With the Tokyo Olympics approaching, Alastair Aitken looks back on Ann Packer, who won gold and silver at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, and her husband Robbie Brightwell, who took a relay silver at the...
When I was 8 years old, I was taken, with my brother Ian, to my first ever big athletics meeting, which was the AAA Championships at the White City Stadium. My father, Colonel David Aitken, was a...
The Night of 10,000m PB's scheduled to be held at Parliament Hill Fields athletics track on June 5th 2021 has been cancelled, and the British Olympic 10,000m Trials and European Cup will now be held...
Olympic walker Vincent Paul Nihill died aged 81 on the 15 December 2020 in a care home, but as a competitive athlete he was among the very best race walkers in the world. For much of his life he lived...
The thoughts of everyone at Highgate Harriers are with the family, friends and club mates of Chris Smith of Thames Valley Harriers who has tragically died aged 43 whilst out running in the Perthshire...
On October 8th, George Gandy, the international coach, died in hospital aged 80. Anyone who is or was involved with high-level athletics will remember him as, countless Loughborough University...
Alastair's Favourite Games - 1968 & 1969 (August 2020) MEXICO 50 YEARS LATER (November 2018) Perhaps, the last really unusual venue and amateur Olympics was, in Mexico City in 1968. I went to Mexico...
Matt Shone and his impressive record (August 2020) Matt Shone only found his true single sport of athletics, when he was 20 and then, took it up seriously, both with his training and racing. He is an...
Flying Scotsman Bows Out (June 2020) Don Macgregor of Fife AC, was born in Edinburgh on 23rd of July 1939 and died in Scotland on the 3rd of June 2020. He was formerly married with three children. In...
Gordon the Legend for October BMC News (June 2020) GORDON PIRIE Alastair Douglas Gordon Pirie was born in Leeds on the 10th of February 1931 and died on the 7th of December 1991. I had spoken to...
Andy Green (May 2020) 25/11/42 - 18/4/2020 "I never heard a bad word said about Andy' remarked his brother in Law, Mike Tagg, the European 10k silver medalist of 1969 . He went on to say regarding...
Remarkable John Bryant (May 2020) John Bryant (25/4/44-29/4/20) John Bryant, Married to Carol with two sons Mathew & William, ran in 24 marathons. His fastest time was 2:21. That may not seem an...
Metropolitan League No 5 in February (April 2020) DYLAN EVANS won his third successive Metropolitan League race of the season, at Trent Park Alastair Aitken reports. Over a course with a few sticky...
Early days with Andy Green (April 2020) I used to talk a lot, about Andrew Green with his Uncle, who was a claims adjuster at LLoyd's, as I worked in insurance too. That was even before Andy came down...
The Last Double British Olympic Walking Medals (April 2020) To digress for a moment, the club I first joined in 1957 Highgate Harriers, had some of the top walkers in the UK and, in the War before...
Alan Corfield (March 2020) Alan Corfield, born London 20th of May 1933 died, after a lengthy illness in Devon on the 10th of February 2020. In 1949 he joined Highgate Harriers and later with his wife...
Peter Snell 17/12/1938 - 12/12/2019 When New Zealander Peter Snell died, in Dallas, on the 12th of December 2019, he was known as Sir Peter George Snell, OBE; PhD, as Director of The Human Performance...
FRATERNITY & SORORITY CUPS (November 2019) Trent Park Saturday November 23 ALEX LEPRETRE a trainee solicitor in Chancery lane, London, won his third successive Fraternity Cup. Alastair Aitken reports...
The most outstanding sub-4 minute miler in history (October 2019) Sir John Walker From New Zealand Bows Out The most prolific miler in history, to my mind, would be Sir John Walker, from New Zealand...
START FITNESS METROPOLITAN LEAGUE Claybury, Woodford 12/10/19 By Alastair Aitken After quite heavy & persistent rain, ABDI ABDULLEH, followed up his win in the Middlesex 10k road Championship, of the...
Middlesex 10K (October 2019) Sunday September 29 ABDI ABDULLE, for the third year running, won the Middlesex 10k. He improved each year consecutively 2017 (31:15); 2018 (30:54); 2019 (30:28). His...
The Russian Iron Man (September 2019) *** I remember being at the White City Stadium and, seeing the cinders being torn up by Vladimir Kuts of USSR in the 10,000m. After 4 laps he had an 80 yard lead...
Basil Heatley’s athletic success has been almost forgotten by many people but, few British distance men could claim the type of success that he had, over a space of 15 years or so. Basil was born 25...
The Most Astonishing Race in Tokyo in 1964 (August 2019) The Most intriguing Olympic track final was the Men’s 10,000 in Tokyo Olympics of 1964 It was on the 14th of October 1964, in the Tokyo Olympic...
Liz McColgan (July 2019) (Liz who was firstly married to Peter McColgan, the international steeplechaser. They had five children and one of those Eilish, has become a good international class middle...