Bound for Belgrade | Australian team confirmed for 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships
Published Fri 08 Mar 2024
Australia is set to continue its status as a global presence in distance running at the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Belgrade, Serbia on March 30, with a 20-strong team led by Patrick Tiernan and Paige Campbell confirmed today.
The 45th edition of the World Cross Country Championships will land in Belgrade later this month off the back of 2023’s instalment hosted in Bathurst, with the first World Athletics Series event on home soil in 27 years inspiring the strong Australian contingent.
Clinching an Olympic qualifier in the marathon earlier this year with a run of 2:07:45, Tiernan (QLD, Alistair & Amy Cragg) will race with freedom and confidence in the Men’s 10km event having finished in 13th place at the 2017 instalment in Kampala.
The two-time Olympian will be joined by Australian Cross Country Selection Trial winner and Australian debutant Haftu Strintzos (VIC, Craig Mottram), as the Villanova University graduates flex their cross country credentials when spearheading the team of six including eight-time World Cross Country representative and two-time Olympic marathoner Liam Adams (VIC, Ken Hall).
Making his second consecutive appearance at the World Cross Country Championships, Andre Waring (VIC, Steve Dinneen) knows he has more to give on the world stage, confident in improving upon his 51st place finish in 2023.
“To make this team is a great opportunity to represent Australia for the second time! To be able to share these moments with my friends and family means a lot to me. Having Liam on the team is such a privilege especially since being able to train with him over the years,” Waring said.
“Going into this championship I trust the training will get me the result I’m after. Most importantly I’ll make sure to enjoy this opportunity as it’s not every day you get to compete in the green and gold.”
Enduring a rough run of injuries in recent years, Paige Campbell (NSW, Dick Telford) capped off her return to racing with a statement win at the Australian Cross Country Selection Trial, securing automatic selection along with Melissa Duncan (VIC, self-coached), as the duo reunite after featuring at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus.
On that occasion, it was Duncan in 26th place who led home Campbell in 29th as the first two Australian women across the line, with Campbell now looking to build into a top-20 finish when donning the green and gold in Belgrade for the Women’s 10km.
Following in the footsteps of their senior counterparts, the nation’s rising stars will only bolster Australia’s distance running resurgence, with trial winners Jack Coomber (QLD, Jayden Russ) and Gabrielle Schmidt (QLD, Kerry Schreiber) leading the way for a capacity crop of 12 Under 20 athletes.
A late call up in 2023 after finishing in seventh place at the trial, one second outside of the top-six, Charli-Rose Carlyon (WA, Dick Telford) left nothing to chance in 2024 – racing to second place at Canberra’s Stromlo Forest to make it back-to-back Australian teams alongside Schmidt and Amy Bunnage (VIC, J.J Clark).
The 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships will be held in Belgrade, Serbia on March 30, with the full Australian team available below.
Update 11/3/2024: Since the announcement of the Australian team, Amy Bunnage has withdrawn from competition and will be replaced by Alexandra Schluz. The changes are reflected in the team list below.
Men’s 10km:
Patrick Tiernan (QLD, Alistair & Amy Cragg)
Haftu Strintzos (VIC, Craig Mottram)
Liam Adams (VIC, Ken Hall)
Zach Facioni (VIC, Craig Mottram)
Edward Marks (VIC, Collis Birmingham)
Andre Waring (VIC, Steve Dinneen)
Women’s 10km:
Paige Campbell (NSW, Dick Telford)
Melissa Duncan (VIC, self-coached)
Under 20 Men’s 8km:
Jack Coomber (QLD, Jayden Russ)
Charlie Moore (QLD, Jayden Russ)
Ky Hehir (WA, Matthew Ramsden)
Padraig Heffernan (QLD, Ben Norton)
Seth Mahony (QLD, Jayden Russ)
Logan Tickell (VIC, Andrew Buchanan)
Under 20 Women’s 6km:
Gabrielle Schmidt (QLD, Kerry Schreiber)
Charli-Rose Carlyon (WA, Dick Telford)
Emma de Jong (VIC, Karen Moir)
Sienna Bush (QLD, Melanie Black)
Gretta Johnson (QLD, Chris Gale & Lizel Moore)
Alexandra Schulz (VIC, Liz Mathews)
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 8/3/2024
