NSWIS athletes feature strongly in awesome Aussie world indoor effort

New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holder Nicola Olyslagers carved her name into Australian sports history as the first Aussie to win back-to-back World Athletics Indoor Championship gold medals by triumphing in Nanjing, China.

The championship was yet another sign of the leaps and bounds Australia’s athletes continue to make on the world stage. Australia finished the meet in sixth place with seven medals – the second-highest overall medal count behind USA’s 16 – ensuring five NSWIS scholarship holders featured on the podium.

Olyslagers (gold, high jump), Eleanor Patterson (silver, high jump), Jessica Hull (bronze, 3000m/pictured below), Ella Connolly (bronze, 4 x 400m relay) and Jemma Pollard (bronze, 4 x 400m relay) contributed to Australia’s most successful performance at the championships.

Queensland long jumper Liam Adcock, an ‘adopted’ NSWIS athlete because he trains alongside many of the Institute’s athletes in Andrew Murphy’s squad contributed to the haul by winning bronze after missing the gold medal by just two centimetres. Victorian 1500m runner Georgia Griffith added to the tally with bronze as did Queensland speedster Lachlan Kennedy who won an exciting silver medal for the 60m sprint.

Michael Perry, NSWIS’s State Performance Advisor, Athletics, said the Institute had good reason to be proud of the progress its athletes continue to make on the world stage.

“Since the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games a NSWIS athlete has won a medal at every global meet be it world champs, the Olympics, the Paralympics, Para champs, world indoor, Commonwealth Games, and you can include world juniors,” said Perry.

“The only question would be world relays, but they’e been competitive and that is obviously the steppingstone for being at world championships and Olympics. It’s not about medals at world relays, it’s about qualifying [for the major events].”

Olyslagers soared 1.97m to win the high jump title, in the process relegating fellow Australian, and NSWIS athlete, Eleanor Patterson to silver status on countback. While Patterson also cleared 1.97m she was beaten after an earlier miss at 1.92m.

The dynamic duo forced Ukraine’s Paris 2024 gold medallist and reigning world record holder Yaroslava Mahuchikh to settle for the bronze after failing to clear 1.97m.

Olyslagers said she drew upon Mahuchikh’s example of fearlessness during her preparation for the event, while acknowledging she and Patterson bring the best out of each other.

“When I was out there competing, we were really testing a new run up,” said the world indoor champion. “That’s something I learned from Yaroslava. She had the courage to try something new in an Olympic year, and that meant that I too could have the courage to do something new and big.

“It was a joy being out there. There’s something beautiful about China and I felt like I needed to make the most of it. When Eleanor cleared 1.97m, it reminded me of the Australian Championships in Adelaide last year when we went head-to-head so China felt like being at home, and that too gave me courage to bring my best.

“I think we bring the best out of each other. And for Australia, this is the best thing that could possibly happen winning gold and silver and for record medals. The night isn’t even over yet. The Olympics was great, Indoors is great. We’re really going places as a sport.”

Patterson’s performance allowed her to celebrate the milestone of winning her fifth consecutive global medal.

“It’s always an honour to wear the green and gold and it feels like yesterday was Paris and today we’re in China,” she said. “I would have loved to have jumped higher, but I’m really proud.

“I’ve changed my run up completely, and in a lot of ways I would have loved more consistency before competing, but I love still being able to bring out some of my best performances.

“It’s also such an incredible honour to win my fifth global medal. We keep changing the colours between Nicola, Yaroslava and myself, and hopefully later this year in Tokyo (at the World Athletics Championships), I can win my sixth.”

Patterson said she aims to raise the bar to 2.00m at this Saturday night’s Maurie Plant meet in Melbourne.

“One hundred percent, it’s definitely the goal,” she said. “Two metres is well within my reach again and I’m in really good form to do that this year,” Patterson said.

Olympic silver medallist Jessica Hull seized the bronze in the Women’s 3000m, clocking 8:38.28, finishing behind the USA’s Shelby Houlihan (8:38.26) and Ethiopia’s Freweyni Hailu (8:37.21).

“After the last two championships in Belgrade and Glasgow, I know it’s just a washing machine in those packs,” said Hull, who is coached by her father Simon. “I wanted to be in front with my own stride and to be free, because we didn’t come to China to run nine minutes.

“My goals are so high now that I can disappoint myself pretty easily. I just needed to focus on today and not get carried away with trying to be better than Paris [Olympics]. I was sixth in Belgrade and fourth in Glasgow, and I’m already thinking about Poland next year!”

The Women’s 4x400m relay team [pictured and in order] comprising of debutant Bella Pasquali (Vic) Olympians Ella Connolly (NSWIS) & Ellie Beer (Qld), and debutant Jemma Pollard (NSWIS) rounded off a great performance and created history by storming to bronze in 3:32.65.

The quick quartet won Australia’s first medal in the event in 26 years.

Story: Daniel Lane, NSWIS

Photos: Jacob Gower / Australian Athletics