Avid runner Mandy Williams always wondered why she found the social aspect of athletics club training more challenging than the training itself, so when she was finally diagnosed with autism at the age of 45, suddenly, a lifetime of symptoms made sense. After finding endurance sport late in life, running became a constant in Mandy’s life, and despite the challenges of race day overstimulation and anxiety, she has competed in everything from ultra-distance races to vertical kilometre events, even representing Great Britain as part of the GB Masters Mountain Running Team at the 2022 Masters Mountain Running World Championships. 

More recently, the 47-year-old took on her first Hyrox event as a pair with her partner and, in doing so, qualified for the upcoming Hyrox World Championship in Manchester. In this Q&A, we chat about Mandy’s diagnosis, how coordination issues affect her running, the challenges of competing as a neurodiverse athlete, and how Mandy’s training has stepped up in preparation for the Hyrox World Championship in May.