ADELAIDE, Australia — In what turned out to be a battle of two of the top middle-distance runners in program history, current Wisconsin men’s track and field standout Adam Spencer bested UW legend Oliver Hoare to win the 1500 meters at the 2024 Australian Athletics Championships on Saturday.
Spencer crossed the line in 3 minutes, 37.68 seconds, narrowly defeating Hoare, the 2018 NCAA Champion in the 1500, who was second in 3:37.83. Both times were season bests.
“Tonight’s championship race was billed as the greatest 1500 meters field in Australian history and it lived up to its billing,” UW Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Mick Byrne said. ” There were so many sub-3:35 guys in the race and anyone could have won. Adam ran a superb tatitcal race, sprinting into the lead off the final turn and held off a late-charging Olli Hoare. To have the Badgers go 1-2 is exciting and I’m thrilled for both of them.”
Hoare was in the front of the pack for almost the entirety of the competition while Spencer spent a majority of the race in the middle of the pack. However with 400 meters to go, Spencer, the runner-up in the NCAA mile earlier this year, made his move to the outside and found himself in the top-three before accelerating down the home stretch to win the national title.
“Having secured the Olympic standard last July at the London Diamond League event, selection for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is now very probable for Adam after winning tonight’s race,” Byrne said. “That’s a huge bonus going forward in terms of planning training and racing.”
Spencer and Hoare aren’t the only two Badgers competing in Australia this week as Hoare, four-time NCAA champion Morgan McDonald and current Badger standout Jackson Sharp are set to compete in the 5000 meters at the 2024 Australian Athletics Championships on Sunday morning at 1:15 a.m. CT (3:45 p.m. Australian Central Standard Time).
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