This is the race of my life and the hardest part is knowing that
one day I’m certain to lose it

By Ian Stafford Last updated at 10:15 PM on 05th July 2008
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/oth...n-lose-it.html

The long blond hair is now short and as grey as his pallor but the man serving customers in a small equestrian shop in the Auckland suburb of Newmarket is still instantly recognisable as one of the greatest middle-distance runners of all time.

It is 16 years since John Walker, the 1976 Olympic gold medallist in the 1500metres at the Montreal Games, quit athletics, leaving behind him a glittering career that included Commonwealth medals, world records, more sub-four minute miles (135) than anyone in history, as well as intense rivalries with the likes of first Filbert Bayi and Mike Boit and then the great British triumvirate of Seb Coe, Steve Ovett and Steve Cram.

For the past 15 years, however, the Kiwi who was always a crowd favourite in Britain has faced a far stiffer challenge than anything his rivals posed on the track. Walker was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease at just 41 and has been confronting it ever since with a mix of his trademark bullishness and realism.
'This has been the greatest race of my life,' explains the 56-year-old. 'Why? Because it's the only race I know I can't win.'

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