Our year in pictures
As the new year edges ever closer, it’s time to pause and take a look back at some of the fantastic athletics and running moments of the last twelve months.
December
As our attention moves to Christmas and the new year, clubs and RunTogether groups up and down the country have been donning fancy dress for their sessions, or even organising their own Food Bank Runs to help those in need this festive season.
November
In November we were delighted to celebrate the amazing clubs, coaches, leaders and officials who keep our sport going 365 days per year. We travelled to the nine different regions to gather together and mark their outstanding achievements at the Regional Volunteer Awards.
In November, we also celebrated one year since the launch of the Personal Best Foundation!
October
October saw the Talent Pathway team welcome a brand-new cohort of athletes to the Youth Talent Programme, the Junior Talent Programme, the Para Academy and the Senior Programme.
October also saw funetics support their 20,000th child as part of the Commonwealth Games Legacy project.
In October, we also formally assumed responsibility for the licensing of coaches at all levels and officials at levels 1-3 in the UK.
September
September was all about getting to know the athletics and running community. From the Great North Run, to success on the mountains, brand-new track openings and helping student athletes settle into the new term, it was great to see all the fantastic work of the athletics and running family.
August
Not only did we have success on home soil with two England Athletics Championships in August, but we also had the most successful Commonwealth Youth Games team to date representing England at the 2023 Trinbago Commonwealth Youth Games. The team brought home a staggering 24 medals, games records and countless PBs.
Read Commonwealth Youth Games roundupJuly
This summer was all about getting all ages and abilities involved in athletics and running.
There were some fantastic innovations and initiatives driven by clubs and competition providers to make athletics fun and exciting for all involved as shown at Shrewsbury AC and Norfolk Festival of Sport.
June
In June we celebrated Pride Month with London Frontrunners and found out all about what makes their club so welcoming and inclusive.
We also celebrated UK Coaching Week by catching up with the wonderfully dedicated founders and coaches, Debbie and Mark from MadRunners.
May
May saw the start of the England Athletics outdoor track and field season with England teams representing at Loughborough International. It was a scorching weekend in Manchester for the England Senior and Under-20 Combined Events Championships. The conditions were perfect for Reading’s Sammy Ball as he broke a 13-year-old record for the U20 men’s decathlon!
In May we attended Parliament with our key stakeholders from the sector for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Running to champion the benefits mental health and running - campaigning for MPs to put this at the forefront of their policy making.
April
As April descended so did marathon fever with the return of the London Marathon to its April home. Alongside Olympic and marathon legend, Jo Pavey, we helped to surprise and settle the nerves of two runners from affiliated club Hereford Couriers who had gained their two club spots in the historic race.
March
During March we were lucky enough to catch-up with international level athletes Youcef Zatat and sprinter Nabil Tezkrat to learn more about observing Ramadan as a competitive athlete, how they manage training and competing during a period of fasting and how coaches and clubs can support their athletes during this time.
We also caught up with the inspiring panel of Lizzie Bird, Laura Turner-Alleyne, Paula Dunn and Sarah Benson to mark International Women’s Day and hear about their journeys in the sport.
February
February was the month of England teams as England Athletics were represented across the road, cross country and indoors!
January
The year got off to a fantastic start as five members of the athletics and running community were recognised in the New Year’s Honours List. These included: Denise Lewis, Aston Moore, Peter Crawshaw, Wendy Haxell and Sian Thomas.
