A big year in Australian athletics. 28,659 Free Photos Published 82 Original Stories 2,000+ Spikes Customers Supported 1 Amazing Year in Australian Athletics
Relieve the highlights of the year by looking back at our top content month-by-month.
Table of Contents
January
We had big photo gallery coverage of the ACT Championships and NSW Country Championships thanks to Fred Etter, while our first event recap was the Victorian Milers Club meet at Aberfeldie, featuring the Victorian Mile Championships.
Chis and Robinson crowned Victorian mile champions
17-year-old Lucas Chis out kicked older rivals to claim the open state title while Amy Robinson was the runaway winner in the women’s race. >> Read more
February
The inaugural Australian Short Track Championships and the Track Classic season kicked off in February, in Adelaide, along with the Albie Thomas Mile, which featured the Australian Mile Championships.
Olympic bronze medalist Matt Denny opened his season with a meet record at the Adelaide Invitational in a meet otherwise dominated by windy conditions. >> Read more
March
March was marvelous, with a record-breaking campaign at the World Indoor Championships, highlighted by Nicola Olyslagers and Eleanor Patterson going 1-2 in the high jump, Lachlan Kennedy claiming silver in the 60m and bronze medals to Jess Hull (3000m), Ky Robinson (3000m), Liam Adcock (long jump) and the women’s 4x400m relay.
At home, the Perth Track Classic (with Kennedy going 10.03 and Adcock 8.33m) and Sydney Track Classic (featuring an Australian record in the 4x100m) were a sensational prelude to the MP Meet in Melbourne, where Lachlan Kennedy upset fan favourite Gout Gout in the Peter Norman 200m.
Australia’s record breaking campaign at World Indoors cements new era in track & field
Australia has delivered its most successful World Athletics Indoor Championships performance in history, returning from Nanjing with seven medals—including a golden one-two in the women’s high jump—and rewriting the narrative for Aussie athletics on the global stage.
From the moment Lachlan Kennedy stormed to silver in the men’s 60m on the first day, it was clear the Aussies came to compete. But few could have predicted what would follow: a record medal haul, standout performances across the board, and the emergence of a new golden era for Australian athletics. All for a nation that doesn’t have a single indoor venue. >> Read more
April
April meant Nationals, where the sun soaked Mondo track in Perth provided hot conditions and even hotter performances. Leah O’Brien took down Raelene Boyle’s U18 100m national record and narrowly missed the open national title, Gout Gout ran 9.99 windy twice, Lachlan Kennedy ran 10.00 legal in the heats but was then beaten by a resurgent Rohan Browning in the final. Peter Bol set a new national record in the 800m and Gout then returned to win the 200m in a windy 19.84 seconds, judged to be the performance of the meet.
The month was wrapped up by Bree Rizzo winning the Stawell Gift from scratch. 
Gout Gout awarded Betty Cuthbert Medal after windy 19.84 200m
The Australian Athletics Championships in Perth had already produced fireworks, but the grand finale was reserved for two of the sport’s brightest stars – a teenage phenom rewriting history and an Olympic finalist turning hometown hero. Gout Gout and Peter Bol headlined an unforgettable final day that crackled with energy, records, and rising hopes ahead of a World Championships season. >> Read more
May
A bit of a quiet month for us with calendars condensing into June. The XCR series kicked off at Hanging Rock, posing no picnic for runners on the hard and rough fire trails.
We published the result of our survey and started making improvements to our websites. 
Is Australian athletics at an all-time high? Results from our reader poll
There’s a lot to love about Australian athletics right now and community sentiment is high. We surveyed our readers last month, with 621 responses providing insight in the current state of Australian athletics. >> Read more
June
The peak event time of the Australian club winter season saw Bronte Oates break the Willandra course record at the NSW Cross Country Championships and Run Crew dominating the NSW Relay Championships. Further south Sandringham and Western Athletics winning the time honoured Sandown Relays and Box Hill and Western A’s taking out the Jells Park Relays. Deep field at the inaugural Albert Park 5km saw fast times on the certified course.
Internationally, Linden Hall won the Stockholm Diamond League 3000m.
Deep fields at inaugural Albert Park 5km
A thousand runners took to the road for Athletics Victoria’s inaugural 5km offering at Albert Park. >> Read more
July
The next generation of Australian athletics shone at the World University Games with Australia finishing atop the medal table, with gold to Georgia Harris, Connor Murphy, Benjamin Guse, Elizabeth McMillen and the women’s 4x100m team.
At home it was a tale of 10km races, with our preview of the Sydney10 providing insight into Ed Goddard’s flow state proving popular. Sam Clifford and Leanne Pompeani took victory, while Ed Marks won the second best 10km race held at Albert Park each year, the Lakeside10.
Ed Marks streaks to victory at Lakeside10
Ed Marks continued his exceptional road form with a dominant win at the 2025 Lakeside10, clocking 28:55 to take out the men’s title in a fast and deep field. >> Read more
August
Everything started to gear up for the World Championships with the naming of the Australian team. Locally, our coverage of the Australian Cross Country Championships in Ballarat and a mega 4,000 photo gallery, was our busiest content.
Oates comes of age with national crown in Ballarat
Bronte Oates’s rapid rise through the Australian distance running ranks continued in emphatic style at Victoria Park in Ballarat, as the 21-year-old powered to her first national cross country title on her birthday, defeating two-time Olympian Jenny Blundell in the women’s 10km. >> Read more
September
The World Championships took centre stage in September with the Australian team putting in a strong performance off the back of a record Olympic campaign.
Nicola Olyslagers was crowned world champion, while Jess Hull, Mackenzie Little and Kurtis Marschall claimed bronze medals.
Former visitor to Australia, Fred Kerley, disgraced his legacy while closer to home, the Run Prix at Albert Park continued to establish itself as one of the best 10km races in Australia.
Jumping for Jesus: Olyslagers wins gold in Tokyo
On the final Sunday of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Nicola Olyslagers rose above the rain and the pressure to claim the gold medal in the women’s high jump: her sixth global medal and first outdoor world title. For the Olympic medallist, who competes with “All for Jesus” written on her wrist as a constant reminder of her faith, the victory was as much a testament to her spiritual journey as it was to her athletic mastery. >> Read more
October
The busy international season wrapped up with the World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi, with golds to Vanessa Low and James Turner. Gout Gout wrapped up his school career in style, while Leanne Pompeani continued her domination on the Australian roads, winning the Burnie10. Our coverage of Caitlin Adams winning the Melbourne Marathon on debut, and a big photo gallery, resonated with the athletics and running communities alike.
Adams wins Melbourne Marathon on debut
South Australia’s Caitlin Adams has won the 2025 Melbourne Marathon in a time of 2 hours, 30 minutes and 26 seconds in her debut run over the 42.195km distance. >> Read more
November
November saw features on new Australian U18 5000m record holder Lucas Chis and 23-year-old Jaylah Hancock-Cameron, Cameron Myers outkicking Seth O’Donnell to win the Australian trial for the World Cross Country, coverage of the Victorian 5000m Champs and news of the cancellation of the 2026 Sydney Track Classic.
But it was the 5th annual edition of our Photo Competition, with record entries, that received most attention.
5th Annual Inside Athletics Photo Competition
Over 4,000 votes from the Australian athletics community have crowned Australia’s favourite athletics photos from the past 12 months.
Queensland photographer Kylie Nyssen claimed a rare double victory, winning both the Best Track Photo and Best Field Photo categories for her stunning images “Sunset Serenade” and “Reaching for Rainbows.” >> Read more
December
December was a month of a new Australian marathon record by Jessica Stenson, a World U20 record by Isaac Beacroft, the Australian All Schools in Melbourne and a front-running victory by Seth O’Donnell at Zatopek.
But it was news of the unification of Australian athletics that capped off the year in style. What had for generations been a bitterly divisive topic was ushered in without fanfare or opposition, setting Australian Athletics up for even greater success in 2026 and beyond.
Australian athletics has entered a new era, with Little Athletics Australia set to formally join forces with Australian Athletics in a move that brings an end to more than 60 years of structural separation within the sport. >> Read more
Thank you to everyone who contributed to our coverage throughout the year, particularly photographers Fred Etter, Jeff Wray and Ben Levy.
Best wishes for the festive season and here’s to a great 2026.
