Two medals at World Indoors for Australian athlete with Donegal roots

An Australian athlete whose family hails from Gweedore won two medals at this weekend’s World Athletics Indoor Championships in Poland.

Jessica Hull won silver in the 1500m and bronze in the 3000m.

The 29-year-old, the only woman doubling up in the two middle-distance events, clocked a new Australian record, 3:59.45, for 1500m silver.

Hull is the great-granddaughter of Charles Peoples and Sarah McBride, who left Gweedore at a young age in the 1800s. There remain some family links in west Donegal to this day.

Hull was beaten to the gold in a thrilling 1500m by Great Britain’s Georgia Hunter Bell, who won in in 3:58.53 while USA’s Nikki Hiltz needed a PB, 3:59.68, to edge out a French national record, 3:59.71, from Agathe Guillemot and take bronze right on the line.

“To be leaving the World Indoor Championships with a bronze and a silver against world-class fields feels incredible,” Hull said. “I know my time is coming.

“I had to learn how to channel the nerves again. It's intimidating to do something you have never done and I have never done the indoor 1500m. There were some different nerves out there today. 

“When it comes to big championships, now I will have the experience from every angle.”

Last year, Hull won 3000m indoor bronze and 1500m bronze outdoors at the World Championships having been the 1500m silver medallist at the 2024 Olympic Games.

In Saturday’s 3000m final, Hull took bronze in 8:58.18. A turbulent race was won by Nadia Battocletti - just two days after finishing Ramadan - in 8:57.64 with USA’s Emily Mackay pipping Hull to silver, going just 0.06 of a second faster in 8:58.12.

The reigning 3000m champion, Freweyni Hailu from Ethiopia, went to the floor midway through the race after a trailing hand of Hull connected. The Spaniard, Marta Garcia was disqualified for a shove on Hull in the same incident. 

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Hull said: “If there is a race for medals anywhere in the world, I will be there! 

“I am still learning these things. Outdoors and indoors are two different sports for me - indoors you have to be tactically more aware, you cannot get away with tactical errors.”