Learning From the Legends,pt.5

I have commented on Derek Clayton previously,he was a great runner. For fun,next time you're out on a run ask one of your buddies if they know who Derek Clayton is. I wouldn't be at all surprised if most don't have a clue. The following is an excerpt from Brian Lenton's book entitled Interviews.Derek Clayton was the first marathoner under 2:12,2:10 and 2:09.

He was the first marathoner to run sub-five minute miles for the marathon distance.His 1967 world record(2:09:36) at the Fukuoka marathon lasted 14 years and withstood the attempts of the greatest marathoners of the late 60's and 70's. On May 30,1969 Clayton again set the world marathon mark with a time of 2:08:33,this record stood until 1981. Between 1965 and 1974 Derek ran 22 marathons in which he had 14 wins and 4 dnf's. At 6'1" and 160 pounds he was physically a giant among the runners of his time and would be considered a big man even today.

I know I've said this about certain other runners before but when Derek Clayton gives advice on running,everyone who wants to do better in athletics should listen.Question: What advice would you give to those who want to achieve running success?"First off, decide what your goal is and make it a reasonable one.Then choose a training system that will lead to that goal. Stick to your training regimen,don't vary or change it to avoid training alone,be an individual. I always had a very logical approach to training,we all tend to complicate things too much in life. Next, keep a training log and,as I said, know your distance by running it many times in training. If you train properly you will gain mental fortitude. I believe the difference between myself and many others was mental fortitude. I ran believing in mind over matter."

Well, there you have it,the advice Clayton gives above is all someone needs to know to achieve running success.