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One of the most intense selection competitions for this year’s Paris Olympics is among Australian female marathon runners.
Only three athletes can go to Paris, but over the last 18 months of the Olympic qualification period, six Australians have run faster than the Olympic entry standard of 2:26:50.
And all six are among the eight fastest Australians of all time.
Gregson determined to make her mark in the marathon
Last year’s December Valencia Marathon was a breakthrough, with four of the Australian women achieving qualifying times, including three-time track Olympian Genevieve Gregson.
“Some people might say ‘this is your fourth Olympics, why is it more special?’, and it’s not because I’m trying to get to my fourth Olympics, it’s what I’ve overcome to be in this position,” Gregson said. to ABC Sport. .
At the Tokyo Olympics, while performing the final water jump of the 3,000-meter steeplechase, the 34-year-old woman ruptured her Achilles tendon.
“In Tokyo, I started telling my friends and family that my career was over and I’ll never be able to run again, and that petrified me because I love the sport,” he said.
“I thought: ‘Do you want to leave this sport when you couldn’t decide? Because they took it away from me due to a strange injury?’ He just wasn’t willing to let that be the end.
“And I started coming back not knowing it would work, but I thought I have to at least try and if it doesn’t work, I can say I gave it my all.”
After Tokyo, Gregson gave birth to her son Archer, now 22 months old, and found a new determination: to make the marathon her own.
“When I moved to the roads, it was like I should have been here for a long time, it was just for me,” he said.
“When I got these little victories along the way, I kept chasing and chasing like a dangling carrot.
“And looking back on the journey, it’s actually hard to believe that I had confidence that I would get this far, but something inside me had a feeling that I would, and I wouldn’t give up until I tried everything.”
Batt-Doyle confident of getting his ticket
Izzi Batt-Doyle is another track athlete looking outside the roads of Paris.
The 28-year-old also hopes to make the team in the 5,000 meters, an event she competed in in Tokyo.
He achieved a marathon qualifying time in Valencia last year, breaking the South Australian record.
“We’re rewriting the record books and it’s pretty amazing to be part of that era of women’s distance running in Australia,” Batt-Doyle told ABC Sport.
“When I crossed the finish line in Valencia last year setting my personal best, I felt mixed emotions being so excited to run such a fast time.
“Then realizing I wasn’t locked in for an Olympic spot, I think that was a bit of frustration as well.”
“But I feel lucky to be in a position where I have a lot of confidence in my physical condition, a lot of confidence in my body and my mental state and that I’m going to make it to Paris anyway.”
The final selection is approaching
The other key contenders include Sinead Diver, who set a new Australian record with her run in Valencia in December 2022, near the start of the Olympic qualification period.
Athlete | Marathon | Time |
|---|---|---|
Diver Sinead | Valencia, December 2022 | 2:21:34 |
Genevieve Gregson | Valencia, December 2023 | 2:23:08 |
Lisa Weightman | Osaka, February 2023 | 2:23:15 |
Izzi Batt-Doyle | Valencia, December 2023 | 2:23:27 |
Jessica Stenson | Daegu, April 2024 | 2:24:01 |
Eloise Wellings | Valencia, December 2023 | 2:25:47 |
Lisa Weightman has the third fastest time, while Eloise Wellings is in sixth place.
Although Jessica Stenson has the fifth-fastest time in the qualifying window, the 2022 Commonwealth Games marathon champion has strong selection rights.
She achieved her personal best time in the Daegu Marathon earlier this month, just seven months after giving birth to her second daughter, Ellie.
Batt-Doyle said the depth of her talent has helped her reach new heights.
“I’ve seen other women around me pushing the boundaries of what we think is possible and what we think is a good time,” she said.
“And then it makes you believe, ‘I work as hard as that person, I’m just as talented.’ And you have to keep changing your expectations about what’s possible.”
Gregson admits the process has been challenging on many levels.
“The hardest thing I found when trying to get selected for Paris is that I have to beat my friends to do it,” she said.
“But it’s also been nice because we’ve been on this wave together. And I feel like everyone has been very supportive of us.
“There will be nothing sweeter than being selected on that team because of what it represents. The family that brought me there, the town that came together to give me the opportunity to be there.”
The qualification period ends on April 31 and selectors will announce the chosen athletes in May.