Moloney & Browning to headline the Chemist Warehouse Adelaide Invitational

Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Ash Moloney and Australia’s fastest man Rohan Browning will land in South Australia next month, headlining a star-studded affair at the Chemist Warehouse Adelaide Invitational on Saturday, February 11 at SA Athletics Stadium.

Decathlete Moloney will contest two events of his usual repertoire; the 100m and discus – only his second appearance of the year as he builds towards a triumphant return to the world stage, after pulling out of the decathlon at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon last July due to injury.    

Regarded as prodigious talent, Moloney shot to stardom at the Tokyo Olympics in an historic moment for Australian sport. The then-21 year old needed a personal best time in the 1500m – the final discipline of the decathlon – to claim the bronze medal and Australia’s first Olympic podium finish in the event.

After two gruelling days of competition, Moloney battled through the final moments of the race, with his teammate Cedric Dubler encouraging him at his side. The bronze medal went down in Australian folklore and pushed the Queenslander into the limelight.

“I’m really looking forward to competing in Adelaide. I haven’t been there since All Schools many years ago and from what I’m hearing the new, revamped track is fast,” Moloney said.

“Training has been going really well since overcoming my injuries. Going into Oregon, there was some thoughts about whether I would be able to finish my decathlon but I’ve recently done another one in training and I was able to breeze through it easily.

“The 100m is going swimmingly for me as it usually does, and I’ve been training with Mike Barber (coach of javelin world champion Kelsey-Lee Barber) in the discus and I’m looking forward to seeing what I can put together on the day.

Squaring off against Moloney in the 100m will be Australia’s fastest man Rohan Browning who has locked in the Adelaide Invitational as his season opener before heading to Melbourne for the Maurie Plant Meet where he will take on the world’s fastest man, reigning 100m world champion Fred Kerley in the 200m.

Browning flies into South Australia with a 10.01 personal best achieved at the Tokyo Olympics and is looking forward to making his return to Adelaide, where last year he clocked a swift 10.12 in his season opener.

“The Adelaide Invitational last year was my first race in Adelaide since the Olympics and I was pleasantly shocked with how big and how great the crowd was. The crowd was full of kids, enthusiastic athletics supporters and it made it really special to run,” Browning said.

“I’ve been working on a few different things in training. I’m in good shape and ready to race. My season openers are usually some of my best times in the year so I’m quietly optimistic that I’ll be able to run a fast time in Adelaide.”

Browning will be one of many world-class sprinters to compete in Adelaide, with hometown hero Aidan Murphy and World Athletics Championships representative Bree Masters already announced to the line-up.

A key event on the program, not to be missed, will be the 800m featuring Olympian Bendere Oboya as well as Tess Kirsopp-Cole, who contested the event at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon last year. Oboya sports a 2:01.92 lifetime best in the two-lap event and will be trying to run down Oceania champion Kirsopp-Cole who finished her 2022 season with a time only marginally quicker at 2:01.40.  

International athletes will also join the Australians as competition heats up for the season, with trans-Tasman rivals, Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Imogen Ayris and Olivia McTaggart competing in the pole vault.

A full list of entries will be released in the coming weeks, with more Olympic athletes, homegrown favourites and the next generation of stars, set to be announced.

The Adelaide Invitational, hosted by Athletics Australia and Athletics South Australia is the first stop on the Chemist Warehouse Australian Summer Series, which will see Australian and international athletes compete for World Championships qualifying standards and World Athletics crucial ranking points across the country.  

Tickets for the Chemist Warehouse Adelaide Invitational can be purchased HERE.

By Sascha Ryner, Athletics Australia
Posted: 20/1/2023