Bol To Battle The Best | Olympic finalist to take centre stage at Maurie Plant Meet

The big stage requires big names and the Maurie Plant Meet – Melbourne is set to deliver both, with Olympic finalist Peter Bol confirming his start at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold Meet as one of five new additions to the star-studded John Landy Mile.

Returning to the spotlight at the 2024 Chemist Warehouse Summer Series, Bol will step up in distance to challenge the 2022 world champion over 1500m Jake Wightman (Great Britain), and fellow Australian Olympic finalist Stewart McSweyn who were announced in December.

The prestigious race won by Commonwealth Games champion Oliver Hoare in 2023 is set to be bolstered by teenage sensation Cameron Myers, who last year set a 16-year-old world age best (3:55.44) at the inaugural instalment of the meet, while Tokyo Olympian and Australia’s fourth fastest miler in history Jye Edwards also returns to the spotlight.

And with just one month to go until the 2024 Maurie Plant Meet – Melbourne, the field for the John Landy Mile has been elevated even higher with the addition of two more international stars.  Samuel Tanner (New Zealand) brings further Olympic credentials to the showdown, while NCAA record holder over 1500m Eliud Kipsang (Kenya) will make it a truly international affair at Lakeside Stadium on February 15 – a prospect that has Bol excited:

"I'm pretty pumped about the John Landy Mile at the Maurie Plant Meet. I've got to be honest taking on Stewy, Jake, Cam, Jye and others over the mile distance makes me a bit nervous! But in a good way, the thought of the distance has me focused on being strong. I'm looking forward to it,” Bol said.

Rising to stardom with a dream run at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games which culminated in a valiant fourth-place finish, Australia’s first man to make the Olympic 800m final since Ralph Doubell’s gold in 1968 is unsurprisingly also a class act over 1500m – boasting a 3:34.52 career-best.

The John Landy Mile will act as a launchpad for Bol who is eyeing a third consecutive Olympic berth, with Australia’s middle-distance brigade toeing the line amidst an action-packed program at Oceania’s only World Athletics Continental Tour Gold Meet which features $USD200,000 in prize money.

An unlucky accident in the gym ruled out reigning world champion Wightman from defending his 1500m title at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, but the 29-year-old hailing from Scotland will need little introduction to what is expected to be a capacity Melbourne crowd – presenting as one of the favourites for the 2024 Olympic 1500m crown.

The World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series is the uppermost level on the World Athletics Continental Tour calendar, sitting just under the Diamond League in status. Each meet attracts the best athletes across the globe, with 14 existing meets offered in Africa, Europe, Asia and Oceania.

The meet is supported by the Victorian Government via Visit Victoria and conducted within Athletics Australia’s Chemist Warehouse Summer Series.

Tickets for the Maurie Plant Meet – Melbourne to be held at Lakeside Stadium on February 15 can be purchased HERE.

The Maurie Plant Meet - Melbourne will be streamed live and free via 7plus for Australian viewers after a continuiation of their partnership with Athletics Australia was announced for the 2024 Chemist Warehouse Summer Series, while international viewers can tune in via World Athletics.

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 15/1/2024