A new era for Athletics Weekly

As we celebrate our 80th anniversary, how we deliver our comprehensive coverage of the sport is evolving

Athletics Weekly has very humble beginnings. The man who invented it – Jimmy Green – initially produced  the magazine from the bedroom of his bungalow in Kent in England. He also told a white lie to get the publication off the ground.

The first issue, which came out in December 1945, was deliberately named “Vol II No.1”. The reason was that post-war rationing rules banned the launch of new publications so, inside the issue, editor and founder Green talked about “the resumption of this paper”, when of course there had never before been an athletics magazine like it in the UK.

Green died in 1998 aged 88, but he had the satisfaction of seeing his idea grow into something of a national institution. Prior to the launch, friends had warned him that he was “mad” and the idea would never work. “I thanked them for their advice and ignored them. I was pig-headed,” he later said.

Green’s instincts were correct and, remarkably, 80 years on from that fateful decision, the publication is still going strong. Such was the popularity of the product it went from being a monthly magazine called Athletics to a weekly title in 1950. Thereafter, the nickname “AW” was born.

The magazine established itself as the historian of the sport. Sales grew steadily as it charted the sport’s classic moments, such as Roger Bannister’s sub-four-minute mile, plus huge changes such as the switch from cinder to all-weather tracks, growth of women’s athletics and of course negative elements such as the advent of performance-enhancing drugs. 

No fewer than 20 editions of the Olympics and every one of the 19 editions of the World Championships have been documented in AW’s pages – as well as countless events from every level of the sport. Virtually every top athlete has seen their rise followed by the magazine, too.

Just as the sport of athletics has evolved, so AW has had to do likewise. After a Covid-induced hiatus, the magazine relaunched as a monthly title in October 2020, while the online operation – with athleticsweekly.com at its heart – has become increasingly important in meeting the demand for up to the minute news. 

In fact, as AW celebrates its 80th anniversary, we’re excited to introduce a brand new website – designed to enhance your experience and bring you even closer to the sport you love. Launching in April 2025, the site offers…