Australian Track and Field Champs: Days 3 & 4 review – Hull Double, Browning 10.02

3 April 2023

Australian Track and Field Champs: Days 3 & 4 review – Hull Double, Browning 10.02

Brisbane 2023 was one of the best team performances for NSW at an Australian Track and Field Championships. Here is how the last two days unfolded.

Browning brilliant at home

Rohan Browning has been solid this domestic season with strong runs in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, but he was next level at the Nationals with preliminary round times of 10.18, then 10.17, ahead of his 10.02 in the final. It was a stunning run, the fastest on Australian soil for 23 years (since Sydney Olympics). Only three foreigners have run quicker. It also just missed his 10.01 PB set at the Tokyo Olympics.

Hull Double

With three races in four days Jessica Hull was peerless against all of Australia’s best distance runners over 1500m and 5000m. In the 1500m she negotiated a heat and final to defeat the Olympic finalists and former 1500/mile National record holder Linden Hall, Commonwealth Games medallist Abbey Caldwell and World Championships finalist Georgia Griffiths. It was yet another Jess V Abbey dual, with Jess a more comfortable winner than their last clash in Melbourne, clocking a meet record time of 4:04.19, ahead of Abbey’s 4:04.68. On the final day Jessica won the 5000m over Tokyo Olympian Rose Davies, Australia’s World XC star Leanne Pompeani and Rio Olympic finalist Gen Gregson. Jess broke away from the gun going on to win by 17 seconds in 15:05.87, her fourth fastest time and quickest on home soil. She has been so consistent, with previous national winning times of 15:06.12 (2020) and 15:06.13 (2022). It was a NSW trifecta with Rose Davies second (15:23.25) and Leanne Pompeani third (15:31.17).

Other highlights:

Continuing her terrific season form, Michelle Jenneke was untroubled winning the 100m hurdles in another world championships qualifying time of 12.77. It was just her second time, seven years after her first in 2016.

In the battle of Olympic javelin finalists, Mackenzie Little dominated world champion Kelsey-Lee Barber, with her five valid throws all ahead of Kelsey-Lee’s best of 57.05m. Mackenzie winning distance of 61.46m came in round four.

Nicola Olyslagers won her fourth consecutive high jump title after clearing 1.95m, ahead of missing 1.98m. Her training partner Emily Whelan was second, with her fourth 1.86m or higher clearance of the year. Making it a NSW clean sweep, teenager Erin Shaw was third, on countback, also with 1.86m.

With a bronze medal winning time of 2:04.43, Lora Roff has run her fastest time for six years. The time was faster than her 2017 National winning time that year.

Sarah Carli defended her National 400m hurdles title in 56.56 seconds.

Hammer thrower Alex Hulley won her fifth consecutive title in her second longest winning distance of 67.32m

The NSW team of Jessica Laurance, Bronte Carroll, Bronte Pickering and Katie Smee won the Australian 4x100m relay in 45.54. While in the mile relay Genevieve Cowie, Helen Pretorius, Tierney Dunne and Rowena Craker claimed gold in 3:41.12.

There was a surprise silver medal in the long jump for Alyssa Lowe with her PB effort of 6.45m. She came into this season with a best of 6.05m, from way back in 2019. Then three years on in December 2022 she hit 6.06m and raised her best on a further four occasions in 2023.

Silver medallist in the triple jump at the last two Nationals, Desleigh Owusu stepped to the top of the podium this year with a leap of 13.33m, after her one jump effort in the qualifying round saw her bound out to 13.42m.

15-year-old Chelsy Wayne was locked in a battle for the discus bronze with team mate Sally Shokry. Eventually in round five Chelsy looked safe after throwing 50.87m, her third competition over 50 metres, but Sally was not done yet and threw her best of the competition in round six with a distance of 49.46m.

A surprise national champion was the Ben Liddy coached Luke Van Ratingen in the 400m. He won comfortably in 45.88 seconds. However keen observers would have noticed him progressing nicely this summer with a PB of 46.17 set when placing second to Fred Kerley at the Sydney Track Classic. The 21-year-old has a limited history in the sport.

The 110m hurdles heats showed no indication of what was going to happen in the final, except that shock winner Mitchell Lightfoot had been improving with nearly every race this summer as the teenager transitions beautifully into seniors. His winning time of 13.65, was his sixth PB of the year and moved him to #9 Australian All-time. Throughout the race, Mitch had a slight lead over favourite, Jacob McCorry, who eventually crashed the last hurdle pushing him back to third Aussie. For the fourth consecutive year, Nick Andrews was second, making it a NSW clean sweep.

Brandon Starc was terrific in the high jump, clearing 2.29m on his first attempt – his highest ever at the National championships. But after clearing the same height on his third attempt, Victorian Joel Baden negotiated 2.32m on his first attempt to clinch his third national high jump title. Starc’s 2.29m had only ever been bettered in nationals history by Baden and Tim Forsyth.

After five decathlon podiums at the last six national titles, Alec Diamond broke through for his first title scoring 7535 points to defeat Victorian Christian Paynter by 150 points. Some of his best individual marks were 4.60m in the pole vault, 45.71m in the discus, 49.49 in the 400m and 14.97 in the 110m hurdles.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW

Image: Jessica Hull in the 1500m (image courtesy of Fred Etter)