I feel so strong

Sometimes it’s painful. But I’m not training for a race, I’m training for life

Anne Dockery, gold medal winner in Duathlon World Championships who took up running at 55 (@Alex Rotas)

Childhood is made of scents and tastes. Mine, in particular, was a mix of freshly cut grass, rain falling on dry soil, the musty powder of corn grains drying in the sun, and the bitter taste of chicory that my grandmother used to pick from the orchard to feed the ducklings. But there’s a taste that trumps the whole repertoire: focaccia, the core of an Italian childhood. So, what’s the hype? It’s a feast of contrasts. The Italian Focaccia is soft and airy, an inch-thick dough drenched in olive oil. I see its translucence on the bottom crust and on my fingertips. The upper part, dotted with crystals of salt, is a maze of irregular holes made by the baker’s fingers where the oil, mixed with water spread on the surface before baking, gets trapped in tiny gaps. The uneven dough has uneven tastes, more crispy where the crust is golden brown, more soft and juicy in the hollow parts. As I stand wrapped in a towel on the beach, the sand is warm and soft under my feet. I bite into the salty dough and drops of sea water roll down from my wet hair into my eyes and make me squint. Through the half closed eyes, I look at the flickering of the sun’s rays on the endless blue of the sea and the noise of the rolling waves blends with the voices of children playing and grown-ups chatting. While I enjoy the taste of a millennial-old food, it's as if time stands still.

Talking with Anne Dockery brings all these memories to mind. It’s an unexpected gift, because there’s no direct link between my childhood and this energetic 72-year-old British athlete who won gold in the Duathlon World Championship in Denmark a couple of years ago. But probably, it is her zest for life that in our long conversation sweeps me away and brings me back to the core of existence. Anne is one of the protagonists of Alex Rotas’ portraits I wrote about a few weeks ago and I was intrigued in talking with her after I learned that she was not a natural-born athlete, but took up running at the age of 55. Anne talks with the same enthusiasm and open-heartedness I imagine she puts into her running. She’s joyful, curious, and seems to be taken by surprise by her laughing that spurts through every now and then. In our torrential chit-chat, some words emerged. Life, play, pain, and love. More than a sport, running emerges as a school of life. But even if running is a personal quest, Anne talks about her community of runners of any age, the backing, the jokes, the encouragement. A step closer to age-inclusivity than many advertising campaigns. You can really see a world of possibilities unfold behind the determination of choosing a goal and setting the mind to reach it. I am very grateful for having had the chance to talk with her. Today, I woke up early and, after a twelve-year break, I went for a little run.

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your career before you became a runner?

I attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and I went on to be an English and Drama teacher, firstly in the East End of London and then in Colchester, Essex. During this time I did a Fulbright exchange and spent several months teaching at  Poughkeepsie High School, New York, while my eight-year-old daughter attended the local middle school. Whilst there I met Mike and, some years later, married him and moved to the USA.

How old were you and why did you decide to hit the track?

I was 69 when I decided to try track events, but I started running when I moved to New York State at age 55. I had smoked heavily in my youth and had just been diagnosed with bronchiectasis, a long-term condition where the airways of the lungs become abnormally widened. Mike suggested running might strengthen my lungs so I gave it a go. I was not particularly keen at first as it was hard work. Running takes time to dawn on you.

However, running by the beautiful Hudson River gradually grew on me. Rather like Bristol, where I live now, you could not avoid hills and I grew to really love the challenge of pushing up them. About a year later Mike unilaterally entered me in a hill-ridden cross country. I hardly slept the two nights before, and labored through my first 5k, finishing in 28:40- and, oddly enough, found the ordeal enjoyable. I had come third in the 50 to 60-year-old group. Once you get a medal, you’re hooked.

In March 2018, I returned to live in Bristol, near my daughter and grandchildren. I was in my 70th year and wanted a fresh challenge so I decided to try track. I wanted to give myself a new test, I guess. I joined the Bristol and West Athletics Club where I was given tremendous support and guidance, as track running is quite different to road running. I worried about track etiquette and keeping in the right lane as I did not want to trip someone up! No need to worry, all the athletes and officials were amazingly kind and helpful, calming nerves and making sure you were ready to race. I think this is the same with enthusiasts of any kind; they are so willing to teach you what they know about the sport they love. The pre-race nerves never leave you, but they can be dealt with.

What about your athletic achievements?

I managed to perform well at the World track and field events in Malaga 2018 bringing home three individual bronze medals (800, 1500 and 5,000), one team silver (4x100 relay) and one team gold (4x400 relay)! No one could have been more surprised than I was and I was so proud to be representing Great Britain. Talk about a runner’s high! Earlier that year I had succeeded in qualifying for the World Duathlon Championships (Duathlon is run/bike/run) to be held in Fynn, Denmark and I became the World Champion in the 70 age group.

Tell us about your victory?

I used to watch the Olympics with my father, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would ever be standing on a podium with a Union Jack draped around my shoulders and a gold medal hanging around my neck. It doesn’t get any better than this! The pride and joy of becoming a World Champion and representing Great Britain is beyond description. But if I can do it, this gives everybody a chance. It is worth every moment of training, every sacrifice.

What do you like in particular about running?

I love the fact that it gives me so much energy; I can tackle most jobs very quickly after a good run. I also find longer runs have a meditative quality to them and bring me calmness as well as giving me an opportunity to think problems through. Although I do most of my running on my own, I love to run with company. I often run off road with a wonderful group on Sunday mornings and, as I am considerably slower than most of them, they run back and take turns to run and chat with me and afterwards we all go get coffee together. A brilliant way to spend a Sunday morning.

Then there is Tuesday night track training where thirty people of many abilities may turn up and train together. We are all pushing each other to do well as our amazing coach, in his late 70s, times us and cheers us along all through the year. I now cannot imagine life without running.

I know you train six days a week. Does the rain stop you?

I don’t run when it is slippery, because I have osteoporosis and it is not worth the risk, but I love to run in the rain. For some reason it makes me feel extraordinarily happy.

Did you have any doubts when you started running? How did you overcome them?

I think when you take on any new challenge you have doubts but that is what it is all about, isn’t it? Dealing with fears by training and practicing. When you do track, the doubts tend to be about failure, you can’t hide and I have often wanted to run away. With sport the challenge, it’s not just physical, it’s mental. I have gained so much mental strength with running and that transfers into my life. You learn to cope with pain, disappointment, and you look beyond and go beyond. The fantastic thing is that when you push through, you get to the other side and gradually your doubts decrease although they never totally disappear. Even when I have come last, I have been proud and happy, because I didn’t give up. Sport is rarely about winning. It is more to do with being the best we can be on a specific day.

We tend to think that after “a certain age” the recommended disciplines are something like yoga, pilates or swimming. Is that another myth related to aging that needs to go?

Absolutely! You can try anything with help and guidance. Little by little. I don’t think we should use the words “I can’t” at any age. You just do not know until you give it a try. It is amazing how quickly you can gain confidence in a new activity with a little help and encouragement. We have to stop age being this artificial barrier that inhibits people's desire to become stronger, faster or simply more active. We need to show younger people that there is excitement, competition, strength and lots of fun after 60! I have to add that I swim, do yoga and I believe pilates is one of the best forms of exercise for strengthening your core.

I know you took up running later in life and so it might not be possible to make a comparison, but how does the aging body respond to intense training?

My body loves it. Originally we had to keep active or die and the more we push our bodies, at whatever age, the better they respond. I feel so strong. Of course sometimes it is painful, but I’m not just training for a race, I’m training for life. I am keeping fit so that I can continue to live an active life and look after myself for as long as possible. I had a back injury and I am aware of the importance of keeping the core strong, and my muscles pumping. If you have strong muscles you can avoid falling and, if you do fall, you can pick yourself up again, you can play with your grandchildren, and squats are great for making sure you can get up from that chair.

In one interview, you said that younger people “use” you as an incentive to improve their performance. Is this a positive side of ageism?

Yes, I think it is a positive side of ageism. I do not like to be beaten so it works both ways. When I was 64 I was at my fastest and ran a 20:47 5k. Now lots of younger people obviously thought that if I could do it at that age they should maybe train a little harder and try to beat me. I knew I had a target on my back at local races which made me grit my teeth and push hard, as I am very competitive, but these runners were my friends so I was happy to celebrate with them when they eventually got me as they inevitably did.

I read that your ambition is to keep running into your 90s and beyond. How important is goal setting?

You can always have an objective. When you get older, there are fewer dreams to chase, things to look forward to. With sport, it’s different, you set a goal and you train for it. Everybody should have a sport. Some people are physically unable to run or do triathlons, but they can do other things. I tried rowing, for example, it’s a great team sport, dancing is another tremendous form of exercise and I love playing darts. 

There are so many possibilities for exercise. You just have to break it down into bite-size bits. With running, walk for five minutes, run for one. Set reachable targets. Success comes from doing it little by little. I remember my mum, when she was in her early 90s, had an accident and could no longer walk very far so she got her walker out each day aiming to increase her strength, and a neighbor would visit and walk by her side. At first, she only got a few yards but soon she was going down the road. What motivated her? Chatting with the neighbor was what she loved and so she walked and, as it pleased her neighbor to see her progress, she kept going further. She was rightly proud of what she achieved.

Park runs are another option, you get such a mix of people. You would be welcomed, helped and encouraged. You can walk and talk for the full 5k if you wish. You can set a goal to do sections a little faster. I have not yet seen anyone do a park run using a walker, but if I have to, I will. Of course, you don’t have to do what I do. This is just what I love to do. We all need to find that neighbor to give us a push.

Do you think that living in the US might have promoted a “can-do” approach to life?

Yes, probably. Older people in the USA have many opportunities to keep active and they are definitely “can do” in their attitude. I had friends who had hip replacements and seemed to be back at the races in no time. Older people are encouraged to run in the US because there are usually five-year age group category awards at the races going up into the eighties. There are also the Senior Games and people train hard for them in all sorts of sports, including pickle ball, which is a tremendous game. I do not think we have anything similar in the UK.

I started doing triathlons in the US when I was 64 as my nearly 70-year-old friend encouraged me and coached me. I shall be eternally grateful to her for getting me into this demanding sport. She is still doing triathlons all these years later. We used to have such a laugh together particularly when in the water waiting for the swim to start. I am not certain I would ever have tackled triathlons if I had been living in the UK, mainly because of the weather. Florida was a perfect place to learn as the water was always warm. I am the slowest of the slow swimmers, always scared I will not finish and always last out of the water but I do love the thrill, the challenge and, of course, the camaraderie of a triathlon. I compete in the UK now and I am often blue with cold whilst waiting, very nervously, for the swim to begin. 

You’re having an amazing old age. What does our culture get wrong about older people?

It gives such a rotten image. It’s true that we are beginning to see more positive images, but the focus is mostly on the problems of the older adults or on a certain idea of beauty. Forgive me for pointing out that “old age” isn’t quite where I’d say I am. I’m aging and older than I was, certainly, but I feel I’m at the beginning of a journey with potentially almost three decades ahead of me. I feel it is a much more varied and exciting time than that rather static term implies. As older athletes, I think that we are getting away from the stereotypes, we are a different type of role model, we are showing how much we love life. I have never been happier.