Walking into the sporting spotlight

Not for the Olympic bronze she won in 2004 or for her three Commonwealth titles; Saville’s notoriety beyond the small community of race walkers derives from her disqualification from her home Olympics of 2000 in Sydney, where she committed the frowned-upon act of an illegal gait.

Put simply, both of her feet were off the ground at the same time, turning a walk into a run.

That the Australian did it in front of the cameras on the home straight and not among the pack in the early stages of the race – where it is much harder to police – was her downfall.

“Every person I talk to, the only thing they know about race walking is that girl getting disqualified,” laughs Yorkshire’s Johanna Jackson, the woman who succeeded Saville as Commonwealth champion in 2010.

At 27 and Britain’s only qualifer for her home Olympics, Jackson is also well-placed to follow in Saville’s footsteps as the most talked-about race walker in the world – but for the right reasons.

For the Redcar-born Leeds Met student, who has trained six times a week since channeling her wide-ranging athletics approach into the one discipline, that reason would be an Olympic medal.

And given that walking is a pastime most able-bodied people take for granted, there is at least a starting point for those inspired by what she achieves this summer.

“It is simple when you’ve picked it up, it’s basically an extension of your normal walk, although I can imagine it looks quite awkward,” says Jackson.

“It’s about endurance and technique. You have to concentrate for the entire race. Whereas in a marathon you can switch off and go through the motions, in race walking if you lose concentration you can get in a tangle technically.

“With the running issue, you don’t really know if you’re off the ground, it’s not intentional, everybody will be off the ground at some point because we’re all pushing it to the limit. And that’s why it’s now judged by the naked eye and not a video camera.

“There was a lot of controversy back in Sydney (over Jane Saville) but that’s all been ironed out now. Race walking doesn’t get much limelight, which is a shame considering Britain was really successful at it in the 1960s; so it would be great if I could put it on the map again.

“There’s a lot of opportunities in the sport. The fact that our event is on the Mall and is free to come and watch, should help it draw a big crowd.”

A shin injury interrupted her winter training but after a schedule which involved a heavy cycling and cross-training regime, Jackson is fully fit ahead of the start of the new season in Russia in May. An Olympic medal this summer for the former New Marske Harrier would not only transform her life, but also her sport in this country.