A finals frenzy featuring Gout Gout awaits on the fourth and final day of the 2026 Australian Athletics Championships, where global medallists Nicola Olyslagers, Kurtis Marschall and Eleanor Patterson will send off the Chemist Warehouse Summer Series in style.
Another chapter will be written in the growing career of Gout (QLD, Diane Sheppard) who prepares to defend his national title after delivering the performance of the championships in 2025 as the Betty Cuthbert Medallist.
On that occasion, Gout clocked 19.84 (+2.2) to ignite the crowd, now meeting Aidan Murphy (SA, Nik Hagicostas) who looms as the main challenger after a breakthrough season has seen him set personal bests from 100m through to the 400m. Lachlan Kennedy (QLD, Andrew Iselin) will not return after winning the 100m in a championship record of 9.96-secoonds.
Dual Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers (NSW, Matt Horsnell) will go head-to-head with longtime rival Eleanor Patterson (VIC, Fayaaz Caan) when gracing the track for the Women’s High Jump Final, competing as the only two Australian women in history to clear two-metres in the event.
Olyslagers is gunning for a seventh straight national title, with Patterson looking to take back the crown for the first time since 2017.
Adding to the action in the field will be the high-flying Kurtis Marschall (WA, Declan Carruthers) who has not put a foot wrong in 2026, clearing the elusive six-metre barrier twice and winning World Indoor bronze in Poland last month.
Australia’s best 800m runners will return for today’s final led by Peter Bol (WA, Justin Rinaldi) on the men’s side which includes Luke Boyes (NSW, Ben St Lawrence) and Bob Abdelrahim (VIC, Justin Rinaldi) amongst a host of rising stars, while Abbey Caldwell (VIC, Gavin Burren), Claudia Hollingsworth (VIC, Craig Mottram) and Sarah Billings (VIC, Nic Bideau) all return from an eventful Women’s 1500m Final.
World Indoor bronze medallist Liam Adcock (QLD, self-coached) and World Under 20 champion Delta Amidzovski (NSW, Becky Amidzovski) will chase their crowning moments on the long jump runway, leading the qualifying rounds with leaps of 8.12m (+3.8) and 6.84m (+0.2) respectively – Amidzovski climbing to fifth on the Australian all-time list.
Two of Australia’s top hurdlers Michelle Jenneke (NSW, Bronwyn Thompson) and Sarah Carli (NSW, Abbie Taddeo) will take on the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles respectively as Carli chases her fifth consecutive national title, while a host of Commonwealth Games hopefuls will contest the Women’s 200m Ambulant Final including Rhiannon Clarke (WA, Danny Kevan, T38) and Briseis Brittain (NT, Roger Chin, T38).
The Women’s 5000m will round out the middle-distance action where Australian record holder Rose Davies (NSW, Scott Westcott), Linden Hall (VIC, Ned Brophy-Williams) and Lauren Ryan (VIC, Stephen Haas) are among the top contenders in a deep field reflective of the nation’s depth.
Day Four of the 2026 Australian Athletics Championships will be broadcast on 7plus from 9:50am – 12:00pm AEST, before switching to Channel 7 from 12:00pm – 2:00pm AEST.
Full entry lists and timetables are available HERE.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Australian Athletics
Posted 10/4/2026
