Rorey Hunter breaks through for first national vest

Published Tue 31 Jan 2023

31 January 2023

Rorey Hunter breaks through for first national vest

After 20 years in the sport, 10 as a senior athlete, Canberra physiotherapist Rorey Hunter has broken through for his first Australian team after a surprise, but impressive fourth place, in the Australian team trials for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships. And what a team to make your debut - on home soil in Bathurst in February.

How did a former National junior 800m champion and three-time National 1500m bronze medallist match it with marathoners and 10k specialists over 10,000m cross country?

“For the 1500m you just have to be so strong, so we’ve been working on that 10k fitness for years, and I knew from recent training I had never been this fit,” said Rorey. But he admits he had some doubts about being able to mix it with the leading athletes.

“I wasn’t sure to be honest. Given I hadn’t raced much over the longer stuff for a few years, there was some uncertainty.”

Rorey started his athletics journey in Western Australia.

“Like most Aussie kids, I started out doing the school sports days and cross country since I was 10. My mum was also a good runner and always encouraged and supported my races growing up and as I got older. I probably started to just focus on running when I was in late high school, aged 15 or so.”

He completed most of his high schooling in Cairns where in 2012 he won the National junior 800m title just prior to heading Indiana University where he studied Exercise Science. Over his five years at college in America he twice made the NCAA outdoors and once the 1500m final. He also won an indoor NCAA relay medal.

In 2017 he returned to Australia to study physiotherapy, settling in Canberra under coach Dick Telford. He was now a 3:39 1500m athlete, and in 2018 won his first Australian Championship 1500m bronze medal, matching that achievement in 2019 and in 2021.

He regards his 2021 National 1500m bronze as one of his most memorable achievements.

“Prior to that race I was struggling with Achilles soreness for four months or so, and finally got it to a point I could train at the end of January. I had a smooth few months of training and ended up finishing third, along with my teammate Jye Edwards taking the gold, as well as my other teammate James Nipperess winning the steeple shortly before. After a lot of dark days, it was such a surreal experience to share in front of friends and family, and was just one of those days where it made it all worth it.”

In Europe in 2021 Rorey lowered his PB to 3:36.42 and in March 2022 he ran an impressive 7:47.66 3000m PB.

With a world championship at home, Rorey was always going to attempt to make the cross country team – but in what event?

“I always wanted to run the trials, given it was in my backyard and world cross just down the road. But a few weeks before we were tossing up between to 2k and 10k. After some robust discussion, we thought it’d fit in better to go for the longer one.”

His lead-in was nothing special, just consistent training.

“My prep wasn’t any different really to what I’d normally be doing after my break in September. I fortunately was just able to have three months of consistent work, which has eluded me the past few years. Not crazy high volume, but lots of stuff at threshold and hills, along with some altitude training up in Perisher.”

He was not surprised with his result as he had a good feeling going in.

“I went in with the goal of making the team. Of course, you can’t know exactly how others have been training, but I knew my training was going well, and you get a sense of what it will take, so I expected a good result.”

Most influential person in your career: High school coach Brad Marshall for developing me for the future, my college coach Ron Helmer for showing me what it takes to be great, current coach Dick Telford for not leaving any stone unturned and finally, my manager James Templeton for always being the best source of support and advice…Advice to your young self: Work hard but smart and patiently, enjoy the experiences, be humble, form as many relationships as you can and never stop learning…Hobbies: travelling and exploring new places and learning about all thing’s health related…Sporting ambition: To run to my potential, represent my country as many times as possible and inspire the younger generation along the way…Occupation: Physiotherapist & Professional Runner…Education: Exercise Science at Indiana University (2015) and Masters of Physiotherapy at University of Canberra (2020)…Other sports: Basketball and AFL at representative level in high school…Interesting fact: Born with an extra soleus muscle in one leg which was recently cut out…Biggest challenge faced: In terms of running, I’ve dealt with my fair share of injuries which have both been a blessing and a curse. They have always taught me something, but staying in the sport during these times, with next to no financial support, along with outside pressures, wasn’t easy. With the help of others, I’m happy I persevered and have found ways to stay healthy and support myself in what is sometimes a brutal sport…Family: His mother was a national champion for 400m when she was 12 and elite hockey player. His brother works in Parliament house for a Cabinet Minister/Senator…Challenge of competing: I love the challenge of competing - it is always a test on you physically, emotionally, and tactically/psychologically. Also displaying and reaping the rewards of the months of preparation is always a good feeling.