Cameron Myers, the 20-year-old Australian middle-distance runner, shattered the national 1500m record at the Paris Diamond League on Sunday, clocking 3:28.00. This is the fastest time in the world this year and the quickest ever by an under-21 athlete, placing him 12th on the all-time list, two seconds off the world record.
Record and Victory in Paris
Myers admitted the Australian record was a target he wanted to achieve. "I think having that exterior pressure on yourself to get a time, sort of takes away from the main part of the race and that's winning. So, yeah, clearing that up [the record], I think it's going to be huge going forward," he said. He won the race ahead of France's Azeddine Habz and 2022 world champion Jake Wightman of Britain.
Next Challenge: Commonwealth Games Mile
Myers now sets his sights on the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where he will compete in the mile—a distance not run at the Games in 60 years. He will face fellow Australian Olli Hoare, whose national record he just broke, as well as Wightman and 2023 world champion Josh Kerr, both Scots running on home soil. "I want to win and I want to put up a good fight," Myers said. "So, even if I don't win, I want to make sure that I make the other guys work as hard as possible."
Olympic Ambitions and Early Career
Myers has positioned himself as a medal contender for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. He started running at age six at Belconnen Little Athletics Club. At 10, he finished 17th at national cross-country and told Australian Athletics, "I just got smashed... I went, 'argh, I don't want this to happen again, I really hate losing.'" Coached by Lee Bobbin at 10 and sports scientist Dick Telford at 14, Bobbin noted, "Cameron has been lucky all his career because he has had someone better than him to chase."
Rapid Rise and Olympic Snub
Since graduating from Lake Ginninderra College in 2024, Myers has raced extensively across 800m, 1500m, mile, 3000m, and 5000m, winning at each distance. In 2023, he became the second-youngest to break four minutes in the mile and ran 3:33.26 for 1500m, the fastest by an under-18. He met the Olympic standard for Paris 2024 but was fifth in Australian selection, missing the team. He told GQ, "It was a tough pill to swallow initially, but I think beyond that, it gave me the fire."
Comparisons with Ingebrigtsen
Earlier this year, Myers ran 1:44.05 for 800m in Karlsruhe, faster than Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Cole Hocker, or Josh Kerr have ever managed. His 3:28.00 is 0.32 seconds quicker than Ingebrigtsen's time as a 20-year-old winning Olympic gold in Tokyo. Myers admires Ingebrigtsen: "I love watching him win races and he looks like he does it with ease." With both focused on the 1500m, the Canberra runner may challenge his idol for gold in LA.
