Spencer's Olympic Dream Begins in Boston | NCAA Indoor Championships

Dialing in from Boston ahead of this weekend’s NCAA Indoor Championships, Adam Spencer knows that practice makes perfect. With an Olympic qualifier in tow, the Wisconsin Badger is trying to win every race he is in, and none more so than the Australian Championships this April.

Spencer is no stranger to racing well and racing often. Already Australia’s fourth fastest man in history over 1500m with the 3:31.81 he clocked at the 2023 London Diamond League, an Olympic qualifying performance, the 22-year-old is now trying to prove that he is not only fast enough but so too good enough to make a dream Olympic debut in Paris.

This weekend’s NCAA Track and Field Indoor Championships will give him an opportunity to begin doing exactly that. Ranked third in the field for the Men’s Mile which features two rounds, the 3:52 miler will chase his maiden NCAA title in a star-studded affair.

“I race a lot of these guys during the championship season. You know what their strengths and weaknesses are, and the more you race them – the more you learn. That’s why I look forward to it so much, because each time you race them you get better,” Spencer said.

“Everything you do in these races matters; it comes down to the small things. That’s one of the big reasons why I am here in the US, to learn how to go through championships racing two or three times and get that experience.”

Impartial to whether the contest unfolds at fast or slow pace, the Australian has prepared to be “ready for anything” when acknowledging that a title win could require a 51-second final 400m, welcoming the challenge from his international rivals before jetting home in April to contest the 2024 Chemist Warehouse Australian Athletics Championships.

“I’m so excited to come back home, I haven’t raced in Australia for a couple of years now. That’s one of my biggest races on the calendar and we are training really hard for it, it’s going to be the main focus,” Spencer said.

“Last year, I wasn’t even thinking about the Olympics. I remember when I ran 3:31, realising I had the qualifying standard and I started to believe that this was real. All of a sudden, it’s six months away and I have to prove that I’m one of the best guys to represent Australia which is surreal to me.”

Training under the tutelage of Mick Byrne at Wisconsin, Spencer made a surprise World Championships debut in 2023 when donning the green and gold in Budapest, opening his stride in the final 100m to stamp his presence with a third-place finish in the 1500m heats.

“Getting to Worlds was a big achievement for me, but I was pretty disappointed with my run in the semi finals – it showed I have a long way to go,” Spencer said.

“The focus of last year was NCAA outdoors. Europe was just a bonus to see if I could make the World Championships, so running the 3:31 and the 24 hours after getting the phone call was pretty insane.”

While the NCAA Indoor Championships are imminent, Spencer says that the balance and trust in his training at Wisconsin has allowed him to dream of booking his Olympic berth upon his return to Australia – proud but not intimidated by Australia’s world-class middle-distance brigade.

“If Stewy [McSweyn] goes out in a 55 seconds for the first lap and 1:50 for 800m, I have to go with it and go all-in. There is no point settling for fourth because it’s all about going for the win at Nationals. I’m going to do what I can and see what happens.”

The NCAA Indoor Championships commence in Boston on March 8, with a timetable of Australian competitors available below (all times AEDT). More information is available HERE.

Saturday 9 March:

8:00am – Men’s Mile Semi Final – Adam Spencer (Wisconsin)

9:20am – Men’s 5000m Final – Ky Robinson (Stanford), Jackson Sharp (Wisconsin)

10:00am – Men’s DMR Final – Adam Spencer (Wisconsin), Jackson Sharp (Wisconsin)

11:50am – Women’s 800m Semi Final – Carley Thomas (Washington), Hayley Kitching (Penn State)

12:20pm – Women’s 5000m Final – Amy Bunnage (Stanford)

1:00pm – Women’s DMR Final – Carley Thomas (Washington), Hayley Kitching (Penn State)

Ongoing – Men’s Heptathlon – Colby Eddowes (Arkansas State)

Sunday 10 March:

6:45am – Men’s Shot Put Final – Alexander Kolesnikoff (Georgia)

8:00am – Men’s Mile Final – Adam Spencer (Wisconsin)*

9:00am – Men’s 3000m Final – Ky Robinson (Stanford)

11:30am – Women’s 800m Final – Carley Thomas (Washington)*, Hayley Kitching (Penn State)*

Ongoing – Men’s Heptathlon – Colby Eddowes (Arkansas State)

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 7/3/2024