Commonwealth Games: Jaylah Hancock-Cameron in run race for Australian distance spot

Broulee is infamous for the bushfires which sent locals fleeing to the beach on New Year’s Eve in 2019. This young athlete is putting it on the radar for a different reason.

Jaylah Hancock-Cameron is eyeing off a spot at the Commonwealth Games next year but this running talent admits the sport wasn’t exactly the right fit when she first tried it.

It was only her mother’s faith in her talent that got the now 19-year-old into running as a teenager.

Now she is eyeing off a spot in the Commonwealth Games team racing in Birmingham in 2022 in a variety of distance events.

"I think about it a lot. Every training session I think about the Games,’’ said Hancock-Cameron, who will have stiff competition for a spot on Athletics Australian teams from the likes of 1500m Olympic finalists Jessica Hull and Linden Hall.

Young Broulee distance runner Jaylah Hancock-Cameron. Pic: Supplied

“I only started running at 14 which is pretty late. I used to play netball and went to state ages.

“I wasn’t 100 per cent keen about running when I first started. It was just something to kill time with but eventually I got into it.

“Mum always thought I had something special, I don’t know why, but I was quite naturally my sports.

“It just wasn’t my favourite thing to do, the training side of it involves a lot of dedication and took time. But I’m hard headed with stuff and in the end I just wanted to give it my all.”

Extraordinary results just six months into initial foray into running kept her in the game.

“I made my first national team six months later so things moved pretty quickly,” said Hancock-Cameron, who was evacuated form her home on New Year’s Eve due to bush fires ravaging the NSW south coast.

Distance runner Jaylah Hancock-Cameron. Pic: Supplied

“I made my second team that year and then missed a medal by just one place in the under 16s 800m when 14.

“Just missing that medal made me really determined. That loss inspired me to stick with it and eventually I was well and truly hooked.”

The 1500m Australian under 20 champion and youth Olympics silver medallist is now counting down the days to her first major event since June - the 3km state championships on November 13 at Sydney Olympic Park.

While racing over multiple distances, the NSW Athletics junior athlete of the year said the 1500m is her preferred event for an unusual reason.

“It’s the feeling of hurt I like which sounds strange,’’ she said.

“I like the challenge of it, the fact you can push yourself to the limit. I like just being able to rely on myself. I love it. It makes me feel heaps good.”

Jaylah Hancock-Cameron with her 1500m silver deal from the last Youth Olympics. Pic: Supplied

Hancock-Cameron, who is targeting a time better than her PB of 9min 29sec, was one of numerous athletes affected by Covid and its associated restrictions in 2021.

Selected in the Australian team to compete at the world junior championships in Kenya, she was unable to go due to the pandemic, instead racing at a domestic event.

“The training between then and now has been going well,’’ she said. “My coach and I have discussed trying for some open teams, Commonwealth or world champs if possible. We will just have to see.’’

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Originally published as Commonwealth Games: Jaylah Hancock-Cameron in run race for Australian distance spot