Cowley and Henderson Hang Tough | Australian 35km Race Walks Championships

Athletes had hot times on their minds in anticipation of the Australian 35km Race Walks Championships, but as the mercury soared above 30°C and the championship cauldron bubbled away – it was Olympic duo Rhydian Cowley and Rebecca Henderson who stood tall.

As Melbourne produced its first two days over 30°C since March this weekend, Australia’s premier race walkers were set a tough task as Fawkner Park’s tree coverage offered little reprieve. Not deterred by the warm summer morning, the sound of the gun at 7:30am was met by aggressive tempos from Rebecca Henderson (Simon Baker) and Declan Tingay (Brent Vallance).

Having stated their intentions to nail the respective standards for the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, both Henderson and Tingay established significant leads and were dialled in on target pace through 20km despite being visibly affected by the heat – Henderson ably assisted through 10km by Australian record holder Jemima Montag (Brent Vallance) who delivered a short stint post illness.

The war of attrition suited no man better than Rhydian Cowley (Brent Vallance) who has earned a reputation of grit and determination after a decade at the top level, with the Olympic top-eight finisher proceeding to eliminate Tingay’s 90-second lead and overtake him through 25km - charging to victory in 2:37:30 to make it back-to-back national titles.

“It’s a new event so I guess someone has to set the standards, which I am happy to do. It’s been great to follow in the footsteps of so many great Australian 50km walkers. Hopefully I can string some good training together leading into Budapest and Paris,” Cowley said.

“To be honest I felt pretty flat at the start, especially once Declan kicked down onto his target pace. I tried to use my experience in getting out of that negative self-talk space and find my rhythm to grind through it. I’m a bit of an old fart now but it’s nice to know that I can have those mature walks.”

The seasoned professional demonstrated his usual class with high praise for his competitors who were bold in their first attempt at the distance but ultimately failed to complete the course, offering an insight into his mindset for the two-and-a-half-hour journey.

“Declan [Tingay] and Kyle [Swan] are training really well, so I expect them to give it a good shake next time they attempt the distance. It’s really good to have strong Aussie walkers coming through,” Cowley said.

“Sometimes you see a bird, a dog or a friend, it doesn’t matter – you are just distracting your brain.”

While Cowley remains the only Australian man to win a 35km title after the championship’s two instalments two date, along with holding the national record, Henderson’s first walk over the extended distance resulted in her maiden national title in 3:01:38 – won with mixed emotions ahead of Hong Kong's Siu Nga Ching.

“It was hard but good to finish the race in the hot conditions. I was on pace at 20km but at 22km I had a massive blow up and the pace was just slower despite keeping my rhythm. I wanted to stop but I managed to get through and push until the end,” Henderson said.

“It was a bit annoying that today had to be the hottest day in however long, but that’s alright we can improve and look ahead to the next one. I am still looking for those qualifiers for Budapest and Paris so it’s going to be a big 18 months.”

The race walking fraternity will now turn its attention to the Supernova series in Canberra over 10,000m in January, before the Australian 20km Championships return to Fawkner Park in February – with a crop of rising stars flexing their form this morning in the supplementary events.

World Under 20 representative Olivia Sandery (Jared Tallent) delivered a mature walk in only her second appearance over the 20km distance, wearing down Olympian Katie Hayward (Steve Langley) to strike in the final lap and win in a time of 1:36:35 to Hayward’s 1:36:58. The men’s 20km was won by Will Thompson (Brent Vallance) in 1:32:46.

Australian representative Marcus Wakim (Adam Garganis) and Elizabeth McMillen (Bill Nappin) took out the Under 20 10km events in time of 44:56 and 51:09 respectively.

Full results can be found HERE.

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 04/02/2022