In the Mood for Majors | Hull to Glow in Glasgow

A master of all elements, Jessica Hull is here, there and everywhere. Touching down in Glasgow for the 2024 World Indoor Championships as a genuine medal threat, the middle-distane star will notch up her fourth Australian team since last February across four disciplines – cross country, outdoor, road running and now indoor.

Opening her year with three Oceania short track records and the second fastest 1000m performance ever by an Australian, Hull has wasted no time in continuing her theme of recent years – embarking on a record-breaking rampage to kick-start her Olympic campaign.

While Hull raced to new Australian records in Mile Short Track (4:19.03) and 1500m Short Track (4:01.19) in the same race, it was her stunning 8:24.93 performance in the 3000m Short Track that sealed her fate for the 2024 World Indoor Championships – the sixth fastest time in global history.

“I love the 3000m. It’s the sweet spot between the 1500m and 5000m. Having the 3000m be the focus of this indoor season has allowed us to stay in the right kind of training that works for me this time of year,” Hull said.

“It will be a good indicator of where I am now against the women I’ll be racing later in the year and to keep learning what we need to work on to be ready in Paris. The best way to learn is to race, especially with indoors, you learn so much from being in the tight pack and getting a feel for your competitors.”

Ranked second in the field for the Glasgow Championships behind only two-time world champion Gudaf Tsegay (Ethiopia), The Australian will look to clinch global medal number two after claiming bronze as an integral member of Australia’s Mixed 4x2km Relay outfit at last year’s World Cross Country Championships.

“We like to look big picture and World Indoors is a great test to see where you match up against some of the best women in the world in early March. It seems like quite a few of the traditional 1500m runners you see outdoors have chosen the 3000m indoors,” Hull said.

“I’m getting closer each year and there’s areas of my training I can still improve on a lot. We’ve been working on some of those since I got back into structured training in early November and I can feel a big difference in training.”

Training under the tutelage of her dad, Simon, the 27-year-old is forming a reputation as an astute competitor and student of the game. A meticulous planner who believes in the importance of race practice and timing to complement her physical fitness – 2024 looms as Hull’s best year yet.

“Being more 3000m focused through World Indoors has meant we’ve been able to keep the overall volume of training up and not cut any corners on laying the base work for a long season ahead,” Hull said.

“The main thing about indoors is the congestion. The banks and tight bends make everything feel a bit more chaotic if there’s a big pack. Navigating the indoor tracks in any of the middle-distance races is a great learning curve that really helps to teach positioning and race craft for events like the 1500m outdoors.

“If you can learn how to do it on a much smaller scale, getting your tactics right on an outdoor track where there’s a bit more running room can be a bit simpler.”

Since making the Olympic 1500m final in Tokyo, Hull’s major record has been a model of consistency. Racing at the 2022 World Indoor Championships (3000m – 6th), 2022 World Athletics Championships (1500m – 7th), 2022 Commonwealth Games (1500m – 8th), 2023 World Cross Country Championships (4x2km Relay – 3rd), 2023 World Athletics Championships (1500m – 7th), 2023 World Road Running Championships (Mile – 5th) – Hull remains eager to take the next step in 2024, as the road to Paris leads through Glasgow.

The 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships can be viewed live and free via SBS On Demand.

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 29/2/2024