From travel side quests to an elliptical studio in her own home, Georgia Griffith is one of one. The Olympic middle-distance runner is chasing a new level in 2025, beginning with the Australian 3000m Championships and World Indoor Championships.
On the eve of the Sydney Track Classic and World Indoor Championships, Griffith gets straight to the topics that matter. Having developed a reputation as a leader in co-curricular activities on tour, a new championship means a new city – Nanjing, China.
“I’m hoping to be in the 1500m final which is on Sunday and we leave on Monday, so I actually haven’t been Googling too much. I know last year after the Diamond League in China everyone went to karaoke, so maybe on the Sunday night that’s what I will be looking for,” Griffith says.
“The most novel ones I have done are probably the cat café and mini pig café in Japan, which was random but they were really cute so it was good.”
When it comes to business, Griffith has had an immediate impact in 2025 with an Australian 1000m record of 2:34.50 at last week’s Box Hill Burn. With personal bests of 1:59.89 (800m), 3:58.40 (1500m) and 8:24.20 (3000m), most would assume that Griffith has already broken through, but the 28-year-old’s training suggests new territory is imminent.
“I’m definitely the fittest I have ever been at this time of the year. Indoors was a last-minute decision but things have been going really well and when things are going well, you need to capitalise because you never know what can happen in running,” Griffith says.
“I want to be more competitive and put myself up the front of those international races. A big goal of mine this year is to be more assertive with my racing and positioning, to have really clear plans and stick to them.”
The favourite for Saturday’s Australian 3000m Championships at the Sydney Track Classic, Griffith will race to upgrade her silver from 2024’s edition, where her career-first 3000m race saw her finish less than one second behind Olympic medallist Jessica Hull.
Proceeding to break the Australian record with a run of 8:24.20 to win the Oslo Diamond League two months later at her second attempt at the distance, Griffith proved that she can be a genuine threat beyond 1500m.
“I would love to get the win and that’s what I will be trying to do. I have never won an Open national championship like this before which would be really nice, but everyone in Australia is running so well,” Griffith said.
“The 3k is really fun but it’s a bit of a bummer because it’s not at the World Championships or Olympics. I would like to try a 5k this year, I have never done it before on the track so maybe I’m a little naïve and too optimistic – I will let you know afterwards!”
With aspirations of returning to the World Championships 1500m final in 2025 having finished in ninth place in 2022, Griffith credits her improvement to a shift in training approach, reflecting on her habits as a younger athlete.
“I used to jog really fast and my easy days would end up being hard. Now that I’m doing proper volume, I have to be really careful about not overcooking myself,” Griffith says.
“On the session days we do a lot more than I did even five years ago, so it’s about making those days count. On the other days, I jog really slow and for not for very long. Then I just supplement with cross-training.”
With a double degree in the bag and her running career firing on all cylinders, Griffith ensures she stays busy off the track in Australia, with much of the year spent in Europe:
“It’s good to have balance outside of training mode, I just do random projects. At the moment I’m redecorating our spare room and turning it into a pilates and elliptical studio.”
Tickets to the 2025 Sydney Track Classic can be purchased HERE.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Australian Athletics
Posted 13/3/2025
