Jake Hayward’s surprising return from double Achilles surgery

Hayward is now coaching himself as he aims to get back to his best.

“I was blessed to have a very good coach in Marc Rowland and I learned a lot while there,” he explained.

“He did a really good job with me, actually managing the injuries, but when I took my time I realized I needed to heal mentally and physically.

“For me it meant getting away from the game, going back home, being close to my family, coming back to Wales, and I think it gave me a new perspective and a new lease on life.”

Heyward said it feels like a fresh start for him.

“I really think it’s the beginning of my career now because I think from my perspective, people were always like, ‘Oh Jack’s got the ability to do things’, but I was always carrying this huge bone deformity on my ankle,” he said.

“I wasn’t pushing my legs properly, I was managing the sessions, I was changing the way I was running and because of that I was never able to get the best out of myself.”

As he returns to his best, Hayward is keeping realistic expectations of his ‘new’ tone.

“It’s very easy to compare yourself to how a session felt when you were at your peak,” he continues.

“You have to be very confident in your own abilities and also trust the process.

“I think when you’re patient, and you listen to your body, and you let it come to you, that’s when the results come.”

With a 3:32.09 run in Nancy earlier in July, Hayward was just one second off his personal best in the 1,500-meter event.

That run was within the criteria for August’s European Championships in Birmingham, although he will have to wait to see if he is selected by the British team after finishing second at the UK Athletics Championships in June.

Hayward said his performance at the UK Championships was bittersweet: “I came to win and was a bit short on it.

“To be able to put a pair of spikes in the big picture, stay healthy and challenge for wins is incredible.

“It’s nice that I can still come back in this environment and run fast laps because the way my training is going I haven’t been able to do much of that yet.

“Going to the Commonwealth Games is really exciting.

“It’s the first time I’ve been to a race and really enjoyed the whole thing; it’s really good.”