Emil Zátopek was a Czech long-distance runner best known for winning three gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. He won gold in the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres runs, but his final medal came when he decided at the last minute to compete in the first marathon of his life. He was nicknamed the "Czech Locomotive".
Ronald William Clarke, AO, MBE was an Australian athlete, writer, and the Mayor of the Gold Coast from 2004 to 2012. He was one of the best-known middle- and long-distance runners in the 1960s, notable for setting seventeen world records.
Alain Mimoun, born Ali Mimoun Ould Kacha was an Algerian-born French long-distance runner who competed in track events, cross-country running and the marathon. He was the 1956 Olympic champion in the marathon. He is the most bemedalled French athletics sportsperson in history. In 1999, readers of the French athletics magazine Athlétisme Magazine voted him as the “French Athlete of the 20th Century”.
Robin Mark Askwith is an English actor, singer and former model who has appeared in a number of film, television and stage productions.
Joss Naylor, MBE is an English fell runner who set many long-distance records, and a sheep farmer, living in the English Lake District. As his achievements increased he became better known as the King of the Fells or simply the Iron Man.
Steven Howard Hahn is Professor of History at New York University.
Douglas Alistair Gordon Pirie was an English long-distance runner. He competed in the 5000 m and 10,000 m events at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Olympics and won a silver medal in the 5000 m in 1956, placing fourth in 1952. Born in Leeds, Pirie grew up in Coulsdon, Surrey, and ran for the South London Harriers. He died of cholangiocarcinoma in Lymington, Hampshire.
Frederick Norris was a British long-distance runner.
Sir Christopher Alan Bayly, FBA, FRSL was a British historian specialising in British Imperial, Indian and global history. From 1992 to 2013, he was Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History at the University of Cambridge.
Stanley Ernest Walter Cox was a British athlete who competed in two Olympic games in 1948 and 1952. Born in Wood Green, England, he served with Royal Air Force in World War II before competing in the 10,000-metre event at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Unable to participate in the 1950 British Empire Games, he returned to the Olympics in 1952, although he did not complete his event, the marathon, due to the flu. At the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, he suffered a sunstroke and collapsed within two miles (3 km) of the finish. He retired from running in 1956, but continued to work with UK Athletics for several years and was due to participate in the ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Richard Moore is a Scottish journalist, author, podcaster and former racing cyclist. He represented Great Britain at the Tour of Langkawi and Scotland at the PruTour and the 1998 Commonwealth Games, where he competed in the road race and the time trial.
The marathon at the 1952 Summer Olympics was held on 27 July on a course running from the Helsinki Olympic Stadium to Korso, Helsinki Rural Municipality and back. Sixty-six athletes from 32 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.
Lisa Jane Weightman is an Australian long distance runner who specializes in the marathon event. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics she came 26th in the Women's marathon with a time of 2:34.19, 7 minutes behind the eventual winner, Peres Jepchirchir.
Kenny Stuart is a former fell and road runner from Threlkeld in the Lake District.
Feet in the Clouds: a tale of fell-running and obsession is a cult 2004 fell running book by British journalist and author Richard Askwith. The book was shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year and the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature. It also won Askwith the Best New Writer prize at the British Sports Book Awards.
The TelegraphSports Book Awards is a British literary award for sports writing. It was first awarded in 2003 as part of the National Sporting Club. Awards are presented in multiple categories. Each category is judged by one of: sports writers and broadcasters, retailers and enthusiasts. The winners from each category are then opened to public vote through a website to choose an overall winner. The Telegraph became the headline sponsor in 2019. The other major sports writing award in Britain is the William Hill Sports Book of the Year.
Ros Evans is a British athlete who competed in fell running, orienteering, ski-orienteering and cross-country skiing. She is also mother to British track cyclist, Neah Evans.
Zátopek is a 2021 Czech biographical film about Emil Zátopek. It is directed by David Ondříček and stars Václav Neužil. It was selected as the Czech entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.
Matthew Clarke in Melbourne, Australia is an Australian Olympic athlete who competes in the 3000 metres steeplechase.
Pauline Stuart is a former pioneer female fell runner, being the first woman to win many of the classic fell races in the late 1970s and early 1980s, some as soon as they allowed women to enter.
