We speak to a masters athlete who has made a habit of destroying records since making a return to competitive running

“Get oot ma way, ya little b****rds!” thought Alastair Walker as he ran into a group of young rugby players who had casually strolled across his path during a local parkrun. 

The boys would have been oblivious to the fact they were impeding a multiple world champion. Walker may have dominated global masters athletics in recent years, but aside from his lean frame, he is far from a stereotype. After a successful senior career he initially gave up athletics at 38 years old before reigniting his love affair with the sport in 2016.

“I just couldn’t be bothered anymore’,” reflects the 2023 world M65 10km champion. “I thought, ‘I’m never going to run as a master’, it didn’t really rock my boat.” 

For 20 years he didn’t run a step.

At the peak of his career, Walker’s PBs included a 2:22 marathon, 66-minute half marathon, a sub-30 minute 10km and a 30-minute 10,000m, the latter good enough to rank him third in Scotland and earn a national vest. 

His return to the sport two decades later sparked an incredible resurgence, but only after a brutal reality check over a two-lap 10km race. “I thought I was going to win it,” he says. “Then I dropped out after the first lap. 

“That was it. I thought: ‘If I’m going to do this, I have to do it properly’. I raced a couple of times then I entered the Scottish Masters [Cross Country Championships] and finished a distant fourth (M60). That’s when it got serious.”

Walker version 2.0 has since racked up a series of major age-group titles including world, European, British and Irish Masters 5000m; Scottish Masters 10,000m; British and Scottish National 5km; world, European and British 10km; British & Irish, British and Scottish National Masters Cross Country; Scottish National, and Scottish National Short Course Cross Country. He was also voted European Masters Athletics long distance athlete of the year for 2022.

Most recently, he broke his own M65 world 10km best with 34:04 in April, adding to world records over 3000m indoors in January (9:57.18) and 5000m in August 2022 (16:36.59).

It’s no coincidence that his improvements have come since linking up with coach Cathy McCourt, a former Irish senior international and multiple world masters medal-winning athlete.  

The pair have made significant changes to his diet, including a move to being predominantly gluten-free. The intensity and quality of his training – which totals around 70 miles per week – has also increased.

Walker has changed his tune on masters athletics, too. While the lack of depth in his M65 age group is frustrating, particularly on the roads, he is regularly tested on the track by Paul Forbes, a middle-distance expert who represented Scotland three times at the Commonwealth Games. In fact, Forbes beat Walker – who was later disqualified – to the 1500m title at the 2023 World Masters Indoor Championships. “It’s a Coe/Ovett thing,” he laughs.

READ MORE: Paul Forbes interview

His goals for the remainder of 2023 include a fast track 10,000m and possibly an autumn half marathon, in addition to this summer’s European Masters Championships.

Beyond his title ambitions, he thrives on respect from younger athletes and an appreciation of the times he’s running. “I love that,” he says, his eyes lighting up. 

It is said that to be a champion, compete; to be a great champion, compete with the best; but to be the greatest champion, compete with yourself. It is an accurate summation of Walker’s two-part career. He is now his own biggest rival. 

This article first appeared in the May issue of AW magazine, which you can buy here

Sifan Hassan, Eilish McColgan and Eliud Kipchoge are among a new wave of athletes who are measuring their sugar levels with biosensors in a bid to run faster

When Sifan Hassan crossed the finish line of the TCS London Marathon in April, she was wearing the Nike super-shoe prototypes on her feet, a pair of green shorts and a singlet on her body and a huge smile on her face. Barely noticeable on the back of her left arm was a small, white biosensor, too.

This device was a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), made by Abbott, and which works alongside an app created by a company called Supersapiens. Currently all the rage in endurance sport circles, it is effectively the world’s first human fuel gauge.

In recent years athletes have been able to measure, among other things, their heart rate, body weight, sleep patterns, stride length and cadence. Yet now, thanks to this collaboration between Supersapiens and the Abbott Libre Sense Glucose Sport Biosensor, you can add blood sugar fluctuations to the list.

Traditionally used by diabetics, athletes like Hassan are wearing a CGM to help with pre and mid-race fuelling. The Dutch athlete is not paid to wear it, but her team has clearly seen the benefits. Runners like Eilish McColgan and Eliud Kipchoge, meanwhile, have formal links with Abbott and, consequently, have discussed their sugar stats with Supersapiens.

Outside athletics, cycling teams such as INEOS Grenadiers use it and it is particularly popular in triathlon, where Kristian Blummenfelt and Gustav Iden have used it on their way to winning Olympic and Hawaii Ironman titles. There are even reports of world-class athletes in non-endurance events such as pole vault using it as well.

By giving the user real-time visibility into their blood glucose levels it allows them to fine-tune fuelling strategies for training, racing and recovery. In marathons and ultra-endurance races it helps you avoid the dreaded “bonk”. Outside of sport, it can also prove useful when making improvements to your diet and lifestyle generally, although the Supersapiens app is not designed for people with diabetes.

The stats offer an insight into blood glucose levels, which in turn provides clues as to what the athlete should be eating and when. In short, it is taking the guesswork out of fuelling.

How it works

A circular adhesive patch sits on your arm with a small filament embedded just under your skin. This biowearable is pressed into your body, where it sits for 14 days, picking up glucose readings from the interstitial fluid. Once inserted it takes about one hour for readings to start showing and you can link the app with Garmin, Apple Health, Training Peaks, Nolio and Wahoo.

I was given the opportunity to test it out and, for me, the most challenging part of the testing process was inserting the sensor in the first place. A small blue contraption is used to apply it with a “push and click” mechanism, but it contains a slightly scary looking needle. Despite being told that it was almost always a painless experience, I was nervous about applying it. But, as you might guess, I didn’t feel a thing.

It’s more likely you will find the price more painful. A subscription to buy two biosensors costs €150, for example.

Once the sensor is applied the glucose readings soon begin to appear and are nothing short of fascinating as you see your sugar levels rise and fall, sometimes dramatically, following various meals, snacks and drinks.

The readings are calculated minute-to-minute, too, but if you miss any time due to not being close to your phone then you merely scan the sensor and it updates the missing stats via Bluetooth.

For most people, average glucose is naturally regulated between 90-110mg/dL (with fasting values between 70 and 90mg/dL and post-eating values between 110 and 140mg/dL). But one of my first shocks was that a breakfast bowl of granola sent my levels shooting beyond 200mg/dL upper ceiling due to the high level of sugar contained.

I’d previously thought this particular brand of granola was “healthy” but obviously not, although I was later advised that I could potentially control this “glucose rush” by adding protein powder and ingredients like chia seeds to the cereal.

After using the CGM for a few weeks, I had an informative call with David Lipman, the director of applied science and content at Supersapiens, who advised: “Try to minimise variables and optimise one thing at the time. So if you’re trying to solve the granola problem then don’t try to solve that and your long run problem plus another problem.”

It is generally good if your glucose levels are stable through the day, too, and there are plenty of tips that you can use to prevent glucose rushes. Having a drink with some apple cider vinegar before a meal or going for a walk straight after eating can blunt these rushes, for instance.

Making sense of the data

One challenge I faced when wearing the CGM is actually being able to interpret the information on the app but a series of easy-to-read articles in the app or on the Supersapiens website, in addition to automated emails packed with handy tips, helped me navigate through this new world of glucose monitoring.

I also found that, quite simply, wearing the monitor makes you far more aware of what you are eating. For the 14 days of wearing the device there is no doubt my diet improved. I quickly realised that reaching for chocolate or a fizzy drink would cause the glucose levels to rocket, for example, so I found myself “gamifying” the process.

Lipman has been wearing a sensor since January 2021 and he smiled when I mentioned my granola story. “I once made a homemade mushroom risotto from scratch,” he said. “It took me hours, but took my glucose above 200 a long time. I’m still scarred by the memory!”

Like myself, Lipman is a former club level middle-distance runner who moved into marathons for the challenge and clocked 2:45 in Berlin last year before improving to 2:42 in London. “The feedback you gain is where the power lies,” he says of the Supersapiens process.

Interestingly Lipman tells me that probably the first glucose monitoring for long distance running took place at the Boston Marathon in 1923. There was a clear link, too, between the “sugar level” at the end of the race and the “physical condition” of the runners. Those with average sugar levels seemed fairly normal while those with low levels showed signs of unconsciousness, irritability, dizziness and other distressing symptoms.

In the past 20 years, Lipman adds: “The Gatorade Sports Science Institute and [physiologist] Andy Jones really pushed things along. Exercise physiologist Asker Jeukendrup also did some great work which was really foundational and impressive. In the 1990s it [use of CGMs] really took hold in the cycling peloton more than the running world. For cyclists and especially ironman triathletes, nutrition is front of mind for them. It’s so important.”

Another athlete who has utilised Supersapiens is runner-turned-triathlete Emma Pallant-Browne. A former European under-23 cross-country champion, she says: “From experience I have seen how bad things can go when you don’t fuel well. I have had many performances affected by fuelling, so I know how important it is to my health and results.

“While you can know what you’re putting in your body, you can’t know how your body is responding to it or using it. When I first heard about Supersapiens I knew that it could really help my performance by having some real data to work with rather than relying solely on feel.”

An unfair advantage?

Abbott is the sponsor of the World Marathon Majors series and Supersapiens are title sponsor of Ironman, but not everyone approves of the use of CGMs in sport. Some sports scientists have criticised their use and argued over whether it’s good to stress about statistics that are sometimes difficult to decipher. The world governing body for cycling – the UCI – has also banned their in-competition use as they feel it gives riders and their teams an unfair advantage.

There are no signs of it being banned in athletics and, in principle, it seems little different to a humble heart rate monitor or one of the many smart watches that measure innumerable performance-related metrics. 

The price will doubtless put many avid athletes off, but if you can stomach the cost and are committed to getting the most out of your potential then I would recommend trying out a CGM for a short spell at least. 

The initial insight into what foods cause your glucose levels to rise and fall is worth it. As any committed endurance athlete knows, nailing that elusive PB can be priceless, too. 

This feature first appeared in the May issue of AW magazine, which you can buy here

Rory McIlroy is trying to win his third consecutive RBC Canadian Open, and each one has felt a bit different.

The first came in 2019. Needless to say, golf – and to an extent the whole world – existed in an entirely different galaxy four years ago. McIlroy fired a final-round 61 that year to find himself seven shots clear of his nearest competitor.

He had every intention of defending his title in 2020, then 2020 happened.

The event was not played in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving McIlroy as the defending champion a year ago at St. George’s. That week just happened to coincide with the first event of LIV Golf.

McIlroy stayed calm through all the noise to win another trophy on Canadian soil, prompting the quote that was an obvious dig at LIV CEO, Greg Norman.

"It's a moment I will remember for a long, long time,” McIlroy said a year ago. “It's my 21st PGA Tour win and one more than someone else."

The now-23-time Tour winner again finds himself in contention north of the border, and again it’s in the midst of chaos after the surprise announcement earlier this week that the Tour would be partnering with the DP World Tour and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund to form a new for-profit entity.

After an “uncomfortable” press conference Wednesday, McIlroy is once more thriving while there are so many unknowns about the future of professional golf.

“For whatever reason I seem to play better when there's a little bit of noise going in the world of golf,” McIlroy said after his third-round 6-under 66. “It's really nice to get inside the ropes and just concentrate on my job at the end of the day, which is trying to get the ball around the golf course. So, yeah, it's been a nice reprieve with everything else going on and happy to be playing well.”

Last year, with so much going on, the win felt bigger than McIlroy. It was the unofficial spokesman of the PGA Tour silencing LIV’s debut and having something to say about it.

The Northern Irishman made it clear that this year is different.

“I would love to win the Canadian Open for the third time,” McIlroy said. “I've never won a tournament three times in a row. I felt like last year the win wasn't just for me it was for a few other things. But this one, this year, if I were able to get over the line, will be solely for me.”

Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi expressed his pride at what his team had achieved even though they suffered a bitter loss to Manchester City in the Champions League final on Saturday.

Inzaghi's side lost the final 1-0 after a second-half goal from Rodri, but the 47-year-old Inzaghi remained upbeat after a tough season in which he came under heavy pressure before guiding his side to third place in Serie A as well as winning the Italian Cup and Super Cup.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

"On a night like this, I can't single players out who played below par. I said yesterday I would not change my players for anyone else, and tonight the world saw why," Inzaghi told Sky Sports Italia.

"They showed the whole world how well they stood up to Manchester City, a side that everyone knows has so much quality.

"I hugged my players one by one, as they were extraordinary, just as our fans were and deserved a different result, but I hope they were happy seeing the way the team played tonight."

Inzaghi has faced harsh criticism from fans and media.

"Both I and my players were attacked and admittedly we lost some games that we shouldn't have lost, but I think we learned valuable lessons from those defeats," he said, pointing out that the team had won four trophies over the last two years.

"With this spirit, organisation and determination, I think we will be back here again in future," he added.

ISTANBUL -- It was mission accomplished for Pep Guardiola on Saturday night at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium, and he did it with the big boss watching from the stands. By delivering Manchester City's first Champions League title, Guardiola has done precisely what he was hired to do by owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan, but by achieving a treble at the same time, he has added the most incredible flourish.

Simply put: Manchester United are no longer the only English club to win the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season. Their 1999 triumph has now been matched by Guardiola's City after Rodri's 68th minute goal sealed a 1-0 win against Inter Milan.

Since arriving at the Etihad in 2016, Guardiola has won five Premier Leagues, masterminded a domestic treble in 2019 and guided City to 100 points -- the only team to do so in the Premier League era -- in the 2017-18 season. Despite all that success, the Champions League had been a tale of failure and near-misses, including losing the 2021 final against Chelsea in Porto.

Guardiola had even said before this game that his City side -- and his time at the club -- could not be regarded as legendary until they won the Champions League. But the wait is finally over, and Istanbul will always now mean just one thing to City and their supporters: ultimate glory.

"It was written in the stars," Guardiola said. "It belongs to us. I'm tired. Calm. Satisfied. It's so difficult to win it."

This was certainly City's night, but it is really Guardiola's achievement and his tearful relief at the final whistle told the story of the pressure he has been under to make the club European champions. Sheikh Mansour's presence at the game probably added to that stress. Despite pumping over £2 billion into the club since buying City in September 2008, he had only previously been to one game, a home win against Liverpool in 2010. The prospect of having to say "sorry, better luck next time" to the man who has bankrolled Guardiola's team-building project was one the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach probably didn't want to contemplate.

There's no doubt Guardiola has been indulged like a favourite child by Sheikh Mansour and the club's Abu Dhabi hierarchy, but he is the best manager in the world, and perhaps the best of all time -- he has been indulged for a reason. He has welcomed the players he's wanted like forward Erling Haaland, midfielders Rodri and Ilkay Gundogan, winger Jack Grealish, defender Ruben Dias and goalkeeper Ederson, who made two crucial saves from Romelu Lukaku and Robin Gosens as Inter chased a late equaliser, but he has made them all better.

So many clubs have spent fortunes on shiny new signings and failed to see their investment repaid with success. Just look at Chelsea over the past 12 months or United in the 10 years since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. Money doesn't guarantee success. It helps, of course, but no manager or coach in the game right now is able to demand -- or get -- so much from his players like Guardiola. Some, including John Stones, Kyle Walker and Manuel Akanji, have had their games elevated to a whole new level by the former Barca midfielder.

And yet the irony of their victory against Inter is that it was achieved without any of the flair or dominance that have come to mark Guardiola's City. In the end, Inter didn't meet the same fate as other elite teams like Liverpool, Arsenal and Real Madrid, all of whom were ruthlessly dismantled over the closing weeks of the season. The Serie A side were dogged and disciplined, with coach Simone Inzaghi's tactical plan clearly frustrating City.

Guardiola was pained on the touchline at times, especially when an Akanji mistake gifted a chance to Lautaro Martinez that was wasted by the Inter forward. (Ederson did well to narrow the angle and keep his body behind the ball, making the stop look easy.) The City manager also had his head in his hands when Lukaku and Gosens went close to equalising in the final minutes, which could have taken the game into extra time.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

Even though Inter made City fight for the victory, Guardiola's side found a way. Phil Foden, a first-half substitute for the injured Kevin De Bruyne, was the spark who upped the tempo, which led to Rodri scoring the game's only goal after Inter failed to prevent Bernardo Silva's cross from reaching the defensive midfielder near the edge of the box.

However, City were still unconvincing after taking the lead. It was probably their worst performance for months -- Inter also hit the crossbar via Federico Dimarco -- but they held on to win.

"This is a really proud moment for everyone at this football club," City captain Gundogan said. "We work so hard every single day and we have wanted to win this trophy for so long. The Champions League is a beautiful competition and we are all incredibly happy to have won. This team deserves the highest recognition, and winning the Champions League elevates us to the very top of the game.

"To win the treble is something amazing. It is the ultimate achievement for any club team, and we have done it. It reflects the quality we have in our squad, but it also shows how dedicated we are."

It is a triumph that also means Guardiola can now look Sheikh Mansour in the eye and say he's done everything asked of him and more. His City side have consistently been the best in England, and now they are definitively the best in Europe. They have broken records galore and even taken United's proudest claim of being the only treble winner in England. United are now not even the only treble winner in their own city.

All of that is down to Guardiola. While he remains at the Etihad, anything is possible and City can now target other milestones. For example, no team has won four successive English titles, but City can do that next season. No English club has retained the European Cup since Liverpool in 1978, another mark City could match in 2023-24.

Guardiola has taken City to the sport's highest possible peak and they don't look like leaving it anytime soon.

Pep Guardiola said Manchester City's first Champions League title was "written in the stars" and praised the club for sticking with him when others might have sacked him for taking so long to become champions of Europe.

Guardiola lifted the trophy in Istanbul on Saturday after a 1-0 win over Inter secured by Rodri's 68th-minute goal.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

"Inter are really good. Be patient, I said at half-time. You have to be lucky. This competition is a coin toss," Guardiola said.

"It was written in the stars. It belongs to us."

This season was Guardiola's seventh attempt to win the Champions League with City and he believes his previous failures might have earned him the sack at other clubs.

"First of all my first words are for Inter, to congratulate them for their performance," Guardiola told a news conference.

"The second thing is for my sport director, CEO and chairman. Normally when you don't win the Champions League after so many years you are sacked.

"One of the main reasons why this club became where we are is the people from Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Mansour [bin Zayed Al Nahyan] took over the club and without that we wouldn't be here. They are the most important people.

"They support me unconditionally in the defeats in this competition. In many clubs that would happen and you are sacked so I give incredible credit to my hierarchy to my CEO."

Success in the Champions League also completed City's treble after also winning the Premier League title and the FA Cup.

And Guardiola revealed that on Saturday morning he received a message from the only other manager to lead an English side to the treble, former Manchester Untied boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

"It is an honour for me to be alongside Sir Alex Ferguson. I have to say I got a message from him this morning on my phone that touched me a lot."

The questions about when Guardiola would next win the Champions League have followed the 52-year-old since he last won it with Barcelona in 2011.

He admitted after beating Inter it was "a relief" to win it again but says he's now targeting more.

"I don't want after one Champions League to disappear," he added.

"We have to work hard next season and be there. There are teams who win the Champions League and disappear. We have to avoid it. Knowing me, it is not going to happen but it is a big relief to have this trophy. Now we don't get asked about it."

NEW YORK -- Arcangelo took the lead at the top of the stretch and won the Belmont Stakes on Saturday, making Jena Antonucci the first female trainer to win the race in its 155 years.

After the horse crossed the finish line, Antonucci doubled over and rested her arm and her head on the back of a chair. She kissed the horse on the nose when it returned to the area in front of the winner's circle.

Arcangelo finished the 1 1/2-mile race in 2:29.23 and by 1 1/2 lengths in front of favored Forte, with Tapit Trice third.

"I give all the credit to the horse," said jockey Javier Castello, who rode Mage to victory in the Kentucky Derby and got this mount when that colt did not run in the Belmont. "This is a wonderful horse. I'm really happy for her, you know, she's a really good woman. She's a good horseman."

The heart-warming victory put a positive note on a Triple Crown series marred by deaths of horses at Churchill Downs in the weeks around the Kentucky Derby and another on Preakness day for a trainer Bob Baffert. It also ended a week in which the Belmont Stakes was put in jeopardy by air quality problems caused by wildfires in Canada.

Those cleared on Friday and the cloud over thoroughbred racing lifted on Saturday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers placed right-hander Shelby Miller on the bereavement list Saturday.

The Dodgers recalled right-hander Andre Jackson from Triple-A Oklahoma City in a corresponding move.

Miller, 32, is 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in 24 relief appearances this season. Miller struck out three in two scoreless innings during Friday night's 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Miller, who is with his eighth team, is 39-58 with a 4.15 ERA in 191 games (132 starts). He is in his first season with Los Angeles.

Jackson, 26, has a 6.62 ERA and two saves in seven games with the Dodgers this season. He pitched three shutout innings to record the save in Saturday's 9-0 win over the Phillies. Overall, he is 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA and four saves in 14 games with Los Angeles over the past three seasons.

PHILADELPHIA -- Phillies manager Rob Thomson was ejected in the sixth inning of Saturday's 9-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers for arguing when plate umpire Roberto Ortiz apparently wouldn't reset the pitch clock after Aaron Nola requested a new baseball.

While facing David Peralta with two outs, Nola took a return throw from catcher J.T. Realmuto, circled behind the mound and indicated to Ortiz that he wanted a new baseball and threw the one he had toward the Phillies' dugout.

Ortiz handed a ball to Realmuto but put both arms out to his side, and the pitch clock was not reset. It appeared that there were 10 seconds on the clock when Nola threw the baseball away.

Thomson emerged from the dugout and began a heated exchange with Ortiz before becoming even more vehemently upset with third-base umpire Bill Miller, who tossed Thomson.

Phillies fans gave Thomson a loud ovation as he walked off the field. The manager angrily folded his game notes when he returned to the dugout before leaving for his clubhouse office.

Under baseball's new pace-of-play rules, pitchers have 15 seconds to deliver a pitch with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner. The pitcher must start his delivery before the clock expires. After a pitch, the clock starts again when the pitcher has the ball back, the catcher and batter are in the circle around home plate, and play is otherwise ready to resume.

When a pitcher fails to throw a pitch in time, the penalty is an automatic ball.

Nola has indicated that he has had to adjust to the new rules. He has requested new balls often during games this season, but umpires had obliged his requests without incident.