ANDRE IGUODALA SITS at a conference table inside the bustling San Francisco offices of Zuora, a public software company. He listens as the founder, Tien Tzuo, and leading executives sing the liturgical language of Silicon Valley -- engagement and cadence, creating what we call pulse, customer journey, individual contributor function and muscle memory.

Iguodala might not be fluent in this dialect, but he's proficient. He indulges his hosts' attempts at appropriating basketball metaphors to make sense of their ever-expanding sector, and he even offers one in return.

"When we talked before about managing different avenues of enterprise software, there are so many different lanes that 'team' really comes into play," says Iguodala, equipped with a tablet and wearing a navy sweater with an orange V-neck trim. "You may talk to five different enterprise companies that do five different things."

In the age of athlete self-determination and brand-building, the trope of the NBA player dabbling in Silicon Valley prompts both admiration and skepticism. Iguodala, whose awareness of social and cultural dynamics comes through strongly in his 2019 memoir, "The Sixth Man," appreciates the perception.

"It's in your consciousness -- that people don't think you belong there," Iguodala says later.

With Zuora, Iguodala is less concerned. He's known Tzuo for nearly five years and cultivated the relationship outside of public life. He's been to countless meetings and conferences with the tech world's masters of the universe, but also their worker bees. Iguodala can rattle off a litany of facts about subscription-based platforms and their permanence in the marketplace in accessible terms.

Iguodala asks, "How can I be of help?"

This is not the first high-tech firm in the Bay Area that will trade on Iguodala's value, and these arrangements can be mutually beneficial: A company like Zuora gets to tout the 2015 NBA Finals MVP and three-time champion as an associate. In a tech world obsessed with organizational culture, firms can draw, if they so choose, upon his expertise as a key member of a dynastic Warriors team that is prime Harvard Business School case-study material. All the while, Iguodala gets to diversify his growing portfolio and continue his education in an area that fascinates him, as he strives to be as versatile off the court as he is on it.

"A lot of guys travel with these entourages," Tzuo says. "[Iguodala] just shows up alone. He has an insatiable curiosity."

This week, Iguodala will travel to Orlando, Florida, for Zuora's annual sales conference, a trip that isn't unusual for a potential member of the board. But this is the heart of the NBA season, and Iguodala is still an active NBA player in good health who is under contract. He hasn't played a second of basketball since the NBA Finals last June, living and working 1,800 miles from the team that employs him.

MORE: Latest NBA trade deadline buzz and analysis

WHEN IGUODALA SIGNED a new three-year, $48 million deal with the Golden State Warriors in 2017, he knew the possibility existed that his future might be tied to Kevin Durant's whereabouts in the 2019-20 season. And after Durant announced he was leaving the Bay for Brooklyn, the Warriors moved Iguodala to make room for D'Angelo Russell.

In a flash, one of the catalysts of the original play-with-joy Warriors squad was sent off like a carrier pigeon to drop a first-round pick onto the east bank of the Mississippi River.

First-round draft picks are the mother's milk of NBA rebuilds, and the Memphis Grizzlies had scored one for the minor inconvenience of absorbing a 35-year-old veteran who still had value, albeit one who preferred to play out his final seasons with a team that wanted him for his talents. The Grizzlies shared Iguodala's preference, so they went to work trying to find a trade partner, with an asking price of a first-round pick.

Although there were substantive discussions with a handful of teams, including the Houston Rockets, aligning money, tax implications and picks for a player with a $17.2 million salary requires some high-level cap gymnastics.

As training camp approached, the prospect of a deal before the season grew more remote. Iguodala remained in the Bay Area with his family, working out and further immersing himself in entrepreneurial pursuits. Both parties held out hope for a deal that would land Iguodala with a contender, but other scenarios grew more likely. Iguodala could conceivably play for Memphis, though a Grizzlies team starting from the bottom up didn't acquire him with any intention that he'd be part of the team's future.

Buyouts have become a common solution for such situations, but the Grizzlies were steadfast in their opposition to paying out about 85% of Iguodala's salary for him to play elsewhere. Those with knowledge of Memphis' thinking say a small-market franchise with new front-office leadership wanted to set this kind of organizational tone:

We are not a feeder system for the league's glamour destinations. You don't build a championship culture by subsidizing teams you compete against on a nightly basis with talent -- and covering the tab. That's a doormat mentality that sends the wrong message to your players, coaches, front-office personnel, fans, ticket salespeople, sponsors, agents and broadcast partners.

Four months into the season, Memphis has not moved off that position.

The Grizzlies have a compelling case -- and so does Iguodala. A hard-bitten realist who appreciates that the NBA is a business, Iguodala didn't begrudge the Grizzlies being opportunistic. But there comes a point as a player when being an asset milked for every last ounce of value runs its course.

"It's never been, 'I don't want to be there,'" Iguodala says. "It's, 'Let's have the conversations in terms of what it looks like going forward. How can I be a value to you? How can you be a value to me? And then how can we make that happen?'"

The discussions never grew overly contentious, all sides say, though neither was getting precisely what it wanted. Both Iguodala and the Grizzlies agreed that Iguodala remaining in the Bay Area represented the most logical solution, however suboptimal. At the very least, not playing would mitigate any injury risk, and the Grizzlies would continue to look for a deal.

After a report materialized this week that Iguodala would sit out the rest of the season if not dealt to a preferred team, young Memphis wing Dillon Brooks said that he "can't wait" for the Grizzlies to find a way to extricate Iguodala from the roster. Guards Ja Morant and De'Anthony Melton took to social media to second Brooks' remark.

Yet, neither Iguodala nor the Grizzlies were ever under the impression Iguodala would report to Memphis. While the Grizzlies' prospects in the Western Conference playoff race might have changed, Iguodala's convictions have not.

"I think when the athlete takes control of his business, it's looked at differently than when a so-called businessman is running his business," Iguodala says. "A businessman says, 'I want to make this play, because this is what I'm trying to do,' and the response is, 'Oh, that is a very smart business transaction,' But when an athlete says, 'This is what I prefer to do,' the reaction is different."

A COUPLE HOURS after his check-in with Zuora, Iguodala steps into the athletic facility at Saint Mary's College, the small Catholic campus nestled on the back side of the Oakland Hills. Iguodala's voice becomes more audible as he makes his approach onto the practice court. The 19-year-old Saint Mary's team manager, who's been cradling a basketball and waiting for his arrival, can't resist a grin -- tonight, he'll be shagging balls for an NBA champion.

Rick Ross' "The Devil is a Lie" booms on the portable speaker as a limber Iguodala contorts himself into deep stretches. Soon, Tyrell Jamerson is feeding him a steady diet of jumpers as Iguodala works up a sweat. When it's time for free throws, Iguodala drains a pair with his eyes shut.

Iguodala turned 36 the previous day, which means the clock is ticking on his basketball life, even as he assembles the pieces for a fulfilling career after it's over. It's three days after the death of Kobe Bryant, and Iguodala says he has reflexively changed the channel whenever news of the incident or Bryant's legacy appears.

"That was close to me, it hit home," Iguodala says. "I just haven't had anything like that so close. So I'm still trying to process that one."

Iguodala has come to regard this season as a sabbatical from the league, a window of time to recharge physically and mentally after five years of being the consummate he-doesn't-start-but-he-finishes glue guy for a championship team. Along the way, he embodied the complexities and contradictions of NBA life.

He's eminently coachable, yet a fiercely independent spirit who accepts nothing at face value. He's a basketball purist with a meticulous workout and wellness regimen, but also a man who can't find happiness solely in basketball. With the media, he's both thoughtful and adversarial; and with teammates, someone who both offers meaningful counsel but thrills in pressing buttons.

"Andre has a wicked sense of humor, and loves seeing people squirm," Warriors coach Steve Kerr says.

One such teammate was undrafted rookie James Michael McAdoo, a member of the Warriors' first title team in 2015 who didn't want to spend his minimum salary on a new car. Iguodala admired the rookie for his frugality but also felt empathy seeing him dropped off each day at the Warriors' practice facility by his girlfriend.

Soon after the confetti fell in Cleveland, the Warriors chartered a plane for Las Vegas to celebrate. Iguodala offered McAdoo his souped-up Jeep Wrangler if he'd strip naked and streak up and down the aisle of the plane. McAdoo accepted the dare, and thrilled in driving his new vehicle to the facility each of his next two seasons with the Warriors.

Asked about the episode, Iguodala says with a Cheshire grin, "There may or may not be video in my phone."

IGUODALA KNOWS THAT when he returns to an NBA court, it won't be for much longer.

He's been thinking about Kyrie Irving's comments last season about retiring in his early 30s, and wonders if that's the most sapient life span for the modern NBA player, even as he crossed that threshold a few years ago. He sees a generation of players behind him who are making themselves miserable by obsessing over the experience of being a branded NBA player at the expense of their humanity.

"They're always on," Iguodala says. "These are guys who play a lot of politics and position themselves to look a certain way, 'This is me, this is my brand.' And I'm like, 'No, you're a human, too, f---ing relax. Just have a conversation with me that has nothing to do with being a basketball player.'"

When Iguodala encounters these players, he senses they might struggle with life after basketball -- the next phase when self-definition becomes less about your place in the game, and more about your place outside it. Iguodala has gotten a head start on this transition, even as he can't put his finger on precisely what happiness is.

In his memoir, Iguodala tells of reading Yuval Harari's "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind," in which Harari chronicles the evolution of human existence and the shared fictions we create to make us happy.

In Iguodala's words, "Things that we just decide are important even though, in the most absolute sense, they are nothing. Like an NBA championship. Like 30,000 people in a room screaming while you chase a round, bouncing ball up and down a wooden floor."

The central tension in Iguodala's reflections on life as a successful and respected NBA champion can best be encapsulated by a line from "Mad Men," one of his favorite TV series: "What is happiness? It's a moment before you need more happiness."

Both in his memoir and in conversation, Iguodala returns to the idea that achievement yields material and emotional fortunes, the latter fleeting and the former an illusory source of happiness.

"You have those moments where you win a championship, and they've helped me in life tremendously, so I don't want to throw that away," Iguodala says. "But there's B.S. that comes with it, and the material things that come with some of our success, you learn, 'OK, that's not really it.'"

Iguodala recognizes the ultimate contradiction -- those material riches provide him the opportunity to pursue meaning, to mine the inside of conference rooms for edification, to take time between fathering and conditioning to join a world that's out of reach for most kids from his side of Springfield, Illinois.

Never have those contrasts been more stark than during his current gap year. As he navigates Sand Hill Road in Silicon Valley, contemplates series A shares and all the techese spoken during golf foursomes at the Olympic Club, Iguodala comes back to this central complexity:

Life as a successful pro athlete can buy you anything, even as it assures you nothing.

CINCINNATI -- The Reds completed a one-year, $1,825,000 deal with right-hander Pedro Strop on Wednesday, their first move to upgrade the bullpen in an offseason focused on offense.

Strop, 34, was part of the Chicago Cubs' bullpen the past six years. A hamstring injury limited him to 50 appearances last season, when he went 2-5 with a 4.97 ERA, 10 saves and six blown saves.

Strop had a rough middle of the season after returning from the injury. He went 1-1 with four blown saves in July and 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA and one save in August. He finished strong, putting up a 2.00 ERA in 11 appearances in September.

Cincinnati has committed more than $165 million on acquiring players this offseason, including the two biggest free-agent contracts in club history.

Cincinnati signed second baseman Mike Moustakas to a four-year, $64 million contract and added left-handed starter Wade Miley on a two-year, $15 million deal. Outfielder Shogo Akiyama, an All-Star in his native Japan, got a three-year, $21 million agreement. Outfielder Nick Castellanos also reached a four-year, $64 million deal that includes player opt-outs after 2020 and 2021.

Strop will get a chance to pitch in a setup role to closer Raisel Iglesias, who had 34 saves last season. Cincinnati's bullpen finished seventh in the National League with a 4.28 ERA and a 27-33 record.

To make room for Strop, the Reds designated right-hander Sal Romano for assignment.

For all practical purposes, the brick and mortar beneath the Mookie Betts trade was laid the day Gerrit Cole agreed to a $324 million deal to be the ace of the New York Yankees, and the construction accelerated when the Boston Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora. Once Boston's primary rivals got the ace they needed, and once the Red Sox lost their most important staffer, the Red Sox situation gained clarity: It's going to be a year of turnover, the crossroad to the next big thing.

Without Cora, without Betts, Boston could still compete for a playoff spot in 2020, and if everything went right for the Red Sox and everything went wrong for the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays, it's possible that the Sox could win the American League East. That latter scenario would require, for starters, many, many injuries manifesting in New York and Tampa Bay and Rafael Devers delivering an MVP performance.

But it's much more likely that this will be remembered as the year the Red Sox reset and took a turn back to consistent relevance, just as the Yankees did in 2016, when they traded Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman, extracted Gleyber Torres from the Cubs and introduced Aaron Judge to the big leagues.

It's easy to see a Boston Red Sox fan's point of view, that even with the club's top-tier revenue, they chose to trade their best position player in years because of money concerns. I can't convince these fans that trading Mookie Betts is a good idea, but I can tell you what they're thinking. A dozen cheap years of strong contributors -- split between outfielder Alex Verdugo and pitcher Brusdar Graterol -- is a solid return for one year of an elite player and dumping a bad contract, even if it hurts for Boston to officially commit to the opposite of the Dave Dombrowski approach to team building.

It's totally reasonable to complain that the Red Sox can afford to keep Betts if they wanted to. Every MLB team can technically afford any one player. The Red Sox appear to be aiming for something that's about more than any one player: building a model franchise from top to bottom. And trading Mookie Betts has a good chance of making that a reality more quickly, as preposterous as that may sound.

Boston Red Sox fans are angry. Very angry.

It's no surprise that there is outrage over the Mookie Betts deal. The 2018 AL MVP and now former Red Sox right fielder was one of the most beloved athletes in the city, particularly given his rise from rookie to superstar happened nightly in front of an adoring Fenway Park crowd. Now, that superstar is headed to Hollywood to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Boston's new chief baseball officer, Chaim Bloom, said last month he expected Betts to be on the Opening Day roster. But over the past few weeks, trade negotiations heated up. With spring training right around the corner, Boston is bringing in Alex Verdugo and Brusdar Graterol -- young talent the team hopes will be a big part of its future -- while one of Boston's most popular players is leaving town, along with another World Series hero in starting pitcher David Price.

Here's why fans are angry at the Red Sox -- and at Betts -- and whether that anger is justified.

Why they're angry at the Red Sox

People, remember: you don't root for the name on the *back* of the jersey. And you don't root for the name on the *front* of the jersey. You root for the spreadsheet column that tracks this year's net profitability for one of many divisions of a billionaire's company's portfolio.

— Ken Tremendous (@KenTremendous) February 5, 2020

I've been a Sox fan for longer than Mookie Betts has been alive, and... I'm not finding a particularly compelling reason to give John Henry any of my money anytime soon.

— Brendan O'Toole (@unexpectedbass) February 5, 2020

This offseason hasn't been fun for Red Sox fans. The team's two biggest free-agent signings: utility man Jose Peraza (-0.9 WAR in 2019 with Cincinnati) and starter Martin Perez (5.49 ERA over the past two seasons with Minnesota and Texas). Alex Cora, an extremely popular manager, parted ways with the organization amid the fallout of the Houston Astros' sign-stealing scandal, in which he played a major role while serving as that team's bench coach in 2017. On Tuesday, Boston traded away a 27-year-old megastar a year before he hits free agency.

The team's approach to this winter has been centered on owner John Henry's stated desire to get under the luxury tax threshold and reset the penalties the Red Sox have paid in recent years. Henry later clarified his comments about the team's financial intentions -- getting under the luxury tax threshold, he said, was a "goal" and not a "mandate." The initial flame ignited by Henry's comments on the luxury tax, though, was enough to start a brush fire of speculation about Betts' future -- and raise the ire of fans. Fenway Sports Group, after all, has grown in value from $700 million to $6.6 billion, according to Forbes, since Henry purchased the Red Sox 18 years ago -- an 837% increase -- placing it as the third-largest sports conglomerate in the world, even ahead of the rival New York Yankees ($6.1 billion).

Betts is one of the most talented players the Red Sox have ever developed. His 42.0 WAR through his first six seasons is seventh in MLB history, trailing only Hall of Famers -- or future Hall of Famers -- Ted Williams, Mike Trout, Albert Pujols, Jackie Robinson, Wade Boggs and Joe DiMaggio. The three names right below Betts on the list: Mickey Mantle, Barry Bonds and Willie Mays. Teams with the financial resources of the Boston Red Sox don't typically trade away homegrown MVPs whose career starts rank among the all-time greats.

The optics of dealing Betts -- just one offseason after winning a World Series and signing starting pitchers Chris Sale and Nathan Eovaldi to huge contracts -- are not ideal from a public relations standpoint for Bloom, now making his first moves in his new job.

Boston had been pessimistic about signing Betts to a long-term deal for a while. Betts' intent to test free agency after the coming season made that difficult. But many fans believe the team never should have been in this position in the first place, noting that the reported 10-year, $300 million offer the Red Sox made him is significantly below his value on the open market.

Meanwhile, the signing of Peraza didn't generate much excitement among Red Sox fans. You can blame the 25-year-old's .239/.285/.346 slash line last season for that. Boston's front office, however, remains optimistic about Peraza, pointing to his 2018 numbers of .288/.326/.416. Either way, internal optimism about a bottom-of-the-roster infielder does little to mitigate the disappointment of needing to deal Betts. The decision to trade Betts serves as a true gut punch to Boston fans, capping off an unsatisfying -- and at times ugly -- offseason.

The logic behind much of the anger is completely valid. Regardless of the end game, the result is the same: Betts developed into a homegrown MVP talent in Boston, and despite deep financial resources and rising ticket prices, the Red Sox traded him away one year from free agency. That's not a recipe for fan appreciation.

Why they're angry at Mookie Betts

See ya later Mookie. Too greedy and didn't want to play here. Thanks for taking Price with you.

— Chico (@two_deuces) February 5, 2020

THE BOSTON RED SOX OFFERED MOOKIE BETTS $300 MILLION DOLLARS, HE WANTS NORTH OF $400 MILLION. MOOKIE BETTS IS NOT AS GOOD AS MIKE TROUT SO HE SHOULD NOT BE PAID MORE THAN MIKE TROUT. IT IS A SMARTER BUSINESS MOVE TO TRADE HIM NOW & GET SOMETHING THEN TO LET HIM WALK FOR NOTHING https://t.co/KmWgPQkSoa

— Joey (@JoeyWright10) February 5, 2020

To be fair, a vast majority of the anger Wednesday morning was directed at team ownership. But if you ask some corners of Red Sox fandom, Betts did not enthusiastically sign an extension with the Red Sox because some fans believe he didn't enjoy playing in Boston.

Betts is naturally introverted and wasn't dreaming of the spotlight when he became a professional athlete. Being a sports star in Boston means you're an A-list celebrity. While Betts wasn't quite as much of an off-the-field public figure as some previous Red Sox stars have been, he had on multiple occasions expressed his appreciation for the team and being a part of its culture of winning.

"It's just been a blessing to be a part of such a great franchise with all of the history and all of the guys who have come through and they still come through," Betts told ESPN in May. "You meet a lot of people. A lot of eyes are on you here, and I've learned if you don't embrace it, it may eat you up.

"You have the opportunity to win every year. Nobody is trying to take a season off. You can't ask for anything more than that. Winning every year, winning is obviously the reason why we play and we've been able to do it every year. It's definitely something I want to be a part of."

While fans tend to favor players signing extensions before they hit free agency, as Xander Bogaerts did before the 2019 season, many of those contracts end up as team-friendly deals at premium positions. If Bogaerts had entered free agency after his 2019 season, when he hit .309/.384/.555 with 33 homers and 117 RBIs, he would undoubtedly have received more lucrative contract offers than the six-year, $120 million deal he got from the Red Sox. After all, any extra money players don't receive still ends up in the pockets of billionaire owners.

Still, you can't blame fans for wanting their favorite players to stay put -- and homegrown players are stuck with the added burden of public pressure to take a hometown discount. Many people around Boston point to the example of Tom Brady, who took less money for years to stay with the New England Patriots, giving them payroll flexibility to improve the rest of the team in becoming one of the NFL's greatest dynasties. Though Betts did enjoy playing in Boston, his priority wasn't to remain with the Red Sox for life -- it was, and continues to be, maximizing his value in a sport without a hard salary cap. There aren't a ton of teams that can afford Betts' services, but many around the industry expect that while he might not get the reported 12 years and $420 million he's looking for, he'll get somewhere close to it.

This might not be a situation like Jon Lester's in 2014, when Boston's contract extension offer of four years and $70 million looked embarrassing compared to what the Chicago Cubs eventually gave the lefty -- a six-year, $155 million deal -- but it's undeniable that Boston offered Betts below-market value -- and, though fans might not like it, he wasn't buying.

Why they shouldn't be quite so angry

With Henry approving the contracts of Eovaldi and Sale, and J.D. Martinez opting in to his contract, the Red Sox had backed themselves into a corner. When it came to an extension, Betts wasn't going to accept less than what he was worth on the open market, and Boston didn't feel comfortable making the financial commitment necessary to prevent him from hitting free agency. The decision to let team president Dave Dombrowski dish out big contracts en route to winning the 2018 World Series -- before firing him less than a calendar year later -- proved to be extremely significant.

It's hard to blame Bloom for following the desires of his bosses, and it's hard to blame Betts for not accepting less than what he feels he is worth. Betts can play for another winning franchise before hitting free agency, while Bloom can start to retool his new team. Bloom begins his front-office career by trading Betts, and it will be one of the biggest moves he'll ever be attached to.

Shedding Betts' $27 million salary -- and much of the $96 million still owed to Price -- from the payroll also eases the financial pressure the team had put on itself. Yes, Henry is a billionaire -- but luxury tax penalties aren't insignificant. Combining the potential payroll commitments with the luxury tax penalties and lost revenue sharing rebates, Boston could have been looking at spending close to $100 million more over the next three seasons, in addition to facing greater draft pick and international bonus pool money penalties. Trading Betts and Price slashed approximately $43 million off Boston's 2020 payroll, and positions the team to be able to spend heavily after the season and exceed the luxury tax threshold with significantly fewer penalties.

Subtracting the production of Betts from the lineup and the outfield and removing Price from the rotation makes Boston a significantly weaker team on Opening Day. Still, the deal made Tuesday means the Red Sox avoid the risk of keeping Betts on the roster for 2020 despite no guarantees for the future, while making the safest move long term, acquiring the strongest package of players they could for him. The additions of Verdugo and Graterol help supplement Boston's young core. Verdugo -- who will face intense scrutiny as Betts' replacement -- rose through the Dodgers' system as one of their top prospects. And, for what it's worth, Boston's projected win total only dipped a single game at Caesars Sportsbook -- from 87.5 to 86.5.

Boston traded Mookie Betts because it believes its best long-term interests included dealing one of the greatest players in franchise history, and that the team can weather the PR storm the deal has created.

The European indoor 800m medallist is reaping the rewards of being a full-time athlete and here he tells Katy Barden about his training schedule

Jamie Webb started 2020 as a full-time athlete – quite a transition from the full-time chemistry teacher he was 12 months ago – and he’s already reaping the benefits in training.

“Recovery is underrated,” says the 2019 European Indoor Championships 800m silver medallist. “It makes such a big difference.

“When I was working, it was a case of getting up early in the morning, eating, teaching all day, then training, then sleeping. It was a continuous cycle.

“Now I’ve got more time to play with, more time to tweak things; it sounds lazy, but things like being able to have a little afternoon nap and get ready for my evening session. My body definitely recovers better.”

AW: Which sessions are crucial now that form solid foundations for the summer?
“Everyone is so different over 800m and there are so many different angles to attack it from,” says Webb, who runs up to 80 miles per week at this time of year.

“The key for me is learning about myself as an athlete. I know that I need a big endurance block then to put the speed on top of that.

“I need endurance before I can run fast. For me, it’s a case of training from a 5km/10km perspective throughout the winter and getting a really good aerobic base. If I don’t have the base then there’s really not much point in me doing the specifics on top.”

AW: Favourite session at this time of year?
“I hate the January block … you come off a big endurance base and think you’re really fit, then you go into a 1500m session and feel like you’re falling to pieces!

“6x500m off 2min is quite a nice session. 3km worth volume but close to 1500m pace.”

AW: Least favourite?
“Something like 3x800m off 3-4min. It’s just not me. Anything less than 600m I can cope with. Anything longer and it’s out of my comfort zone.”

Don’t underestimate recovery, and don’t underestimate common sense

“I feel like I know my body fairly well,” admits Webb. “People can get too caught up in the plan, for example if you’ve got a 10-mile run scheduled you think you’ve got to do ten miles, but I’ve become more mature – at least I like to think I’ve become more mature – and I try to be intelligent with what I’m doing. I tend not to drag it out; as soon as the quality drops, we drop it, and focus on being ready for the next session.”

A TYPICAL JANUARY TRAINING WEEK

As Webb moves out of winter toward summer, everything within his core training programme is aimed towards getting sharper.

MONDAY: am – easy run (3-6 miles); pm – track session at 1500m/3000m pace, for example: 3x800m (3min) – target sub-2 – 10min rest – 4x200m (200m jog recovery) in approx 24sec

TUESDAY: steady run up to 10 miles and gym (upper body & core gym)

WEDNESDAY: am – hills (longer in the winter, shorter in the summer); pm – easy run (3-6 miles)

THURSDAY: Easy run (up to 5 miles) or rest day

FRIDAY: Tempo run (continuous run – 2 miles warm-up/3-5 miles tempo/2 miles cool down, becoming shorter as move closer to summer)

SATURDAY: Gym (legs and core). Heavy in winter, lighter and faster in summer – 8 miles easy running split before/after gym session.

SUNDAY: Long run, up to 15 miles (“…depending on where my endurance is at. I tend not to drag it out – as soon as the quality drops, we drop it.”)

In addition to core training, Webb has introduced a 60-90 minutes hot yoga session once per week, and yoga from home, which he finds aids his flexibility and overall recovery.

The Ethiopian distance runner also placed seventh in the 2017 world 10,000m final in London

Ethiopia’s 2017 World Cross Country Championships bronze medallist Abadi Hadis has died at the age of 22.

Hadis is reported to have passed away following illness, with sports management company Pineda Sport confirming the death on Wednesday.

After winning 2017 World Cross senior bronze and leading Ethiopia to team gold while still a teenager, Hadis went on to place seventh in that year’s world 10,000m final in London.

The year before he had made his Olympic debut and finished 15th in the 10,000m.

His 5000m PB of 12:56.27 and half-marathon best of 58:44 were both run in 2018, while Hadis clocked 26:56.46 for 10,000m in 2019.

Abadi Hadis has passed away.

PinedaSport Family is devasted. We want to extend our condolences to his family and friends.

Athletics & Sport World is sad today. We will miss you Abadi. You will be always remembered! pic.twitter.com/FrEdmcyfK8

— PinedaSport (@PinedaSport) February 5, 2020

Shoe guru Paul Freary reports on the latest Nike footwear announcements, from the Alphafly NEXT% running shoes to the Viperfly spikes

After breaking the two-hour barrier for the marathon last year in his prototype shoes, Eliud Kipchoge set tongues wagging not just with his incredible time but his futuristic looking footwear.

The story of his shoes caused as much interest and controversy as the 1:59, so much so that it led to World Athletics amending their rules surrounding footwear.

In an announcement last week, the new rules for elites stated that prototypes would be banned and any new footwear should be on sale for four months prior to competition.

The rules also stated that footwear for road running should have a maximum stack height (the thickness of the sole and insole of a shoe) of 40mm and may only contain a single plate. The plate in the case of Kipchoge’s shoes being made of a carbon fibre material.

So today in New York at their Olympic Summit, it was with great global interest that Nike officially announced what the athletics community has been waiting for – the release of the Alphafly NEXT%.

With a single carbon plate and a stack height of 40mm (although Nike didn’t provide an exact measurement) the Alphafly will remain legal according to the rules and should be on sale before the end of April.

The design is as expected and matches the many leaked images that have appeared online in the last few weeks.

The shoe has an increased volume of the ZoomX foam, a redesigned carbon plate, the Nike Flyplate and twin Nike Air Zoom pods in the forefoot to improve cushioning and running economy.

A new, ultra-light and highly breathable upper helps keep the weight down and improve comfort in hot conditions.

Spikes

While the Vaporfly was largely expected, what may be of even more interest could be the brand’s new sprint and distance spikes.

The Nike Air Zoom Viperfly (above) is designed specifically for the 100m and features a carbon plate and forefoot Nike Air Zoom unit. The Atomknit upper is a new version of Nike Flyknit and is designed to maximise heel lockdown for a secure fit.

The Nike Air Zoom Victory (below) is a designed for anything from 800m to 10,000m on the track. Inspired by the Nike Alphafly NEXT% it utilises Nike ZoomX foam, a carbon fibre plate and Nike Air Zoom technology. The ZoomX foam provides cushioning while the Air Zoom unit is sandwiched between the carbon plate and spike plate.

Questions may be asked with regards the use of the two plates in these spikes, but they stay within the new rules as in the case of track spikes a shoe can have the same carbon plate as road shoes as well as additional plate for the function of attaching spikes to the sole.

Let the games begin.

BARBERVILLE, Fla. — Michael Long surged to the lead on the opening lap of the DIRTcar UMP Modified Feature Tuesday night and fought off Kyle Strickler to the checkered flag for the first Gator Trophy of the 12-night DIRTcar Nationals presented by Bozard Ford at Volusia Speedway Park.

Long, of Fowler, Ill., used the high side in turns one and two to keep Strickler, who started eighth, pinned to the bottom and unable to maximize his horsepower.

After a couple of cautions seven laps into the race, a 12-lap green-flag run forced Long to negotiate lapped traffic on the high-speed half-mile dirt oval.

“Luckily, they went to the bottom,” Long said of the lapped cars. “When you see the No. 8 of Strickler on the board it makes you nervous on restarts, especially going into turn one. I knew once I got rolling, I was good. He had to out-motor me and I knew if I hit the restarts right, I was going to be alright.”

Ryan Cripe wound up third while defending DIRTcar Nationals champion Nick Hoffman started 21st and powered his way to a fourth-place finish. Zeke McKenzie was fifth after starting 28th to earn Hard Charger honors.

The finish:

Feature (20 laps): 1. 18L-Michael Long [2][$1,000]; 2. 8KS-Kyle Strickler [8][$600]; 3. 23-Ryan Cripe [4][$400]; 4. 2-Nick Hoffman [21][$350]; 5. 24-Zeke McKenzie [28][$300]; 6. 5-Curt Spalding [3][$275]; 7. 2A-Donnie Moran [12][$250]; 8. 49-Brian Ruhlman [25][$225]; 9. 36-Kenny Wallace [9][$200]; 10. 7-Drake Troutman [20][$200]; 11. 99M-Mike Mullen [23][$175]; 12. 90-Jason Beaulieu [17][$140]; 13. 77-Ray Bollinger [11][$130]; 14. 7A-Shane Sabraski [22][$125]; 15. 95-Michael Altobelli [27][$125]; 16. 45J-Johnny Broking [15][$125]; 17. 22-Dale Kelley [19][$125]; 18. 2J-Troy Johnson [10][$125]; 19. O5-Dave Wietholder [16][$125]; 20. 7F-Bryan Foy [24][$125]; 21. 35-David Stremme [5][$125]; 22. 17TE-Tyler Evans [14][$125]; 23. 11JH-Justin Haley [18][$125]; 24. 7CT-Christian Thomas [26][$125]; 25. 8A-Austin Holcombe [13][$125]; 26. K19-Will Krup [1][$100]; 27. 75-Terry Phillips [7][$100]; 28. 65-Todd Sherman [6][$100].