Distance records tumble as field athletes shine at the Silesia Diamond League 

Four Australians have left their mark in Poland overnight as teenage sensation Cameron Myers and two-time Olympian Linden Hall unravel world and area records, while Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers and Commonwealth medallist Mackenzie Little return to the podium at the Silesia Diamond League.

Linden Hall (Ned Brophy-Williams) will not forget her “perfect race” anytime soon, with the Victorian delivering a masterful performance in the Women’s 1500m to reclaim her Australian record and an all-important Paris 2024 qualifier as the countdown to the World Athletics Championships in Budapest next month continues.

As one of four Australian women with the 1500m qualifier for Budapest, Hall was determined to leave an impression and take advantage of the formidable lineup of international talent. Setting a blistering final lap, Hall crossed the line in 3:57.27 to place fifth and reclaim her Australian and Oceania record, eclipsing Jessica Hull’s best by 0.02 seconds.

“It’s still a bit of a shock. I think I need to watch the race back and let it soak in a little bit. It feels very nice to run a big PB, probably quicker than I was expecting. I thought I was in PB shape but not quite that much.” Hall said. 

“It’s a bit of a relief to slot back into that top spot. It is all that much sweeter when you know you have such great depth in the women’s 1500m in Australia right now. We are only bringing the best out of each other which is really cool. It’s a real possibility we could have three girls in the final in Budapest which would be amazing, and I know we are all chasing that.”

Australian Under 18 and Under 20 1500m record holder Cameron Myers (Dick Telford) has blown expectations out of the water at his first Diamond League meet with the 17-year-old sensation running 3:33.26 for 11th place, to set the fastest Under 18 metric mile performance of all time.

Aiming to once again shave time off his Australian Under 18 and 20 records, Myers lined up in one of the night’s most anticipated events and joined a world-class field that saw 13 of the 14 finishers claim an Olympic qualifier for Paris 2024.

“I’m just so happy, beyond words really. Of course I knew what a race and what an opportunity… I just hoped to make the best of it. And the result, yes I’m very happy.” Myers said.

“The first lap was strung out, I was right at the back, but I felt good on the second and third laps and moved up just a bit. The last lap [was] really tough, but I finished ok.”

Setting a new World U18 Best performance of 3:33.26, Myers’ run in Silesia eclipses the previous World Under 18 Best Performance of 3:33.72 set by Kenya’s Nicholas Kiptanui Kemoi in 2006 and claims his first Olympic qualifier.

“It’s great to get qualifiers, in particular for Paris next year, that’s really pleasing. That U18 world best is kinda cool. I wasn’t thinking too much about that. All I know is I’ve got to keep improving in the next few years.”

Stewart McSweyn (Nic Bideau) paced the race that led Jakob Ingebrigtsen to a world lead time of 3:27.14.

Mackenzie Little (Angus McEntyre) returned to the Diamond League podium a fortnight after her last one in Lausanne, eager to consolidate her stellar run-up to the World Championships.

Against a world-class field including two-time Australian World Champion Kelsey-Lee Barber (Mike Barber), Little jumped into podium contention with her opening throw. Jostling in the top three for the entire time, Little improved through the competition, with her fourth-round throw of 64.50m enough to secure her second and a Paris 2024 qualifier.

“The crowd was great, it was stinking hot and I actually just felt really at home in this competition, so many of my javelin friends from around the world were competing today so that helped me stay relaxed and I just had a really good time.” Little said.

“I was relieved to get the Paris qualifier. Although I had thrown past it earlier this season, you never know and I always try to be grateful when I’m in good form and doing well, but you never know how long that is guaranteed for.”

Barber’s opening round throw of 59.02m was the 2022 World Championships best of the event and saw the Queenslander finish seventh.

Nicola Olyslagers (Matt Horsnell) continues to impress on the world stage and once again stepped up onto the Diamond League podium in the women’s High Jump competition. Olyslagers has had an enviable 2023 with an unbeaten run of eight wins in the lead-up to Silesia but faced a tough challenge from Ukrainian duo Iryna Gerashchenko and Yaroslava Mahuchikh.

The world leader had a clean scorecard up until the final four but faced a challenge at 1.98m. Clearing it on her third attempt, Olyslagers secured the Paris 2024 qualifier, an equal Meet Record and second place to open proceedings for the Australian contingent.

Olyslagers was joined by compatriot and current world champion Eleanor Patterson (Alex Stewart) who returned to competition for the first time since February when she fractured her take-off foot. Paterson cleared a respectable 1.89m to finish ninth in her European season opener. 

Abbey Caldwell (Gavin Burren) collected Australia’s fifth Paris 2024 qualifier of the event with an incredible run in the Women’s 800m Final. A flying final 100m saw Caldwell cross the line in 1:58.48 in fifth place. Fellow Australian Catriona Bisset (Ned Brophy-Williams) toed the line but registered a DNF, dropping out of the race at the 600m mark.

Brandon Starc (Alex Stewart) continues to build towards Budapest with a solid performance in the Men’s High Jump. A heartbreakingly close clearance for Starc at 2.30m would have had the Australian jump into the podium contention, but instead settled for an equal fourth with a best of 2.27m.

In the Men’s Pole Vault, Kurtis Marschall (Paul Burgess & James Fitzpatrick) returned to the runway and looked confident over the opening heights. Unfortunately, Marschall was unable to match his recent clearance of 5.95m and placed equal sixth with a best height of 5.71m.

Lauren Ryan (Bob Braham) was Australia’s sole athlete in the Women’s 3000m race and crossed the line in 9:06.70 and placed 15th.

By David Smith and Sascha Ryner for Athletics Australia
Posted: 3/7/2022