Teenager raises the bar with athletics feats

THE dust has barely settled on the 2024-25 track and field season – but at least one young Ballarat athlete could be forgiven for already looking forward to the next one.

A remarkable few months at state and national events for Lucy Jones has only solidified her reputation as one of Victorian athletics’ rising stars.

The 16-year-old Eureka Athletic Club runner notched up an impressive resume of big race performances, headlined by her under-18 bronze medal-winning 1500m run at the Australian Athletics Junior Championships in Perth last month.

It was the second time she had bronze-medalled at the nationals.

Jones – who also finished fifth in her age group in the 800m at nationals – headed west in sparkling form, having won the only event she contested at the state championships in February, the 800m.

An ultra-consistent season included 1500m gold and 800m silver at the Victorian country championships in Bendigo, and a fourth place as a member of Ballarat’s open 4 x 400m relay team at Zatopek:10.

Jones admitted to not knowing what to expect from nationals.

“I really wasn’t too sure how I’d go,” she said.

“In the 800, I knew it was going to be really tough to make the final, so that was exciting.

“The same with the 1500m – I didn’t know what would happen.”

Jones was quick to pay gratitude to her long-time coach Rod Griffin for his support and guidance, lauding him as pivotal in her development and good form.

 

“I have been running with him since about year 5,” Jones said about the ex-national junior team coach, who has played a key role in the careers of several Australian Olympians, including Collis Birmingham, Victoria Mitchell and Stewart McSweyn.

“He’s great, and the group of people I train with are also amazing.

“I’ve got lots of great friends there. It’s nice and social too, which makes it fun.”

Well-known for her versatility over multiple distances, Jones finds it difficult to split between the 800m and 1500m as her favourite event.

It was over 1600m that she excelled two weekends ago, when she finished runner-up in the junior section of the elite mile at the Ballarat Marathon.

Jones – who won the inaugural event in 2024 – missed going back-to-back by a mere .4 of a second behind South Australian runner Ivy Strawhorn.

She finished 11th overall against some of Australia’s best female milers.

With entries for all events nearly doubling this year across all distances, the Ballarat Marathon has stamped itself as Australia’s fourth biggest.

Jones believed the event was something everyone in Ballarat could be proud of.

“It was a great event, really well organised. There were so many people there this year,” she said.

“It’s really exciting getting to run down the main streets of Ballarat – it’s a great atmosphere with everyone watching and cheering on.

“At the start line, I saw some familiar faces in the crowd, but I was focused throughout.”

Jones is now weighing up her next move in athletics, expected to include some hit-outs in the Athletics Victoria Winter Cross Country (XCR) series, which kicks-off this Saturday at Hanging Rock.

“Obviously the (cross country) nationals are in Ballarat for the next three years, but I don’t know if I will have a go at them,” she said.

“I’ll have to wait and see.

“I have done the XCR Series the last few years, but I’ll have to wait and see how much cross country I’ll be doing.

“It would be good to give some of those races a go.”

With regards to next year’s track and field season, Jones will have something extra important to contend with, as she looks to complete her year 12 studies at Damascus College in 2026.

It will be an opportunity to mark some milestones on two fronts.

“Hopefully, I can find a good balance between study and competing, but it would be nice to have another big track season,” Jones said.