<p><strong>Olympic high jump silver medallist Mirela Demireva shares some of her favourite tracks.</strong></p>
<p>"I never listen to music during my training. For a high-jumper, rhythm is very important in my training and it is an individual matter and I can only find that inside. I can&rsquo;t listen to music and my body simultaneously. For the same reason, I don&rsquo;t prepare music for a competition. I don&rsquo;t need it to boost my mood or motivation, so I only usually listen to music at home, in the evenings, and when I do I don&rsquo;t do anything else &ndash; just sit back and listen.</p>
<p>I don&rsquo;t have any favourite artist or genre, if a song is done well, categories don&rsquo;t matter to me and I never like imposing limitations.</p>
<h2>Mirela Demireva's chill-out playlist</h2>
<p><br /><iframe src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/7dUgp0tS4CDHfHtJp7j0Ah" width="100%" height="380" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>

Olympic high jump silver medallist Mirela Demireva shares some of her favourite tracks.

The chill-out playlist - Mirela Demireva

<p>At moments, running can be a monotonous sport. The same routes traversed time and again over a long winter block of training. Sometimes all it takes to relight that fire is a good book.</p>
<p>Here are five that will inspire you to get the trainers on once more.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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<h2><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Out_of_Thin_Air/eT3rDwAAQBAJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Out of Thin Air</a></span> by Michael Crawley</h2>
<p>Michael Crawley is a talented marathon runner who has competed internationally for Scotland, but it was his trip to Ethiopia that made him fall back in love with the sport. Living with some of the nation&rsquo;s best athletes, Crawley provides a fascinating insight into one of running&rsquo;s most fabled heartlands.</p>
<p>From travelling to altitudes where it is difficult to breathe all in search of almost mythical mountain air, to zig-zag runs through dense forests, Crawley introduces us to the almost spiritual association Ethiopia has with the sport.</p>
<p>An awe-inspiring, uplifting read, Out Of Thin Air will bring purpose to those daily runs and a spring in the step for anyone hoping to follow in their footsteps.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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<h2><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Coasting/sRlizgEACAAJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Coasting</a></span> by Elise Downing</h2>
<p>Elise Downing&rsquo;s book starts with the familiar conundrum. A university graduate finding her feet in the working world, Downing faces up to the reality of what her future holds. Her solution, however, is not the typical.</p>
<p>Deciding to run the coast of Britain, Coasting follows her journey round the nation&rsquo;s shores. It charts the highs and lows of the entire 5000-mile journey, the people she meets along the way and the truths she discovers about herself.</p>
<p>Coasting serves a fitting reminder of how running can provide a great platform to unwind your thoughts, to reflect and ultimately to move forward in a better place than when you headed out the door.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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<h2><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Born_to_Run/_onEr-4TXJsC" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Born to Run</a></span> by Christopher McDougall</h2>
<p>An injury to his foot has McDougall in pursuit of a fix. But in searching for an answer, the author draws us to what many see as the birthplace of North American endurance: the Tarahumara tribe and their incredible ultra-running exploits.</p>
<p>The book follows McDougall in his attempt to complete a 50-mile race in Tarahumara territory and sees him try to answer how humans are capable of such extraordinary feats.</p>
<p>A mixture of high-level sports science and nostalgic romanticism will see you plodding along wondering whether you were born to do this.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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<h2><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Feet_in_the_Clouds/lSvBAgAAQBAJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Feet in the Clouds</a></span> by Richard Askwith</h2>
<p>Richard Askwith is, by his own admission, no fell-running superstar but his book on the sport provides a compelling illustration of just why so many find the sport so special. One in which the sport&rsquo;s best and the rest face the same trials and tribulations.</p>
<p>Along his journey trying to complete the Bob Graham Round, a fell-running endurance challenge in the UK&rsquo;s Lake District, Askwith tells the story of fell-running&rsquo;s understated stars.</p>
<p>If a book can summarise what it means to be out on the fells, plotting your path, this is probably it.</p>
<p>Feet in the Clouds will have you searching for the tallest hill and making it your mission to climb it.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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<h2><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Passion_Paradox/GdhhDwAAQBAJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Passion Paradox</a></span> by Brad Stulberg &amp; Steve Magness</h2>
<p>In pursing your running goals, it can often feel like you lose balance in your life. When you don&rsquo;t quite achieve what you are looking for, then it can have a big impact on how you feel. Not just about your running but also about your self-worth.</p>
<p>Stulberg and Magness tackle the notion of passion, how it is important for success but how it needs to be harnessed so as to avoid becoming something obsessive. They talk about the warning signs, how an element of imbalance is necessary but ultimately how you can channel it to your advantage.</p>
<p>Although this book isn&rsquo;t just about running, it is for all those who feel they&rsquo;re stuck in a rut and looking for something to freshen up their perspective to their passions.<br /><br /></p>
<p><strong>George Mallett for World Athletics Be Active</strong></p>

Five good reads to inspire you to get the trainers on once more

Five books to make you rethink your running

<p>Italian high jumper Elena Vallortigara, who has a best of 2.02m, is one of the finest exponents of her craft.</p>
<p>Here the 29-year-old international selects five of her favourite sports autobiographies/biographies and explains what they mean to her.<br /><br /></p>
<h2><img style="width: 150px; height: 231px; margin-left: 20px; align: right;" src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51yLwoHveIL._SX322_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" alt="book" align="right" />Andre Agassi &ndash; Open</h2>
<p>The best sports autobiographies I&rsquo;ve ever read. I have read it many times and it is the most underlined book I have. I usually underline books when I find something useful that I can relate with my story. When I read it, I remember I was hit by the fatigue Andre talks about; I remember the physical pain, but also the figurative fatigue in order to pursue his dreams. Fatigue also leads to knowing himself and finding great things. Since I was enduring a rough time at that point in my life, I was inspired by his capability to rise again after each setback.<br /><br /></p>
<h2><img style="width: 150px; height: 219px; margin-left: 20px; align: right;" src="https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/414DI9fpCJL._SY346_.jpg" alt="book" align="right" />Mauro Berruto &ndash; Capolavori</h2>
<p>I love volleyball, my father played and coached the sport and I spent a lot of time with him watching the sport as a child. I also played for a short period and I am fascinated by the team sport dynamic. Mauro was coach of the Italian volleyball team that won bronze at the London 2012 Olympics. I loved reading a book from a coach/manager perspective. I was inspired by his winning mentality, his commitment and the ability to frame people and situations in order to make the right decision at the right moment. I admire how he engineered a team culture and his motivational speeches were also very inspirational.<br /><br /></p>
<h2><img style="width: 150px; height: 239px; margin-left: 20px; align: right;" src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/510UuDVY7pL._SX311_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" alt="book" align="right" />James Kerr &ndash; Legacy</h2>
<p>This book about the All Blacks (the New Zealand rugby team) was recommended to me by a friend. I didn&rsquo;t have much knowledge of the subject but I&rsquo;ve been intrigued by the All Blacks and that sense of alliance that they possess &ndash; which is unique to rugby and much of the sporting world. After reading this book I became inspired by the philosophy of the team and the life lessons learned in their journey to become better more successful people.<br /><br /></p>
<h2><img style="width: 150px; height: 239px; margin-left: 20px; align: right;" src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41+5oKQLD2L._SX311_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" alt="book" align="right" />Novak Djokovic &ndash; Serve to Win</h2>
<p>I like playing and watching tennis. Reading books from legends such as Agassi and Djokovic makes me have even more respect for their accomplishments because I now understand what difficult sport tennis is. Novak talks extensively about how changing his diet gave him performance benefits. I too went through a period when I was gluten sensitive and I found the book useful for this reason. He also talks about kinesiology. I also regularly went to a kinesiologist mainly to test for food intolerances, so it was interesting to learn that Djokovic also tapped into this kind of support. He doesn&rsquo;t talk a lot about his sport or his private life, but I learned the importance, as an athlete, of listening to my body and that we are all different with different needs.<br /><br /></p>
<h2><img style="width: 150px; height: 209px; margin-left: 20px; align: right;" src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41zo3c8O7rL._SX356_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" alt="book" align="right" />Niccolo Campriani &ndash; Remember to Forget the Fear</h2>
<p>Campriani is an Olympic rifle shooting champion. He writes about fear of failure, of disappointing himself and others, how to deal with his identity and how this fear led to a mental block and how he overcame it. By reading this book, I learned the importance of one&rsquo;s own roots of happiness and to be able to express yourself to the maximum as an athlete. I lived his feelings and his words through myself. It was a very inspiring story.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Steve Landells for World Athletics</strong></p>

The Italian high jumper selects five of her favourite sports autobiographies/biographies and explains what they mean to her.

Vallortigara's top five inspiring sports biographies

<p>World javelin champion Kelsey-Lee Barber knows a thing or two about training hard &ndash; every day she sprints hard, lifts heavy weights &ndash; and then rests and sleeps before doing it all over again. But, like all of us, the past year has at least given her plenty of opportunities to rest while catching up on good TV.</p>
<p>Here she shares her favourite programmes, from comfort re-watching to views that get the pulse racing.</p>
<h3>Friends</h3>
<p>A classic. It&rsquo;s easy to rewatch any episode, at any time, regardless of what mood I&rsquo;m in.</p>
<h3>Criminal minds</h3>
<p>A crime solving series with some really lovable characters. The thing that I love about this show is it&rsquo;s based around profiling to track and apprehend the &ldquo;unsub&rdquo; [the perpetrator].</p>
<h3>Chicago Fire</h3>
<p>This is a more recent discovery but one that I have thoroughly enjoyed. Great characters and exciting storylines.</p>
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<h3>Outlander</h3>
<p>A binge-worthy drama. Outlander transports you into another world. You definitely want to settle in to watch this one.</p>
<h3>Game of Thrones</h3>
<p>Yes, I definitely jumped on the Game of Thrones bandwagon, and enjoyed every minute of this series. So many twists and turns, it keeps you guessing right to the end.</p>
<h3>Person of Interest</h3>
<p>A series that took me by surprise. I really got into the mystery element of this show - and I always enjoy a good fight scene.</p>
<p><strong>Kate Carter for World Athletics Be Active</strong></p>

World javelin champion Kelsey-Lee Barber shares some of her favourite programmes, from comfort re-watching to views that get the pulse racing.

Culture13 Nov 2020

The chill-out playlist - Mirela Demireva

Mirela Demireva's chill-out playlist

Five books to make you rethink your running

Vallortigara's top five inspiring sports biographies

Kelsey-Lee Barber's top six TV shows