Still Running (weakly). Issue 66

PAST – inspiration – The death of George Rhoden (Jamaica) on 24th August marks the end of an era. That Caribbean nation had not won an Olympic gold until Arthur Wint won the 400 in 1948. Compatriot Herb McKenley came second in that race, as well as in the 1952 100 and 400. Wint himself gained silver in both the 1948 and 1952 800s. And Rhoden won the 400 in the latter games.

Finally, Rhoden, Wint and McKenley teamed up with Leslie Laing to win the 4x400 by 0.1 seconds from the USA, securing McKenley his only gold. He is still the only male athlete to make Olympic finals at 100, 200 and 400 (Allyson Felix, and possibly other women, have done so.) Gold for such a tiny nation was and still is a pretty big deal, especially as the United States have won 22 of the 26 editions of that event.

Wint joined the RAF during the war and competed regularly on south London tracks like Tooting Bec and Motspur Park, where my father saw him run – “a huge man,” he used to say (Wint was 6’4” but looked even taller because of his long legs), “not an ounce of fat on him, beautiful to watch.”

He died in 1992, McKenley in 2007 and Laing in 2021, before Rhoden, aged 97, sadly followed his pioneering team-mates this year.

PRESENT – perspiration – On Sunday, I ran my club’s Dream Mile track race, so called because most of us do it dreaming that we are decades younger and minutes quicker. I clocked 12 minutes 39 seconds, handicapped by necessary drugs that drastically limit my blood’s oxygen-carrying capabilities. It is a speed that, back in the 80s and 90s, I could easily maintain for 24 hours!

No matter.

The pain in my legs, the thumping in my chest and the sweat on my brow were the same as ever, reminding me of the time that an ageing runner once complained to running writer George Sheehan, “You know, Doc, we used to be good.”

Sheehan didn’t miss a beat: “We’re as good as we ever were. We’re doing the best we can with what we have. You have an injury and I have an illness. But we’re still out here, giving our all. No one can do more, or should do less.”

And, as Samuel Beckett, once said, “Perhaps my best days are gone… But I wouldn’t want them back, not with the fire in me now.”

FUTURE – suggestion – It’s September, which means it’s a great time to plan your winter racing and your 2025 targets. I will never get bored of boring you with my number one running rule (apart from the one about not running with scissors in your hand) – set yourself a target.

Commander Charles Wylie (ex-Royal Navy), who celebrated his 90th birthday with a parachute jump and his 91st by, on 12th August, rowing across Portsmouth Harbour, said, "I'm conscious of the principles of war and they are applicable in life, in business, in sport, in romance – and the first principle of war is the aim.

"Establishing a clear aim makes all the difference in your life."