Olympic armchair experts: 800m

Welcome to the Cheeky Olympic Armchair Expert series where we are diving deep into the events we are most excited about for the upcoming Olympics, and bringing you on the journey in the lead up to Paris. Hello Anna.

Hello Phoebe

and hello listeners. Now, Anna, what event will we be discussing today?

Today, Today, we're going to be talking about the 800 meters. We're going to discuss what is going to make this event so exciting, tell the stories of our Aussie Olympians who will be getting behind, as well as some of the other key players to watch and finish with their prediction for our highest place getter amongst the Aussies. Love

Love it. So basically, we are giving you all the information you need to sound like an absolute expert when it comes to the 800 metre event. At your niece's third birthday. Did you Have that? Have So tell us a bit about the 800 metre event, Anna. Why do you love watching the 800 metre event?

So, many reasons. Uh, firstly, it's a bit of a hybrid event. It requires both well developed speed and endurance. It's almost like an extended sprint, but long enough that tactics really matter and play into it. So it can make or break, your race.

your race. I think, um, I really, really resonate with how hard 800 meters is. After this morning, I had 800 meter reps. and I was thinking about us recording this and I was like really empathizing with the runners. Yeah, Hard.

would have been going about the same pace that they are going to be going in Paris.

actually checked. I was like, how far off am I? Oh, I'm on now.

Oh, wait, I've done 400 meters.

I've done this. true. So for the 800m event, One of the things that makes it really exciting is that you have to get through the heats, the semis, and then into the finals. So really the highest place getters are basically the athletes who can, the challenge is to get through the heats and semis as easily as possible without exerting too much energy, but still making sure you definitely make it into the finals.

Yeah, so this can really change depending on which, like who's in your heats and semis which, the like athletes don't necessarily have control over and also just sort of how the races are run. so if it's like a super fast heat or semifinal, you're

final, you're

more tired for the final. but yes, very exciting.

say the other reason why you love the 800 meter

Because my favorite athlete of them all is racing, Keely Hodgkinson. She is from Great Britain. So part of the Commonwealth, I guess, but not quite Australian. And I love her. I've been following her since the Tokyo Olympics, where she was just a wee 19 year old. And she was like, I mean, we'll get into it later, but I love her. And that's

at Tokyo? Oh,

she came second. a nine pager. Wow, that is so cool. I feel like, um, I mean, you have

the final. Wow, that is so cool. I feel like, um, I mean you have a lot of, um, athlete girl crushes, but she's your number one, would you

number one. would all right. So run us through the key players. Who are our Australian women who are going over to represent us in the 800 metres?

So one of the women is Kat Bissett. She is our Aussie record holder. She's pretty much been the dominant Australian over this distance for the better part of five years. would you say?

Yeah, I reckon.

She's also, um I've kind of followed Kat a little bit because she's done lots of like, she was on the Imperfects and she talks a lot about things like mental health with athletes. she's amazing. She's really very smart.

talks a lot about things like mental health with athletes, um, she's amazing, she's really, she's very smart.

seems

I mean, similar to her training partner, Lyndon Hall, who we'll talk about in the 1500 meters. She, like peaks at the right times. So I

times. Yes,

yeah, like she's just run her fastest time of the year last weekend. and

It's kind of like the maturity showing, like, She doesn't feel like she has to go out and go. hard straight away. She's like, I know if I build up, I know I'll get there and then she'll, I guarantee her best performance will probably be at the

up, I know I'll get there and then she'll, I guarantee her best performance will probably be at the Olympics. I know, kind of crazy. Like she was born in 2001. That makes me feel so old. Anyway, I digress. Um, she used to focus on the 1500 meters so much so that in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, she actually won a bronze medal, but now she's shifted her focus to the 800. and I believe that every, race that she's done this year, whilst being over in Europe has been sub two minutes.

minutes. Is that right? Yeah. That is incredible. Yeah, and two, for reference, two minutes is like. You're in record ter like, I mean, no, what's our Aussie record?

Um, is 157,

believe. Yeah. so under two minutes, you are, that is considered an incredible performance for 800m.

Yeah. Yeah. I feel like if you're under. Like a lot of the professionals are trying, vying to get under two minutes. Yeah, yeah. Our

runner is Claudia Hollingsworth. She's the young gun of the team. She must be one of the youngest athletes for, and the Aussie team heading over there. She's just finished high school. She's 19 years old.

years old. Yep.

But she won national championships. So she beat both Abby and Kat. She had the most amazing like season, domestic season in Australia. Just was getting PB after PB after PB. and now she's headed over to Europe. definitely one to

to watch. Yeah, very exciting. Who else,

Talk us

um, who

who else, who should we be looking out for? Anna, when we're watching the 800? metre run. Um,

well the obvious is Keely Hodgkinson, who I

Anna's written in caps lock.

Cavill, Keeley, full stop, doesn't even need a surname. So over the last weekend, she's just run the sixth fastest time ever, at the London Diamond League. It was also a British, breaking her own British record and it was her first time under 1. 55. So she ran 154, which is kind of crazy. So as we were just saying that like the, a lot of professional runners are trying to run under two minutes, and she's just run under 155

minutes, and she's

and it's the fastest time in six years. Um, yeah, yeah. So she's also meddled at every single championship that she's competed at. She's been dominant this whole year, through her social media and interviews. You just get the sense. She's so, so focused on gold. Like she's been practicing. She sort of says how she's been practicing racing in different positions. Like she's done some races where she's sort of like running from the back, to make sure she like.

matter which way,

the race goes, I reckon.

She's looking good.

Looking good.

Yeah. Jon. A Couple of other quick ones we'll mention. One is Mary Moya from Kenya. So last year in the world championships. She won. So she beat

I

And her PB is 156. So she is right up there as well. Yeah. And the wild card,

she is right up there as well. has been on such a steep trajectory this year. She's 17 years old and she's broken two minutes for the first time and then she's gone to the British Championships and just won.

so Keely

so Keeley was already in so she didn't actually do the British Championships. Phoebe Gill.

Phoebe Gill. Okay. I was like, wait, if you don't reveal it. And she is!

she is Phoebe! I'm sitting right next to her.

know

Um, so yeah, she's definitely one to watch. Also, I should just add In the British championships that she just won to qualify for the Olympics. She also beats, Gemma Ricci, who's also from great Britain. Who's their third runner who came forth at the last Olympics. So it's not as though she wasn't against

as bad as the one

Phoebe, Phoebe, uh, Keeley didn't run in the 800 cause she was already in. Yeah. Yeah.

Huge. I am so excited. So pumped. I can't wait. And so give me your predictions. Out of the Australians, who do you think will perform the best and where do you think they'll land? I

I think Abby Caldwell will, at least get to the semifinal, if not the final. I just think she has a really, she's really smart racer and she's patient. And she's also got a really strong finish.

She's so speedy, Yeah. I mean,

do you think?

I think odds are on Kat. I just think she's, as we said, she's peaking at the right moment. We know she's our fastest over that distance. That said, the runner with the most upside, I would say, is Claudia. Like, she's just gotten better and better. across the year. And I just don't know where her ceiling is.

is. Yeah, that's

I feel like of all of them. And maybe, maybe it'll be in a few Olympics time that she reaches this, like, maybe it will take time. But I feel like she was dropping like a second off every

like a second

And so I feel like if anyone's going to be a breakout, kind of out of all of them, I reckon it's my money's on Claudia.

a breakout, kind of out of all of them, I reckon it's my mummy's

have no idea.

all right. Hope you liked that little snapshot into the 800 metres and be sure to tune in to our next little armchair expert series, cheeky armchair expert series,

Sounds good.

People are going to think I'm just obsessed with all these girls. I mean, which I kind of am.

nice. I think it's