Australia and Japan sign new security deal; flood waters peaking in northern Victoria – as it happened

Volunteers place 195,000 sandbags in and around Echuca, which could reach devastating 1993 flood levels. This blog is now closed

• Lismore residents warned of major flooding as heavy rain falls along the east coast
• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

Australian ultrarunner on pace to break daily marathon world record

Did you know that you have the genes to be a long distance runner?

If you go back to our early genetics, basically, everyone has the genes to be a distance runner. Back 50,000 years ago, our survival depended on us being able to walk and jog long distances to be able to get food, and catch animals.