Meet Katie Snowden, 2023 UK 1500m Champion
The Polytan Ambassador talks becoming a full-time athlete, PBs and the upcoming World Champs.
Katie Snowden is on the rise. The British middle-distance runner and Polytan Ambassador made the semi-finals in the 1500m at Tokyo2020 and the 2022 World Championships in Oregon. She went on to narrowly miss out on medaling at the 2022 European Athletics Championships with a 4th place finish and came in 5th at the 2022 European Indoor Championships.
At the UK Athletics Championships last month, she became the 2023 UK 1500m Champion, and earlier in the year she clocked a PB of 4:00.04 which is the 16th fastest women’s 1500m time this year. She is currently ranked 15th in the World and 4th in Europe over 1500m.
We caught up with her to discuss her career, her recent win at the UK Athletics Championships and to look ahead to this year’s World Championships in Budapest.
Congratulations on becoming the 2023 UK 1500m champion. How does it feel?
Thanks, it’s very pleasing! Especially as this UK Champs was a trial for the World Champs coming up in Hungary. It meant that most of the top British runners were there so it was a strong field, including Laura Muir (ranked number 3 in the world and Olympic silver medalist).
Laura tends to surge with 600m to go, and for first time ever I was able to stay with her. And then on the home straight I went past her. My time was 4:09.86. This is the first time I have beaten Laura, and because she is one of the best, it is a nice confidence boost for the World Championships in August.
How did you get into the sport?
As a kid I did well in school races and when I was 12 years old, a PE teacher suggested I join the local club. And so, I became (and still am), a member of the Herne Hill Harriers. It is a brilliant club based in Tooting Bec.
It has a great family feel and attracts runners of all ages. The depth of the club is excellent and we have teams that compete at National Championship level. I try to join club sessions, where we will regularly have over 100 runners on the track, as often as I can. The coaches give up their time two or three nights a week; it amazes me how much time people donate to run the training sessions, events and to transport the athletes for no financial return. It’s phenomenal.
The track at the club was in bad shape so the club petitioned to the council to fix it. It is now a Rekortan track installed by Polytan which is great to train on.
When did you chose the 1500m?
Early on I did a mixture of distances from cross-country in the winter to 400m and 800m on the track in the summer. I had decent success over 400m, and I actually didn’t run 1500m at all when I was younger. But as I got older and stronger, my coach encouraged me to focus on the 1500m and it increasingly started to feel like a good race for me.
I still race some 800m races now, and really enjoy it. I clocked my 800m PB in 2022 with 1:59.72. I don’t think I will go up to the 3000m, but you never know!
“As I got older and stronger, my coach encouraged me to focus on the 1500m and it increasingly started to feel like a good race for me”
2023 Getty Images
Faith Kipyegon just ran under 3:50 in the Diamond League this year. What changes are happening in the 1500m?
The 1500m race has changed recently, and this has been led by the top runners like Faith Kipyegon and Sifan Hassan. Their approach is now to run very hard from the start, and to try and stretch out the field, ultimately preventing anyone else being near them at the end. They are so strong that it is a great approach - just look at the recent times!
This approach works for me too as I have a good combination of speed and endurance. However, what originally appealed about the 1500m to me was the race tactics. I love racing my opponents, trying to out-think them as well as out-run them.
I wonder if the event is less exciting because the tactical racing has gone a bit. But it is still fun and I think you will see more PBs because everyone is just running as fast as they can.
And you are now a full-time athlete?
Yes, since the Tokyo Olympics I have become a full-time runner. Pre Tokyo, I was juggling my running with personal training work and working in a coffee shop. Track is not great financially so doing other work was important, but going from the track to being on my feet all day in a café wasn’t good for recovery.
Being able to focus on my running full-time is going well. My times are improving which is probably more because of increased rest time than increased training. I am also doing more cross training now, such as swimming and biking, which is helping recovery and reducing injuries.
Tell us about your training in Arizona
Since becoming a full-time athlete, I have been able to join Mission Dark Sky Distance, which is a professional distance running team sponsored by Under Armour and based in Flagstaff, Arizona. The team focuses on events ranging from 1500m to marathon and has runners from all over the world.
The name is a bit unusual; it is named after the dark night skies found in Flagstaff, due to the city's commitment to reducing light pollution.
Flagstaff is located at 2100m elevation, which is great altitude for training, and I think you get more out of being part of a group rather than training solo all the time.
I go three times per year; January to mid February (which, because of the altitude, means there is lots of snow), then a big spring camp in March and April, and then in late October for some end-of-season training. I spend 5-6 weeks there at a time, based at the Northern Arizona University track. This has been a massive up-side of making running my full-time career.
Katie has qualified for the 1500m at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest from 19-27 August. We wish her all the very best.
Watch this space.