On Sunday the 22nd September 2024, we welcomed the 2022 1500m World Champion, Jake Wightman, into our store.
Jake was here all afternoon for a general meet & greet followed by a closed Q&A that lasted about 90 minutes. Over 100 guests attended the event with the Q&A led by our social media manager, Harrison, outlining Jake’s career from a young athlete to a world champion and beyond. The floor was then open for questions from the audience.
Jake was able to inspire and motivate all attendees through sharing experiences and insights relatable to athletes of all ages and abilities. A highlight for many was Jake’s story of appearing at a local parkrun and being introduced as a world champion which received no reaction from the runners. His 5k time was then revealed (13:52) at which point the crowd acknowledged his presence and achievements.
Jake spoke in depth about his family’s influence and how they helped start his career and shaped him to become world champion, with his Dad, Geoff Wightman, a former GB international athlete coaching him. Jake has a local connection to Bristol as his Mum, Susan Wightman (nรฉe Tooby) and his Aunt, Angela Tooby-Smith (nรฉe Tooby), were both based in Thornbury for much of their international careers.
Wightman spent several hours in-store meeting local athletes of all ages, answering questions, signing autographs, taking photos and providing motivational advice.
It was particularly inspiring for the younger athletes from various local athletics clubs who relished the opportunity to meet one of the country’s best ever middle-distance athletes.
Thank you to everyone who attended. It was great to see such a diverse mix of the running community present and so many clubs represented including Bristol & West AC, Southville RC, Great Western Runners, Westbury Harriers, Clevedon AC, Weston Whippets, Queen Square Run Club, and more!
We even had a couple of guests travel all the way from London because they didn’t want to miss the chance to meet Jake!
A special thank you to Jake for being so generous with his time to meet the runners of Bristol! It really was great to share our passion with so many local runners which hopefully inspires your best run!
