciplined for 10-20 years to suddenly being undisciplined, it’s not a good thing. Masters allows athletes to do the sport for the pure enjoyment rather than worrying about agents and contracts and stuff like that.”

After testing positive for drugs in 2003, Chambers received a ban from the sport and was lambasted by the media. At the height of his infamy, Niels de Vos, chief executive of UK Athletics at the time, called for him to be banned from the GB team. Yet the sprinter always maintained a policy of fronting up to his mistakes and gradually, over time, began to win over fans and journalists with his affable personality. As this AW readers’ choice vote proves, the former pantomime villain of athletics is now a respected and admired figure.

Today he advises youngsters to stay on the right track and avoid drugs. It has struck a chord with athletes and parents, too, as his Dwain Chambers Performance Academy has now been going strong for several years with half a dozen coaches and a couple of admin staff helping him deliver sessions to children at Lee Valley in north London.

“We’re teaching kids life skills through sport,” he says. “None of them are guaranteed to become world, European or Commonwealth champions but we’re hoping they will become decent human beings. Once they find that they have an interest in athletics, we know we can help them through that process.”

Outside of coaching kids, Chambers offers his services to footballers and celebrities as well. “It’s cool to be able to bring athletics training into the fitness world,” he says.

In parallel with his own sprinting, he plays “Sellebrity Soccer” for charity as well. “During the first five minutes of the first game, I was absolutely destroyed as I was only ever used to running for 10 seconds or so,” he smiles. “So I keep it safe and play right back. I can’t risk twisting my ankle or anything.”

He turns 47 in April and can still mix it with some of Britain’s best sprinters as he reached the semi-final at the UK Indoor Championships earlier this year. Given this, what are the secrets of his longevity?

Eating a relatively clean diet and resting more between his harder sessions are high up on his list of priorities. “At first I still had the mindset of a 20-year-old but my body wasn’t the same as a 20-year-old’s,” Chambers explains. “So I would train hard for a few days and then it would take two or three weeks to recover.

“I can’t rest a lot between training sessions like younger athletes. I am coaching and looking after my own kids and have other responsibilities during the day which doesn’t allow me to just put my feet up.

“So I decided to work on my nutrition, which is something that I’d never worked on before earlier in my career. Those who pay attention to everything will always beat those who are only doing 85-90 per cent of the work.

“We probably have fish and chips once in a blue moon and takeaway every Friday but I don’t go beyond that. I just stay disciplined.

“I also run fast only about once every 10 days now. In between I will just do tempo runs or recovery runs. And this works for me much better than if I try to do speed, speed, speed the whole time.”

Chambers believes he can run faster in 2025 than he did in 2024 and has an ambition – albeit he admits it might simply be a deluded fantasy – to get back down to closer to the 6.42 for 60m and 9.97 for 100m that he ran a few years ago.

“There is naturally an element of me that thinks: ‘I’ve still got it’,” he says. “I sometimes ask myself if I’m the equivalent of being ‘punch drunk’!

“Yes, I ran 6.81 this year but it’s not 6.40 or 6.20. I think I can still run those times, but is it my imagination running wild or it is a reality? And that’s partly what still drives me.

“I look at what I did when I ran those times in the past and I wonder what steps I can make to get back to that point. Whether I can still run those times or not, or even get close, I’m not sure. But that’s my pursuit of happiness at the minute.”

One thing’s for sure, if he loses his ability to be competitive then he’s not sure he will continue. “I don’t know how many years I will have to go at a good level. Once that disappears I think I’ll be done. I love the thrill of racing and nervousness and everything that goes with it.”

If Chambers was the man to be shot at during the European Masters Champs this year, then the reverse will be true at the UK Indoor Championships in Birmingham in 2025. He is planning to target the event and is looking forward to giving the younger athletes a run for their money.

“I want to do the trials again this winter,” he says. “If I’m lucky and if I can find that spark again, I might get to the European Indoor Champs again!”

Jakob Ingebrigtsen brought his remarkable 2026 season to a fitting close on home soil, winning the men’s street 1500m at the inaugural Runfest Norway in Sandnes on Friday.

Competing in front of an enthusiastic hometown crowd, the Olympic and world champion took control of the race from the early stages and maintained his authority through the finish, stopping the clock at 3:40.7.

Andreas Fjeld Halvorsen followed in second in 3:43.3, while Sigurd Tveit completed the podium in 3:47.8.

The unusual street race added another dimension to the occasion, with 273 runners taking part on the same road and sharing the course with one of Norway’s most accomplished distance runners. For the recreational participants, it offered a rare opportunity to compete alongside Ingebrigtsen in an event that brought elite athletics and mass participation together.

The victory also provided a fitting final chapter to a season that began with significant uncertainty for Ingebrigtsen. After undergoing major Achilles surgery in February, the Norwegian was forced to miss a substantial portion of the summer campaign as he worked his way back to full fitness.

His return, however, quickly developed into another championship-winning chapter. In Birmingham, Ingebrigtsen captured European 5,000m gold before adding another major title at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest, where he won the 5,000m.

Those performances transformed what could have been a disrupted season into another year defined by championship success and a determined return to the highest level.

Now, with the Sandnes victory added to his 2026 record, Ingebrigtsen closes the year exactly where it began in spirit — overcoming adversity, rebuilding his form and once again competing at the front.

From Achilles surgery in February to major championship victories and finally a 1500m win before his hometown crowd, the Norwegian has given his 2026 season a memorable final scene.

Olympic 100m hurdles champion Masai Russell has announced her engagement to longtime partner Robert “Robbie” Springfield, adding a major personal milestone to the remarkable journey of one of America’s leading track and field stars.

Russell shared the news with her followers, revealing that Springfield had proposed and that she had accepted. Reflecting on their relationship, the Olympic champion described him as her best friend and expressed her excitement about spending the rest of her life with him.

The couple’s relationship dates back to their college years at the University of Kentucky, where both were student-athletes and competed in track and field. Russell established herself as a standout hurdler, while Springfield competed in the long jump, giving them a shared understanding of the demands, sacrifices and pressures that come with pursuing success in athletics.

Springfield has since transitioned from competition into coaching. A former collegiate long jumper, he is now part of the coaching staff at Morehead State University, where he works with the programme’s sprinters and jumpers.

Their relationship has developed alongside Russell’s rise to the top of the sport. The defining moment of her career came at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where she captured gold in the women’s 100m hurdles, securing her place among the sport’s Olympic champions.

Away from competition, Springfield has remained a familiar part of Russell’s journey, sharing in the demanding periods of training and competition that accompanied her pursuit of Olympic success. Their connection has consequently grown from a college athletics relationship into a long-term partnership.

The engagement now marks another significant chapter for Russell, this time away from the track. After reaching the pinnacle of her sporting career in Paris, the 100m hurdles champion is beginning a new phase of her personal life alongside a partner who has been part of her journey since their university days.

From competing on the same collegiate stage to building a future together, Russell and Springfield’s story has evolved alongside two careers shaped by track and field. The Olympic champion will now balance this new personal chapter with her continuing ambitions in athletics

The women’s race at the 2026 TCS Amsterdam Marathon is shaping up to be one of the most competitive editions in recent years, with a deep international field set to take on the fast Dutch course on Sunday, October 18.

At the centre of the contest will be four Ethiopian athletes who have already broken the 2:20 barrier, creating the prospect of a fascinating battle for victory and a possible assault on the course record of 2:16:52.

Defending champion Aynalem Desta will return to Amsterdam looking to retain her title after producing the biggest performance of her career at last year’s 50th edition. Desta won in a personal best of 2:17:37, establishing herself among the leading marathoners in the field and setting the benchmark for this year’s contenders.

Standing in her way will be fellow Ethiopian Meseret Belete Tola, a former Amsterdam champion who knows exactly what it takes to succeed on the course. Belete Tola captured the 2023 edition in 2:18:21, and her return adds another layer of experience and proven quality to an already formidable lineup.

The field also includes Mestawut Fikir Truneh, who arrives with an impressive marathon pedigree. Truneh finished runner-up at the 2024 Berlin Marathon in 2:18:48, demonstrating her ability to compete at the highest level on one of the world's major marathon stages.

Completing the quartet of sub-2:20 Ethiopians is Buze Diriba, whose personal best of 2:19:34 places her firmly among the leading contenders. With four athletes possessing credentials below 2:20, the race is likely to develop into a tightly contested battle from the opening kilometres.

The depth extends well beyond the leading quartet. Desi Jisa Mokonin, representing Bahrain, Yeshi Kalayu Chekole of Ethiopia and Nazret Weldu Gebrehiwet of Eritrea have all established themselves as serious marathon competitors with performances approaching the 2:20 mark.

Another major name to watch is Abeba Aregawi, the former 1500m world champion representing Sweden. Aregawi has successfully transferred her talents to the marathon and made headlines earlier this year by setting a Swedish national record of 2:23:12 on her debut. Her presence adds another intriguing dimension to an already high-quality field.

Amsterdam’s marathon course has consistently provided an opportunity for elite athletes to produce fast times, and this year’s women’s lineup has the depth to turn the race into a genuine test of both championship racing and outright speed.

With four athletes already inside 2:20, two former Amsterdam champions returning to the start line and several other accomplished marathoners ready to challenge them, the battle is expected to remain open deep into the race.

The ultimate target will be the Amsterdam women’s course record of 2:16:52. Whether the leading contenders can threaten that mark remains to be seen, but the quality assembled for October 18 ensures that the record will be firmly in the spotlight when the race reaches its spectacular finish inside the Olympic Stadium.

The 2026 Valencia Half Marathon is shaping up to be a thrilling contest of speed, endurance and tactical brilliance, with some of the world’s finest road runners set to converge in Spain on October 25.

Kenya’s Daniel Ebenyo and Alex Matata will be among the leading contenders, facing a formidable Ethiopian challenge spearheaded by Jemal Yimer and Tadese Worku. The field also features Rodrigue Kwizera, who boasts the fastest personal best among the leading entrants at 58:16.

Ebenyo arrives with a personal best of 59:04, placing him firmly among the athletes capable of sustaining a demanding pace over the 21.1-kilometre distance. Matata, who owns a 59:11 best, adds further Kenyan strength, while Andrea Kiptoo brings another sub-60-minute credential to the race.

Yimer has already established himself as one of the fastest athletes in the field with a 58:33 personal best, while Worku has clocked 58:35. Kenya’s Owen Korir, with a best of 58:58, further underlines the remarkable depth of the men's lineup.

Valencia Half Marathon 2026 Entries

1. Rodrigue Kwizera (Spain) — 58:16

2. Jemal Yimer (Ethiopia) — 58:33

3. Tadese Worku (Ethiopia) — 58:35

4. Owen Korir (Kenya) — 58:58

5. Daniel Ebenyo (Kenya) — 59:04

6. Alex Matata (Kenya) — 59:11

7. Andrea Kiptoo (Kenya) — 59:11

8. Thierry Ndikumwenayo (Spain) — 59:42

9. Said Mechaal (Spain) — 1:00:24

10. Adel Mechaal (Spain) — 1:02:30

Kwizera, who finished second in Valencia last year, leads the field on paper and will be seeking another standout performance on the famously fast Valencia course. With several athletes carrying sub-60-minute credentials, the race has the ingredients for an aggressive battle from the opening kilometres.

Beyond the headline names, the men’s field is deep and highly competitive, bringing together a strong collection of experienced international athletes with proven ability over the half-marathon distance. With so much quality packed into the lineup, the race promises an intriguing battle in which tactics, endurance, positioning and finishing speed could all play a crucial role in determining the eventual champion.

Yet personal bests will count for little once the gun goes off. The title could ultimately be decided by patience, positioning and the ability to respond when the pace begins to rise in the closing stages. Every surge, every tactical move and every second saved could prove decisive on the road to the finish.

With Kenya, Ethiopia and Spain represented by athletes of exceptional quality, Valencia promises a high-octane men's showdown in which the leaders are likely to be separated by only a handful of seconds. The final kilometres could provide the defining moments of a race packed with speed, ambition and anticipation.

On October 25, the question will be simple: who has the strength to command the streets of Valencia and claim the coveted half-marathon crown?

 

April 19, 1982. The Boston Marathon unfolded under unusually warm, sunny conditions, and by the closing stages, the race had become a private battle between two very different American runners: Alberto Salazar, already one of the biggest names in distance running, and Dick Beardsley, the Minnesota runner who had emerged as a serious marathon contender.

For roughly nine miles, from the Newton Hills toward the finish, Beardsley did much of the leading, with Salazar tucked close behind. Neither man could shake the other. They ran deep into Boston locked together, trading surges and refusing to surrender an inch as the crowds along the course grew louder.

Salazar finally made his decisive move with less than a mile remaining. He opened a small gap, but Beardsley refused to disappear. The Minnesota runner chased him through the final streets, closing again as they approached the finish.

Then came the final sprint.

Salazar held his form and reached the finish first in 2:08:52, with Beardsley only two seconds behind in 2:08:54. It was an extraordinary result: both men broke 2:09 in the same Boston Marathon, and both shattered the previous course record.

The race became known as the “Duel in the Sun,” and it remains one of the most celebrated head-to-head battles in Boston Marathon history. Beardsley had not won, but his performance established him as one of America's elite marathoners.

For Salazar, however, victory came at an enormous physical cost. Immediately after crossing the finish line, he collapsed and required emergency treatment, including several litres of intravenous saline. The combination of heat, dehydration and an all-out effort had pushed his body to the limit.

Salazar's marathon career would never again produce quite the same kind of performance. His celebrated 1981 New York City Marathon victory had produced what was initially considered a world record, although the course was later found to be short. His Boston triumph therefore became one of the defining victories of his career.

Beardsley's story would take an even more difficult turn. Injuries disrupted his career, and after returning to the highest level, he suffered a devastating farm accident in 1989. Further accidents, surgeries and severe physical pain followed, eventually leading to a long battle with painkiller addiction.

He eventually overcame that struggle and transformed the darkest chapters of his life into a story of recovery, resilience and redemption.

That is what makes the 1982 Boston Marathon more than a two-second victory.

For one extraordinary afternoon, Salazar and Beardsley produced a marathon duel in which neither man was willing to give way. One crossed the finish line first. The other finished only two seconds behind him.

Two seconds separated them at Boston. Decades later, their legendary duel remains one of the greatest chapters in marathon history.