Jake Smith

Jake Smith, 23, based in Cardiff and coached by James Thie, has emerged as a genuine contender for the Team GB Olympic squad ahead of Tokyo — after an unplanned marathon debut at the Cheshire Marathon, where he was only meant to pace to 25km and ended up running the full 26.2 miles in 2:10:58, an Olympic and World qualifying time.

His week is built around progression runs, 10-14 mile track sessions, steady-paced runs, cross-training, and strength and conditioning. Cycling alongside running gives him similar aerobic benefit with less physical stress.

Moving from half-marathon to 10,000m training meant changing the shape of his sessions — half-marathon work was aerobic at controlled pace (2x4 miles slightly faster than half-marathon pace), while 10k prep leans on track speed: 200s, 300s, 400s and longer reps.

Ahead of the Birmingham trials on 5 June, Jake's racing shorter distances — 1500m and 5km. "Training in Cardiff with the group we have here is amazing," he says, preferring to stay with his established training group over an overseas camp. His Olympic dream goes back to watching the 2008 Beijing Games as a kid; a 28:00 10,000m time trial and a 60:31 half marathon have made the trials — target time 27:28, at roughly 2:45 per kilometre — feel properly within reach.