Australian Athletics Championships: Olympic silver medallist Jessica Hull challenged in 1500 metres

Jessica Hull had scaled the heights of international middle-distance running at the Paris Olympic Games last year, but was made to use all her guile to secure a third straight national title.

Olympic silver medallist Jessica Hull used all her guile and experience to add another national title to her expanding CV on Saturday night.

In a strangely run Australian championships 1500m final, the hero of the Paris Olympics was forced to take over with two laps remaining and then go flat out over the final 450m to claim the victory (4min 11.36sec) from a pair of Victorians, Sarah Billings (4:11.51) and Georgia Griffith (4:12.09).

She’s Done It Again 👑

The Queen of the 1500m delivers once more as Jessica Hull takes home another National Championship, her third in a row.

After an incredible last lap, she narrowly edges out Sarah Billings who came close with an inspiring run. From Jamaica to the… pic.twitter.com/48yNWMBlzs

— Australian Athletics (@AustralianAths) April 12, 2025

By contrast the men’s 1500m was a faster affair with 18-year-old Cameron Myers winning his first Australian title (3:34.39), holding off the challenges from reigning champion Adam Spencer (3:34.57) and Commonwealth champion Oliver Hoare (3:34.61) over the last 50m.

It has been a whirlwind few days for Hull who last weekend raced in Jamaica as part of the inaugural Grand Slam Track season. She arrived in Perth on Monday night via New York and Hong Kong, then raced in the heats on Thursday.

After the first half of the final was run at snail’s pace, Hull decided she’d had enough and took over which meant she had to dig deep down the home straight to fight off an inspired challenge from Billings.

Jessica Hull competes to wins the women's 1500m final during the Australian Athletics Championships. Picture: Colin Murty / AFP

“It was a very strange race,” Hull said. “In my mind I probably thought Linden (Hall) was going to take up the running, like experience suggested that and then in the first 200 she was boxed in on the rail pretty deep so I knew then it wasn’t going to be Linden.

“I thought no one else was going to go so then it was just buckle up for the last 450.

“Last week I realised that I just had to back my speed. My speed is better than I thought it was, so I just had to hold my nerve out there.

“I’ve got so much experience that I just backed myself to be the most composed amongst the tension in that pack because it was so tense, I could feel it out there.

Hull reacts after winning the women's 1500m final during the Australian Athletics Championships. Picture: Colin Murty / AFP

“So experience prevailed.”

Myers had a forgettable experience at last year’s national championships where he was overawed by Spencer and Hoare which then led to him not making the Paris Olympic team.

He was determined to right that wrong this year.

“Last year I was so disappointed coming off those champs and I really do think it fuelled me to get the best out of myself this year,” Myers said.

“Sometimes in this sport you really do need a disappointing experience to get yourself going and get yourself fired up again. That was so important for my development as an athlete and hopefully I can continue with that momentum I have got now.”

Originally published as Australian Athletics Championships: Olympic silver medallist Jessica Hull challenged in 1500 metres