John shares his thoughts about what it’s like to run ultras and 24-hour races as a mature runner. Incredibly, he has stayed injury free for nearly 30 years thanks to minimal training and lots of walking.

Take The Magic Step® spoke with Patrick Makau, the fastest marathoner in the world in 2010. In the interview, Makau discussed his running background, his ambitions, and the wealth of running potential in Kenya.

Meb Keflezighi, winner of the 2009 New York City Marathon sits down with Take The Magic Step® to discuss his running, family, and new passion: what he hopes to do with the MEB Foundation.

KIMbia’s Lineth Chepkurui has had a phenomenal 2010 road-racing season. In this interview, the former cross-country runner who enjoys competing on tough, hilly courses, hints at running a marathon before the 2012 Olympics.

Only one runner in the Western Hemisphere has ever won an Olympic gold in the 10,000m: Native American Billy Mills. In a special interview with Take The Magic Step®, Billy reflects on that magical moment 46 years ago in Tokyo and reveals his own personal struggles and how they empowered him to win.

Dick Hoyt reveals the struggles that were an unseen backdrop to legendary Team Hoyt’s courageous finish in the 2010 Boston Marathon … and talks about the future of running’s most famous wheelchair team.

In an exclusive eve-of-the-marathon interview with Take The Magic Step®, U.S. runner Ryan Hall explains why he believes a move he made three weeks ago could help carry him to victory tomorrow in the 114th Boston Marathon.

Haile Gebrselassie is one of the best long distance runners in history. He runs because he loves the feeling it creates in his body and mind, and he wants everyone to experience the elixir of running and the benefits it can bring to you.

Deena Kastor, known for being one of the world’s fastest marathoners, is preparing to run this year’s Chicago Marathon after her broken foot in 2008 slowed down her career. She speaks with Take The Magic Step®.

Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele reflects on his record-breaking double at the World Championships 2009 in Berlin, and shares his thoughts about his storied career.

After the difficult decision to withdraw from competing in the marathon of the World Championships 2009 in Berlin, Irina Mikitenko talked about her thoughts and feelings.

Sara Hall sits down with Take The Magic Step® before her 5,000m race at the U.S. Track and Field Outdoor Champs in Eugene, Oregon. She says she is ready—and reveals that training with her fellow world class runner and husband, Ryan Hall, keeps things fun.

Paul Tergat’s running career is filled with superlative achievements. He has set numerous world records and was the first runner to break 2:05 in the marathon. Paul spoke with Take The Magic Step® about his legendary career and his future.

Relaxed and ready to run, the athletes of Team KIMbia talk about strategy, team racing, and staying fresh for another competition despite their hectic running schedule.

James Koskei, at age 40, has been running marathons for only five years. And as he hits master’s age, he says he is getting stronger. Take The Magic Step® sat down with him on the eve of the 2009 Boston Marathon.

Ryan Hall has the running world wondering if he will be the first American to win the Boston Marathon in over 25 years. Take The Magic Step® spoke with Ryan in the final weeks of his training before the fabled marathon.

In 1997, Thomas Geierspichler was abusing drugs and alcohol to forget the wheelchair beneath him and the 1994 car crash that had put him there. But then he began an amazingly inspiring journey that brought him the title World Champion and a world record time in winning the Beijing 2008 Paralympic’s Marathon.

Fans know him as “Fam,” and after his self-described “reckless running” in the 2008 Olympic Steeplechase, the 30 year-old captured the attention of runners everywhere. In an interview as spirited and full throttle as his running, Fam talks about his running style, his desire to win, and his mental toughness.

A few months after her phenomenal bronze medal race in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, American distance runner Shalane Flanagan sits down for an interview to talk about her incredible experiences at the Olympics, her holistic approach to training, and her future racing plans.

As the first German woman to break the 2:20-hour barrier, 36 year-old Irina Mikitenko also became the fourth-fastest female marathon runner ever. The former top athlete on the track made a fast transition to the marathon, and talks in this interview about her motivation, her training, and her family.

Nicky Martin is in the classic tradition of high-standard British club runners who have competed all their lives over track, road and cross country, but his is a story with a difference.

Roger Robinson has combined a distinguished academic career with a passion for distance running. This interview offers insights into the development of running as a sport in the past 50 years, including the rise of the Africans, and the qualities required to be a successful competitor in the Olympic Games.

On the last day of September 2007, Haile Gebrselassie set a world record of 2:04:26 at the Berlin Marathon. The 34-year-old Ethiopian improved the old mark of his Kenyan rival Paul Tergat, who had run 2:04:55 in Berlin in 2003, by 29 seconds.

Celebrated 1976 Boston Marathon champion Jack Fultz, who teaches sport psychology at Tufts University, shares his thoughts on how to measure your successes—and be truly happy with your accomplishments.

Meseret Defar improved her own world record for 5,000m to 14:16.53 at the Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway, in June 2007. Her new record was an impressive eight seconds faster than her previous one. Take The Magic Step® spoke with the Ethiopian 5,000m Olympic champion soon after her race.

Jim Phelan is a deep thinker about endurance sport. He developed his interest in the duathlon and triathlon from a base as a track, cross-country and road runner for Blackheath and Bromley Harriers, a British club founded in 1869 and based in south London. This interview was conducted in May 2007.

Roger Low has competed in every London marathon since the race’s debut in 1981, and has developed a highly distinctive approach to marathon preparation. For Roger, the long run is the key, and that might be an understatement once you have read the interview.

After a career of amazing length and quality, Elana Meyer announced her retirement from international competition in 2005. She’s finding new mountains to conquer, literally, as she is planning to summit Mt. Everest. Elana talks about her approach to fitness, her work on behalf of children’s fitness and her thoughts on how sport and politics mix.

Lance Armstrong rewrote sports history by winning the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 through 2005. Always a competitor, Lance then decided to take on the 2006 NYC Marathon. Take The Magic Step® spoke with Lance soon after his marathon debut.

Bill Rodgers won the Boston and New York City marathons four times each and was ranked #1 in the world three times. At 58, his competitive juices still flow. But more importantly, Bill has become an elder statesman and ambassador for the sport of running. (A 2006 interview.)