AW Magazine

5 January 2023

The first AW issue of 2023 centres around one of athletics’ most colourful and influential stars – world 200m champion Noah Lyles. The American always has one eye on the future and, in a wide-ranging exclusive interview, he outlines how he intends to help grow his sport from the inside out and expands its audience. Lyles sees athletics as a sport which needs to modernise and, elsewhere in the pages of the magazine, coach Jon Shepherd spells out how some forward thinking is needed when it comes to the increasingly difficult task of finding the right facilities to mentor his athletes. It is, he says, a growing issue which needs urgent attention but could ultimately also change coaching for the better. In the interests of also stepping into the new year on a positive note, the AW team has compiled 23 reasons to love athletics in 2023 – from the unrivalled drama it provides through to the crucial role still played by the humble safety pin! This month’s packed performance section also contains some ideas from author Christopher McDougall about how to reboot your running, while we also look at how to get your warm-ups right, Paul Freary reviews the latest footwear and Paul Halford examines how you can save yourself some money by prolonging the life of your running gear. There is also an exclusive interview with European superstar hurdler Femke Bol, as well as an honest and open chat with Laura Weightman about her long road to recovery after being sidelined with serious injury. Katharine Merry writes about what she is looking forward to most in the coming months, while My Greatest Race features Mark Richardson’s recollections of beating Michael Johnson in a 400m clash to remember. Top top it all off, multiple global triple jump champion Christian Taylor is our start guest in this month’s Ask the Athlete.