It was a thrilling burst to the finish line in the women’s 1500 metre final at the Commonwealth Games, with former Sunbury Little Athletics runner Linden Hall beaten to bronze by 0.3 of a second.
Scotland’s Laura Muir took out the gold medal ahead of Northern Ireland’s Ciara Mageen, but it was the race for bronze that had Australian fans’ attention.
While Hall missed out on a medal, Australia still made it onto the podium with fellow Victorian Abbey Caldwell coming around the outside in the final moments, with a time of 4:04.79.
Hall, who also finished well, was next across the line with a time of 4:05.09.
Jessica Hull was the third Australian in the race, finishing in eighth.
For 31-year-old Hall, it’s the same result as 2018 in the Gold Coast, just missing out on a Commonwealth Games medal for the second time.
Last year, the Olympian made history when she became the first Australian woman to break four minutes in the 1500-metre, running 3:59.67.
Hall spoke to Channel 7 after qualifying for the final on Friday night in 4:14.08.
“I was getting a bit clipped and choppy at the back, I was like I’m stuck on the outside so why not go,” Hall said.
“It was a pretty nice progression, five people going through, [it was] nice to go through the motions even if it wasn’t crazy fast.
“It’s nice to know what you’re in for coming back on Sunday.”
She said she thought she had recovered well after the World Athletics Championships in Oregon last month.
Hall made the semi finals, but missed out on progressing through to the final.
“We were pretty lucky in our program in that we got one of the biggest breaks of any of the events, so [we were] definitely lucky in that regard,” she said.
Speaking of Caldwell, who is 10 years her junior, she jokingly described her teammate as “my little child”.
“She’s doing so great and I’m so proud of her,” Hall said.
Hall began her athletics career in Sunbury as a child, competing at Sunbury Little Athletics while attending Riddells Creek Primary School.
She told Star Weekly last year she “really got serious” about competing in grades five and six at school before she attended Braemar College in the Macedon Ranges.
Hall scored her personal best at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, running 3:59.01.
Elsie Lange
