{"id":1040010136,"date":"2026-03-04T12:55:47","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T12:55:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/?p=1040010136"},"modified":"2026-03-04T12:55:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T12:55:47","slug":"callum-wilkinson-and-the-art-of-walking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/callum-wilkinson-and-the-art-of-walking-1040010136\/","title":{"rendered":"Callum Wilkinson and The Art of Walking"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>New documentary and passion project aims to showcase the ups and downs \u2013 as well as the skill \u2013 of being a race walker.<\/p>\n<p>It didn\u2019t begin with a commissioning editor or a funding pitch,\u201d says Tom Ruddock. \u201cIt began with my dad. Len Ruddock \u2013 Ilford AC member, former training partner of European Games bronze medallist Roger Mills \u2013 has lived and breathed race walking for as long as I can remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The filmmaker is discussing his new project, The Art of Walking, a documentary that brings the triumphs, tribulations and toil of two-time Olympian Callum Wilkinson into sharp focus. It just recently premiered on Athletics Weekly\u2019s YouTube channel \u2013 a fitting collaboration for a few reasons.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a teenager, having a dad who race walked wasn\u2019t exactly a social asset,\u201d continues Ruddock. \u201cBut what stayed with me was the discipline. The quiet stubbornness. The kind of commitment only niche sports seem to demand.<\/p><div class=\"ad-alignnone\"><div class=\"ad-row\">\n<div id=\"ad-1040000351\" class=\"ad-970x250 adsanity-970x250 alignnone adsanity-alignnone\"\n><div class=\"adsanity-inner\">\n\n<div id=snack-incontent-wide-1 > <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cMy dad has always been one of my biggest supporters and I\u2019d long wanted to collaborate on something meaningful with him so when he launched his YouTube channel, Race Walking Extra, and mentioned he had a connection to Callum, it felt like an opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen he sent me an <a href=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/reports\/callum-wilkinson-states-the-case-for-race-walking-1039990378\/\"><em>AW<\/em> interview with Callum<\/a>, in which he described race walking as an art form. He spoke candidly about the effort it took to reach Paris 2024. I watched the clip of him qualifying for the Olympics at the British Championships. The emotion. The relief. The years condensed into a single moment. I knew immediately: this was a film.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"The Art of Walking | Callum Wilkinson&#039;s Olympic journey\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7jBPDR3cOr8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" data-load-mode=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>That national record-breaking performance from Manchester almost two summers ago features in the film, as does Wilkinson\u2019s release of pure emotion at the finish line that becomes all the more understandable the more you learn about the circumstances in which it was achieved.<\/p><div class=\"ad-alignnone\"><div class=\"ad-row\">\n<div id=\"ad-1040000349\" class=\"ad-970x250 adsanity-970x250 alignnone adsanity-alignnone\"\n><div class=\"adsanity-inner\">\n\n<div id=snack-incontent-wide-2> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>That 10,000m race had been set up with the express purpose of giving the now 28-year-old what he needed to qualify for Paris. \u201cIt was the last day of the qualifying window, the last chance,\u201d says Wilkinson.<\/p>\n<p>He seized it and his lengthy injury struggles, the surgeries, the monotonous hours of rehab exercises, became a thing of the past. Given the sport\u2019s ongoing battle to keep its place at the athletics table, it takes great character simply to be a racewalker but even more so to compete at the highest level.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnce you qualify for the Olympics, and you can call yourself an Olympian, you have that for life,\u201d says Wilkinson. \u201cNo-one can take that away from you. To do that a second time, when you could have left the sport or had it taken away from you \u2013 and you've managed to keep that childhood dream alive and be back in a place where you could really enjoy it \u2013 my journey to the [Paris] Olympics was a success before I even stepped on the start line.<\/p>\n<p>\"As much as I came 10th in Tokyo [in 2021] and 16th in Paris, it was almost certainly a better performance to get there and get back. It meant so much more to me than I ever thought was possible.\u201d<\/p><div class=\"ad-alignnone\"><div class=\"ad-row\">\n<div id=\"ad-1040000352\" class=\"ad-970x250 adsanity-970x250 alignnone adsanity-alignnone\"\n><div class=\"adsanity-inner\">\n\n<div id=snack-incontent-wide-3> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>The emotional challenges of being a competitor, and the comeback story, were only part of what Ruddock wanted to capture with the film, however. He had other things in mind, too. Within minutes of first speaking with Wilkinson about the project, he says: \u201cI felt the clarity, the resilience, the depth behind the performance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Soon he, producing partner Shelley Ruddock, cinematographer Yannick Hausler and Len Ruddock were on a plane to Wilkinson\u2019s training base in Cork for a 48-hour filming shoot.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1040010142\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1040010142\" style=\"width: 750px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1040010142 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/AOW-Group-shot-750x442.jpg.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"442\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/AOW-Group-shot-750x442.jpg.webp 750w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/AOW-Group-shot-768x453.jpg.webp 768w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/AOW-Group-shot.jpg 950w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 750px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 750\/442;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1040010142\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Callum Wilkinson with the film making crew<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe aim was simple \u2013 treat race walking as art,\u201d says Tom. \u201cNot just document it, frame it. Capture the rhythm of the hips, the precision of foot contact, the economy of movement. We shot sections on 16mm film to give the training sequences texture and grit.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s something about film grain that honours repetition and labour. It felt right for a discipline built on both. What we hadn\u2019t fully prepared for was the speed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve filmed runners before \u2013 Yannick and I had just come off a television drama involving full chase sequences \u2013 but filming an Olympic race walker is different. The cadence is relentless. Even at \u2018steady pace\u2019, Callum was moving faster than expected and we were a four-person crew.<\/p>\n<p>\"At one point, at the university track, we found a trolley and that led to me sprinting while pushing Yannick, camera in hand, trying to keep level with Callum\u2019s stride. Later, in a gym car park, we shot from the back of a rental car. Unorthodox solutions but necessary ones. If the audience feels the speed, we\u2019ve<br \/>\ndone our job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1040010141 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Filming-750x442.jpg.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"442\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Filming-750x442.jpg.webp 750w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Filming-768x453.jpg.webp 768w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Filming.jpg 950w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 750px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 750\/442;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Wilkinson is hoping that that speed can carry him all the way to another Olympics, where he intends to be a medal contender. That goal has not been made any easier by the fact that he is no longer on World Class Programme funding.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRace walkers train like marathoners, but without the same infrastructure or sponsorship security,\u201d says Ruddock. \u201cCallum\u2019s story is one of persistence not just physically, but financially and emotionally. And it\u2019s ongoing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs he builds toward LA 2028, our hope is that this short documentary is just the beginning to a full-length feature film \u2013 that it helps raise support to follow the next chapter, and shines a light on a sport that thrives globally yet fights for visibility in the UK.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1040010140 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Callum-Wilkinson-2-750x442.jpg.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"442\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Callum-Wilkinson-2-750x442.jpg.webp 750w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2026\/03\/Callum-Wilkinson-2-768x453.jpg.webp 768w, https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Callum-Wilkinson-2.jpg 950w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 750px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 750\/442;\" \/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cRace walking is often misunderstood, but when you look closely \u2013 really look \u2013 there\u2019s beauty in the constraint. Precision in the rules. Art in the repetition. As Callum says at the start of the film: \u2018The greatest sophistication is simplicity and race walking is an incredibly simple thing\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There is also that very personal connection for the man leading the project.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy dad has shelves lined with five decades of <em>Athletics Weekly<\/em> magazines, so to premiere this film here \u2013 in the pages and on the platform he\u2019s respected for so long \u2013 feels like a full circle moment,\u201d says Ruddock. \u201cFrom Ilford AC to the Olympics. From father to son. That\u2019s where The Art of Walking truly began.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>The Art of Walking by View 35 Films is out now. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7jBPDR3cOr8\">Watch it here<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New documentary and passion project aims to showcase the ups and downs \u2013 as well as the skill \u2013 of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":221674,"featured_media":1040010143,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","inline_featured_image":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_championship":0,"wds_primary_country":0,"wds_primary_sports":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37091,12],"tags":[],"championship":[],"country":[],"sports":[36004],"class_list":["post-1040010136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-news","sports-race-walking"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1040010136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/221674"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1040010136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1040010136\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1040010143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1040010136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1040010136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1040010136"},{"taxonomy":"championship","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/championship?post=1040010136"},{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=1040010136"},{"taxonomy":"sports","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sports?post=1040010136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}