We speak to the man who equaled the British 10km record in Valencia about the new challenges.
Joe Wigfield’s original goal was to break the 28 minute barrier at the Valencia 10km in January. Although he has only competed in one official 10km race before, clocking 28:44 at the 2023 edition, the 26-year-old believed he could be among the best Britons in the field but expected the pair to be faster than him.
“When I saw the likes of Scott (Beatty) and Alfie (Manthorpe) in the race, I knew they had that experience,” he says.
Wigfield, who started on a sub-elite start line, found himself on his side both when the packs came together and opted to run alongside the British duo for most of the race, aiming to ‘pull’.
Through 13:54 after 5km he knew he was running fast but still wanted to conserve energy for the final 800m. Taking that kick and, after passing the likes of Beattie, Manthorpe and Andy Butchart straight down the field, Wigfield crossed the line in an official time of 27:38. He finished 11th overall, but also equaled Rory Leonard’s 10km national record.
“I didn’t expect to get that time,” Wigfield tells AW. “Now that I have a performance like that behind me, I have more confidence in believing that I can do some splits in training.”
He has now set his sights on the Barcelona Half Marathon (February 15) and aims to run around 61:00, a mark that would put him in the top 10 of the all-time UK half marathon rankings.
It would build on the momentum he built by winning the Westminster Mile (3:59), the Manchester Half Marathon (62:04) and FNUL Mizuno New Year’s Eve 5km (13:26) in the second half of last year.
He still regards the 1500m as his favorite event, but with recent success over the longer distances, is now looking more closely at them this season.
“I like to do shorter races like 800m and 1500m,” he says. “I knew I was in shape and that I could run these certain times, but reality sets in when you’re not at the front. By the end of the summer, I started to lose my head a little bit, so I focused so much on road running in the fall.
“Now I feel like I’m probably better at events like the 5km, 10km and half marathon. I’ll probably do a couple of 800m races at the British Milers Club meetings, for example, but those will essentially be speed work sessions.
“One of the main goals this season is to compete in the half marathon at the World Athletics Road Championships in Copenhagen in September. So I will be running the Bath Half Marathon (March 15) to qualify for it.”
Wigfield runs about 75-80 miles a week and is coached by 1996 Olympian Craig Winrow at St. Mary’s University. Growing up training at Wirral AC, Wigfield moved to Teddington in 2018 to study Health and Exercise Science. After graduating, she decided to stay and says it was one of the best moves she ever made.
“There are about 80 students, but you also have the likes of Jack Rowe and Adam Clarke who train there as well,” says Wigfield. “It means you’ve got a mix of coaches and that’s great because they’re happy that we’re fighting together sometimes in matches.
“I was actually only really interested in athletics when I got to university. Just before I moved to London I considered giving up running. When I was 16 and 17, I went through that phase of going out a lot and enjoying life, so I lost my love for running.
“Then I spoke to (fellow athlete) Dan Jarvis and he said that going to St Mary’s would give me a second chance at the sport.
If you could choose one person to train/compete with, past or present, who would it be and why?
Usain Bolt. It’s very different, but it would be fun to train with him. He would definitely help me with some of my speed sessions for sure.
