Middle Distance Preview - Ballard defending
Published Sun 01 Apr 2018
Womens T54 1500m
Angela Ballard (NSW) is a world-class competitor with vast experience, having been selected for a record seven World Para-Athletics Championships. Gold Coast will be her third Commonwealth Games and she would dearly love to defend her T54 1500m crown.
Ballard is one of four Australians who come to the Games with a title defence in their sights joining Sally Pearson (100H), Dani Stevens (discus) and Michael Shelley (marathon) in the chase for double gold.
Having recently returned to Australia after a successful series of events in Switzerland, where she broke personal bests and Australian records, there only seems to be one thing standing in her way and that’s teammate Madison de Rozario (WA).
The West Australian was selected for the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games but was unable to compete due to developing deep vein thrombosis.
In 2017 at the London World Para Athletics Championships, de Rozario achieved her best result at a major championship, winning gold, silver and bronze in the 5000m, 1500m and 800m respectively. The duo top of the Commonwealth rankings and this fast and furious battle royale will be one not to miss.
Eliza Ault-Connell (NSW) rounds off the women’s T54 1500m team. She made her international debut way back in 2002 at the Manchester Commonwealth Games placing third in the 800m. Then fours years later she bagged silver in a career highlight on home soil at the the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games. In 2018 Ault-Connell came out of retirement to compete in her third Commonwealth Games.
Ault-Connell and de Rozario will also compete in the T54 Marathon.
Mens T54 1500m
On the men’s side, Kurt Fearnley (NSW) and Jake Lappin (ACT) will also take on the 1500m and marathon double.
With over a decade of experience, team co-captain Fearnley’s wheelchair racing career is as impressive as it is extensive. He has won New York, Sydney, Paris, London, Seoul and Chicago marathons, three gold, seven silver and three bronze medals across five Paralympic Games, and four gold and one bronze at World Championships.
The 37-year-old won in Delhi 2010 before bagging silver in Glasgow behind British legend David Weir. The Gold Coast Games are likely to be his last appearance in the green and gold on home soil and the oldest male member of the Australian team would dearly love to claim victory.
Hoping to spoil the party will be Lappin, whom Fearnley has tipped as his heir apparent. The Victorian is competing in his third Commonwealth Games and is in outstanding shape with victories over his idol this summer.
In 2017 Lappin broke Fearnley’s national 800m record which had stood for 13 years.
Brent Lakatos CAN and Richard Chiassaro GBR head up the Commonwealth rankings and will be the ones to beat.
Womens 800m
Brittany McGowan (Qld) was an outstanding winner of the 800m in 2:00.24 at the Commonwealth Games trials in February at Carrara Stadium which was the fastest time by an Australian woman since Tamsyn Lewis in 2008.
Georgia Griffith (Vic) had a breakthrough season in 2017 when she was selected to compete in the 800m and 1500m at the 2017 IAAF World Championships, becoming the first Australian athlete to compete in both events at the same world championships. She lines up in both events here too.
16 year-old Keely Small (ACT) will become the youngest Australian by three years, to compete in this event in Commonwealth Games history.
The event will be one of the highlights of the Games with two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya (RSA), one of the world’s most dominant female athletes, aiming to win her first Commonwealth title.
Womens 1500m
Linden Hall has had an impressive 2017/18 season, going undefeated in five outings over the 800m, 1500m and 5000m. In the latter she ran a 35 second PB of 15:18.77, before a decisive win in the national 1500m championship to secure her Commonwealth Games debut. Hall remains less than one second from the national record of 4:00.93, held by Sarah Jamieson, who coached Hall in 2010-2011.
Zoe Buckman (Vic) knows how to hold her own against the best in the world as a two-time Olympic semi-finalist. In a quick 2018 national 1500m championship final, the three-time national champion ran strongly to place a close second to Hall in 4:08.15. Griffiths will join her Victorian teammates in the 1500m before starting in the 800m two days later.
Mens 1500m and 800m
Ryan Gregson (NSW) the national 1500m record-holder, opened his domestic season in style at the Commonwealth Games trials/Australian Championships, where a come-from-behind victory saw him claim his third consecutive national title and a berth for his second Commonwealth Games.
Luke Mathews, after a successful career over 800m, has now established himself alongside Gregson as a 1500m of international calibre just missing a berth in the final of the 1500m at the 2017 World Championships by the narrowest of margins (0.31s).
Before joining Gregson and Jordy Williamsz (AUS) on the 1500m start line, Mathews will have already raced over 800m where he is in outstanding shape with two sub 1.46s races this domestic season.The Victorian has an outstanding personal best of 1.45.16 set in Melbourne in 2016 which was the fastest time by an Australian on home soil for 34 years.
In a solid 2018 summer, Joshua Ralph (NSW) went undefeated until the final at the national championships where he placed second to Mathews and achieved automatic selection for his second Commonwealth Games. Ralph has also been selected in the 4 x 400m relay. Several Australians have competed in the 800m and 4 x 400m, the most recent being 1978 800m finalists Chum Darvall (NSW) and John Higham (VIC) who won Bronze as members of the 4 x 400m relay One of Australia’s most exciting teenage talents is Joseph Deng who caused a sensation at the Commonwealth Games trials when ran from the front to win the B race by nearly two seconds in a timely personal best of 1:45.71. It was also a CG A qualifier and faster than the time for Mathews in the A race. A week later, the selectors paid him his dues†getty and named the Kenyan-born Queenslander as the third athlete in the 800m for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Follow all the action of the XXI Commonwealth Games
The 2018 Commonwealth Games will be held on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, from Wednesday 4 April to Sunday 15 April 2018.
Athletics action kicks off on Sunday 8 April and continues until Sunday 15 April.
- Athletics Australia on Instagram
- Media Guide for 2018 Commonwealth Games (PDF)
- Commonwealth Games Australia
- Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games
Tickets
You can still buy athletics tickets for Gold Coast Commonwealth Games including for finals sessions;
Don’t miss your chance to witness world class competition live and cheer on the Aussie team.
TV and Digital
The Seven Network will broadcast content on all three of their TV channels - 7, 7TWO and 7Mate.
You can download the 7CommGames app from both the Google Play and Apple store or watch via the website version.
The app and website will have all events on TV and every medal event live, in full and available for free.
Athletics will be hosted by
Bruce McAvaney
Lord Sebastian Coe
Dave Culbert
Steve Hooker
Tamsyn Lewis
With Pat Welsh trackside and Melinda Gainsford-Taylor and Jane Flemming providing additional commentary.
How to listen on radio
ABC Local and Regional Stations – Updates throughout the day with live continuous
coverage from 7.00 pm
The ABC Listen App – on Google Play and Apple store featuring a dedicated Commonwealth Games channel
Grandstand Digital DAB+ – broadcasting 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
ABC Online – ABC Grandstand will stream its Games coverage
Karen Tighe will host the broadcast with Quentin Hill covering Athletics along with Australia’s fastest man, Patrick Johnson providing expert commentary.