Rising star Claudia Hollingsworth has rewritten the record books at the Silesia Diamond League when becoming the fastest Australian woman in history over 800m, while high jumper Nicola Olyslagers and pole vaulter Kurtis Marschall stamped their presence ahead of the World Athletics Championships.
At 20 years old, Hollingsworth (Craig Mottram) added Australian record holder to her growing resume when clocking 1:57.67 to take fifth place in the race won by Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson (GBR), taking down Catriona Bisset’s national record of 1:57.78.
Racing aggressively before holding strong in the home straight, Hollingsworth fended off Olympic teammate Abbey Caldwell (Gavin Burren) who also dipped under the former mark in 1:57.70 for sixth place, while Bisset (Trevor Painter) finished 10th in 2:00.64.
Speaking post-race, Hollingsworth was elated with the performance as she builds towards the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan next month:
“It’s pretty sick! To come down the home straight and not be sure but to look up at the big screen and see it was really exciting. To share it with Abbey and Catriona was so special, having three Aussies in a race like this is awesome.” Hollingsworth said.
“I got into this mentality that they are quick races now and if you want it to be quick, you have to be in it to win it. I’m trying to be more aggressive and try different ways of racing leading into Tokyo because those heats are going to be quick leading into the semis and hopefully the final.”
“I had a look at myself in the mirror the other week and said that I don’t want to be predictable. I don’t want to just sit in during races and do my classic 200m kick. I want to be able to do that no matter where I’m positioned, and if that’s up the front then I want to try that.”
Nicola Olyslagers (Matt Horsnell) made a strong return to competition after a six-week hiatus, landing on the podium for the ninth time this season with second place and a 1.97m clearance.
Despite missing her first attempt of 1.91m as she entered competition, the dual Olympic medallist remained composed, clearing two consecutive attempts at 1.94m and 1.97m. Olyslagers could only be beaten by reigning Olympic and world champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh (UKR) who cleared the 2.00m mark on her second attempt.
Rising up and over 5.90m, pole vaulter Kurtis Marschall (Paul Burgess) clinched equal third place when flirting with the six-metre barrier once more, cementing his form as a medal contender ahead of next month’s World Championships.
Marschall soared over 5.90m on his second attempt to finish tied with Menno Vloon (NED) and trailed only world record holder Armand Duplantis (SWE) and Emmanouil Karalis (GRE) – Duplantis winning the event with a 6.10m.
“I had a bit of a tummy issue in the last couple of days, so to come away with a 5.90 on a scrappy day, I’m very happy. We are going straight to Lausanne from here and hopefully we can get 10 centimetres higher,” Marschall said.
Producing another personal best in her dream year to date, Linden Hall (Ned Brophy-Williams) navigated a messy 1500m contest to stop the clock in 3:56.39 and shave 0.01-seconds off her career-best, flashing home for sixth place in the race won by Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay in 3:50.84.
The 34-year-old Hall was forced wide at times but mustered a strong finish, while Sarah Billings (Nic Bideau) trailed in 14th place. In the Men’s 1500m, 19-year-old Cameron Myers (Dick Telford) loomed large before being caught up in traffic in the tactical race as he finished in sixth place in 3:33.82, followed by Oliver Hoare (Dathan Ritzenhein) in 3:34.40 for eighth place after leading through 1200m – the only athlete to go with the pacemakers.
Australia’s middle-distance stars also flexed their form over 3000m as Rose Davies (Scott Westcott) led the charge with fourth place in 8:36.53, followed by Lauren Ryan (Lara Rogers) in sixth and Georgia Griffith (Nic Bideau) in seventh with times of 8:37.56 and 8:40.08 respectively.
Jessica Hull (Simon Hull) paced Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon (KEN) to the second fastest 3000m time in history – the Kenyan great stopping the clock in 8:07.04 to narrowly miss the world record of 8:06.11.
The Diamond League series will continue next week in Lausanne, Switzerland on August 21.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Australian Athletics
Posted 17/08/2025
