Podium place for Hoare at Prefontaine Classic

Middle distance star Oliver Hoare has impressed with a podium finish at the Prefontaine Classic, as six Australians lined up at Hayward Field where they will compete for medals at the World Athletics Championships this July.

Hoare (Dathan Ritzenhein) was the best of the Australian contingent at the Diamond League meet in Eugene, placing second in the flagship event of the meet, the Bowerman Mile, only defeated by Olympic 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigsten.

The Norwegian took the lead from the start of the race, comfortably claiming the win in 3:49.76 for a new world lead time, while Hoare battled it with a chasing pack, consisting of world champion Timothy Cheruiyot (Kenya) and Abel Kipsang (Kenya) and hometown heroes Cooper Tear and Cole Hocker.

Hovering between fourth and fifth place over four laps of the track, Hoare made his move in the final  50m, overtaking the Kenyan duo to clock 3:50.65, slicing nearly one second off his previous personal best also recorded at Hayward Field in August 2021.

"The race felt great but I knew it was going to be a dogfight to try and get good positioning with so many talent guys in there. I made the decision to stay relaxed and hoping my finish would come through and get home to the line strong. I wasn't able to come away for the win but to come away with a second place in that situation was a big plus to me," Hoare said.

"Hayward has been a great track and I've had some great memories running here and competing. I wanted to win but placing second abd being competitive in the Diamond League gives me the confidence that I can do it again at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games."

Former Oregon Duck Jessica Hull (Pete Julian) ran her second fastest time ever clocking 3:59.31 to place fifth in the women’s 1500m.  With the aim of claiming her third podium finish in as many Diamond League appearances this year, Hull found herself unable to move too far forward in the bunched up pack, as the field chased down eventual winner Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon and Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay.

Though not a Diamond League event at the Prefontaine Classic, Charlie Hunter (Pete Julian) placed eighth in the men’s 1500m, clocking 3:37.33 for a new personal best.

Melbourne Track Club duo Brett Robinson (Nic Bideau) and Matt Ramsden (Nic Bideau) took on the Men’s 5000m but were no match for  21-year-old Berihu Aregawi who led the field by 60m throughout the second half of the race, crossing the line in 12:50.05 to become the world leader and meet record holder. While it quickly became a race for second, the Australians placed sixth and seventh, with West Australian Ramsden finishing in 13:17.11 for his second best ever time over the distance, while Robinson finished in 13:21.59 as the marathoner scaled down for a shorter distance.

Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers (Matt Horsnell) competed in only her second meet this year, clearing 1.90m to place fifth in a quality field.  

By Sascha Ryner, Athletics Australia
Posted: 29/5/2022