The 60-year-old endurance athlete would possibly dread the considered having to speak about her working prowess, however her exploits have been not possible to disregard in 2024
Barely per week glided by in 2024 when Clare Elms didn’t break a world or British file within the W60 age group. The outstanding endurance runner from Beckenham went underneath the five-minute barrier for 1500m with 4:57.14, gained a number of medals on the European Masters Indoor Champs in Poland and, such are her excessive requirements, was barely disenchanted to run “solely” 18:35.95 for 5000m.
She was a transparent winner as your British feminine masters athlete of the 2024. What’s extra, such is her recognition, a 13-minute profile of her on the athlete Callum Elson’s YouTube channel has been watched by nicely over 40,000 folks in current weeks. She’s not completed but, both, with plenty of races nonetheless scheduled for the end-of-year interval.
Regardless of this the 60-year-old stays humble and nearly embarrassed to be positioned within the highlight. “I hate speaking about myself,” she says, “so I had this horrible dread once I heard you have been going to name!”
Elms appears extra eager about listening to a sneak preview of the names of her fellow award winners. “I’ve two pages within the journal simply on me?” she asks, scarcely believing the eye.
Clare Elms (Mark Hookway)
Throughout our interview she is then eager to thank the numerous officers who’ve marshalled or recorded her performances, giving a selected point out to Miriam Dorrity. “She’s been at so lots of my races.”
Elms can also be grateful to her package sponsor, Soar, who’ve demonstrated that age isn’t any barrier in terms of supporting athletes.
This outstanding endurance athlete started coaching severely round 15 years in the past after giving delivery to triplets. As a teenager she was conscious she had extra expertise than most however didn’t pursue athletics at that age. As a substitute, she started to work within the metropolis earlier than later becoming a member of Beckenham Operating Membership.
She believes the truth that she didn’t run a lot in her youth has contributed to the relative freshness she feels in her legs in comparison with extra battle-weary rivals. Even now, Elms hardly ever goes past 50 kilometres per week in coaching.
Clare Elms
“I might say that by no means having achieved a great deal of miles is a serious motive for my working nicely now,” she says, “and making an attempt to deal with high quality classes is vital. Additionally, consistency and making an attempt to progressively enhance with out ever over-doing it. You must be actually decided as nicely.”
Elms has raced nicely over 50 occasions already this yr, with an estimated eight world information and 16 British information, plus after all loads of cross-country outings and relay races for her membership.
Which race is she most happy with in 2024? “The 3000m at Tonbridge [a British 3000m record of 10:33.34] and I used to be clearly delighted to run the 4:57 for 1500m in Tooting.
“Each time I attempted to do something it was all the time fairly windy so to ultimately break 5 minutes there was actually pleasing. I fairly loved the Vitality street mile in London, as nicely.”
Clare Elms and Terry Sales space (Cliff Disguise)
Elms turned 60 on Boxing Day final yr however she felt it took her a little bit of time to seek out her kind throughout 2024. “I form of raced myself match,” she says, forward of having fun with her greatest races in August.
Coached by Steve Smythe, a long-time member of the AW staff who retired from athletics journalism just lately, Elms is aiming to run even faster subsequent yr.
“I’m hoping my momentum will run into subsequent yr and I don’t see any motive why I can’t run quicker in 2025,” she says. “I’d like to get again inside 18 minutes for 5km. I simply must get the fitting race… and the fitting climate.
“I nonetheless really feel like I haven’t been doing this very lengthy,” she provides. “I nonetheless really feel like I’m studying. Particularly mixing with folks like Steve, who has been round for much longer than me. At 60, my occasions are dropping off, which is usually a little upsetting, however I simply have to simply accept that I’m 60 and that is what’s going to occur. The game nonetheless provides me pleasure due to all of the information to focus on and masters championships, which assist preserve issues attention-grabbing.”
Elms usually finds herself in observe races rubbing shoulders with 13-year-olds and “feels sufficiently old to be their granny”. However she says: “I take pleasure in racing the younger athletes extra as a result of there’s no strain. Nonetheless if in case you have a very good race with masters, they have a tendency to tempo issues higher. [You find] 13-year-olds don’t tempo their races too nicely! I do get extra confused racing folks of my very own age because it means extra to me to beat them.”
Clare Elms (Gary Mitchell)
Clare Elms’ greatest races in 2024
Jan 28 – British Masters 3000m Championships, Sheffield, First, 10:48.14 (missed the world file by 0.01)
Feb 2 – Ealing Highway Mile, 5:33 (world and UK greatest)
Feb 18 – BMAF Championships 1500m, Lee Valley, First
Mar 17-23 – European Masters Championships, Toruń, First in 800m, 1500m, 3000m, cross-country particular person and staff
Could 6 – BMC Oxford Mile, 5:30.88 (UK greatest)
Jul 17 – Wimbledon Mile 5:26.13 (world file); 1500m cut up 5:05.04 (UK file)
Jul 27-28 – BMAF Championships, Derby, First in 800m and 1500m
Aug 6 – Tonbridge 1500m, 5:03.95 (UK file)
Aug 15 – Aldershot 1500m, 5:02.22 (UK file)
Aug 17 – Southern League, Ware 800m 2:29.64 (UK file)
Aug 17 – Southern League, Ware 1500m 5:02.09 (UK file)
Aug 26 – Tonbridge 3000m 10:33.34 (UK file)
Aug 31 – Veterans AC 1500m Championships, Tooting, 4:57.14 (world and UK file)
Sept 4 – Tooting Mile 5:25.19 (world and UK file)
Sept 21 – Westminster Mile 5:21 (world greatest)
Sept 28 – Canterbury 5000m 18:35.95 (UK file)
Oct 26 – Wolverton 5 30:44 (world greatest)
Nov 16 – Masters Worldwide Cross Nation, Belfast, W60 gold
» This text first appeared within the December concern of AW journal. Subscribe to AW journal right here, take a look at our new podcast right here or signal as much as our digital archive of again points from 1945 to the current day right here
