Weekend Preview | Doha Diamond League, Portland Track Festival and more

With selection for the Olympic and Paralympic Games looming, competition in Australia and abroad is heating up as athletes make their last attempts to meet the automatic qualifying standards and impress selectors.

Overseas, Australia’s Olympic track and field athletes will put their case forward at the Doha Diamond League, Portland Track Festival and Next Generation Athletics meet in Nijmegen, while at home, our premier Paralympic athletes continue their quest at the Australian Institute of Sport.

Follow Athletics Australia’s social media accounts over the weekend for updates and reviews on performances. 

Doha Diamond League (May 29 2:00am AEST – Foxtel/Kayo):

The last time Stewart McSweyn (Nic Bideau) laced up his spikes in Doha, he proceeded to set a new 1500m national record of 3:30.51. McSweyn, who is increasingly regarded as Australia’s best ever male middle-distance athlete will make his return to Doha tonight, and will be looking to repeat the dose. 
McSweyn boasts the second fastest personal best in the field behind 2019 world champion Timothy Cheruiyot of Kenya, but the pair won’t be alone in front with the strong field assembled likely to be shadowing their every move. 

The Gateshead Diamond League last weekend witnessed McSweyn finish in third place in challenging conditions, battling with the fluctuating pace throughout the race. The addition of Cheruiyot in Doha suits the 25-year-old Australian, with the Kenyan likely to race in the only manner he knows how – aggressively. 

Fellow Australians Matthew Ramsden (Nic Bideau) and Ryan Gregson (Nic Bideau) will also race the 1500m after mixed results in Gateshead. Ramsden placed fifth on that occasion with what was a solid start to his European campaign, leaving the 23-year-old well within reach of achieving his second Olympic qualifier within the qualification window. Ramsden is yet to make the major breakthrough that many believe he is capable of, but he won’t be without opportunity in the coming weeks. 

Gregson will be looking to bounce back from his ninth performance in Gateshead, with a man of his character almost certain to be counting down the days until redemption. 

Genevieve Gregson (Nic Bideau) will toe the line in the women’s 3000m Steeplechase for her first international competition of the season. Gregson demonstrated her class on multiple occasions throughout the domestic season, finishing on the national podium in the 1500m, 3000m, 3000m Steeplechase, 5000m and 10,000m – including wins in the steeplechase and 3000m. 

The Australian record holder’s season to date has featured two races over the barriers, both of which were largely tactical encounters. Gregson won the national title in a time of 9:36.85 in April when proving too strong for her competitors over the final laps, however, tonight’s race will likely be a more accurate representation of what she is capable of.

Brandon Starc (Alex Stewart) is set to contest the Men’s High Jump where he will undoubtedly be chasing the 2.33m Olympic standard. Starc’s season’s best stands at the 2.29m he cleared at the Queensland Track Classic, on that occasion raising the bar to 2.33m before clipping it on all three attempts. 

Starc’s 2019 campaign was reflective of just how competitive he can be on the world stage, highlighted by a sixth-place finish at the World Championships in Doha. The equal Australian record holder at 2.36m, Starc will be looking to find his best form in Doha and build momentum throughout the European season as looks towards Tokyo. 

Portland Track Festival (May 29/30 AEST): 

The women’s 5000m at the Portland Track Festival is headlined by national record holder Jessica Hull (Pete Julian), but also features Heidi See (Terrence Mahon) and Lauren Ryan (self-coached). 

Hull opened her season with a casual Olympic qualifier of 4:04.16 over 1500m less than a fortnight ago, with the US-based Australian showing no signs of a long lay-off. Hull’s two 5000m encounters in 2020 were faultless, one delivering a national title and the other a national record of 14:43.80 in Monaco. 

See returns to the 5000m after a swift 15:18.24 recently propelled her into the Olympic conversation. The breakthrough performance came after only a few races since 2017, with the 31-year-old likely to benefit from stringing multiple races together. 

Whilst Ryan clocked a big personal best of 15:36.18 at the Sound Running Track Meet, the 23-year-old Australian endured a less than ideal lead up to the competition and further improvement in Portland is likely.  

Ryan flexed her versatility in a stint down under for the Australian summer, finishing fourth in both the 1500m and 10,000m national title races – laying strong foundations for the Florida State University student to enter the upper echelon of Australia’s premier female middle-distance athletes. 

Patrick Tiernan (Mark Rowland) entered in the 1500m at the Portland Track Festival before returning next week over 5000m at the Stumptown Classic. Tiernan holds Olympic qualifiers in both the 5000m and 10,000m, and is yet to declare his hand ahead of the Games.

The 26-year-old is well overdue to improve upon his 3:45.15 personal best over 1500m, with his 3:56.82 indoor mile earlier this year indicative of his true capabilities over the metric mile. Tiernan has not raced a 1500m race since 2016. 

Edward Trippas (Jason Vigilante) races the men’s 3000m steeplechase in Portland as he continues to relish opportunities in a season that has seen him soar to new heights. 

Trippas burst onto the scene with a brilliant bronze medal in the 3000m steeplechase at this year’s Australian Track and Field Championships, clocking 8:31.09 to lower his personal best marginally. The time places him among the nation’s best and at only 23, Trippas has established himself as one to keep an eye on going forward. 

Next Generation Athletics Nijmegen (May 30 4:38am AEST): 

Isobel Batt-Doyle (Nic Bideau) and Rose Davies (Scott Wescott) are set to make their international debuts at Nijmegen in a 5000m race that is a suitable introduction to the international circuit. The pair find themselves in a competitive encounter, yet one that either of them are capable of winning.
 
Batt-Doyle’s scorching 15:11.07 at Box Hill in March saw her fall agonisingly short of the 15:10.00 Olympic standard, shaving over 15-seconds off her personal best in the process. The performance casted no doubt going forward that her best would see her achieve the feat, but with the clock trickling down on the qualifying period - Batt-Doyle must strike soon if she is to secure the standard. 

Davies’ season started with a statement when she unexpectedly slaughtered Australia’s best middle-distance women at Zatopek:10, but she is yet to return to those heights. The Novocastrian placed fifth in the 5000m Championship race, before a fall from key competitors late in the 3000m made Davies’ silver medal hard to gauge. Davies is destined to deliver another breakthrough performance soon, with Sunday’s race the first opportunity for her to do so. 

Aiding both Batt-Doyle and Davies’ qualifying hopes will be American Alli Cash, who has assumed pace making duties and has been set the task of running 9:05 through 3000m. The pace would send both Australians well and truly on their way to achieving the standard if the pair can remain strong over the closing laps.  

ACT High Noon meet (May 30 from 11:50am at the AIS Track & Field Centre)

The second Winter Series High Noon meet for 2021 is scheduled for this weekend at the AIS, with some of Australia’s finest wheelchair racers set to chase qualifiers on Australia’s fastest track. 

World champion Madison de Rozario (Louise Sauvage) is set to compete in three out of the four events she’ll contest in Tokyo, taking on the 800m, 1500m and 5000m wheelchair racing events. Having already been selected for the Australian Paralympic Team, de Rozario will be looking edge closer to the 1:45.53 world record she set in 2019 in the 800m, after recording 1:46 at the Canberra Track Classic.

Angie Ballard (Fred Periac) has made steady progress over the course of the domestic season recording three B-standard qualifiers in the 400m T53 – an event in which she once held the world record. Displaying her prowess over the season, she recorded 56.81 at the Summer Down Under Series in Canberra and will be looking to improve upon that as she aims for an A-qualifier ahead of Paralympic selection this July.  Ballard will also contest the 100m, looking to add to the B-qualifier she notched up in in March at the same Summer Down Under meet. 

The Paralympic qualifying period has been kind to Sam McIntosh (Fred Periac) who has amounted eight qualifying standards in the 100m T52 since his first at the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai, where he clocked 17.69. Since then he’s recorded two A-qualifiers, including a season’s best of 17.07, putting him into firm contention for selection to his third Paralympic Team, after competing in 2012 and 2016.

Long jumper Ari Gesini (Sebastian Kuzminski) will continue his quest to make his Paralympic debut. Gesini, a T38 athete, notched up a B qualifier of 6.16m at a windy 2019 World Championships – a fantastic result for his international debut, but hasn’t been able to emulate the result since. With time ticking, he’ll be looking to impress add to his achievements with another qualifying jump.

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 28/5/2021