Last night, I was Simone Biles win her third gold in the Olympics on the Vault.
Even for me, who has no real knowledge of gymnastics but endless admiration and amazement at what gymnasts do, it was apparent that she was a clear head and shoulders above her competition. This was literally true when thanks to today’s photography, camera work, motion capture and what not, you could see the height and range she achieved. It was simply wow.
When I woke up in the morning, I read that Katie Ledecky had become the most decorated female swimmer in Olympic history.
While running, I thought about these amazing athletes and their ever powerful world record breaking feats. What it must feel like to be that young, competing at the highest level, striving to win medals for yourself and your nation. I can only try and imagine – but no imagination can put one in their shoes.
The young boy and I ran together. We took unusual routes today and I switched off the lap function on my watch. Run footloose and fancy free, I thought. We played our game of naming places – Atlas – each to start with the last alphabet of the previous place and the kilometres ticked themselves off.
When he left, I carried on with my Sunday morning long run. Putting on some music, I decided to run a bit faster than usual. When it was done, I was as always grateful to these Sunday mornings that mean so very much to me – a punctuating and metronome like predictability of routine and satisfaction.
Writing about Running 