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It was a record-setting night for Australian Jessica Hull at the 2023 Sydney Track Classic on Saturday night at the Sydney Olympic Park.

Hull won the Australian 3000m title in the time of 8:31.81 to improve on New Zealand athlete Kim Smith’s Oceania record of 8:35.31 that she set in Monaco in 2007. She built a 70-metre lead with three laps remaining. The 26-year-old went on to win by 19 seconds. Rose Davies finished second in the time of 8:50.90 while 17-year-old Amy Bunnage clocked a third place performance of 8:51.90.

For Hull it was her seventh Australian or Oceania record.

The Albion Park, NSW native, now living in Portland, OR also holds the 1500m AR at 3:58.81, one mile (1609m) 4:19.89, and the 5000m national record at 14:43.80. Indoors, she holds the 1500m record at 4:04.14, 4:24.06 for the mile — both area records and 8:39.79 over the 3000m distance event. All but one set in less than two years, with just the indoor 1500m area record set in Jan. 2020.

After competing the NCAA for the University of Oregon Ducks, she signed a professional contract with Nike Corp. She joined the Nike Oregon Project, and is now coached by Pete Julian at Nike.

While competing for the University of Oregon she earned seven All-American honours and is a four-time NCAA Champion.

During her first full year as a pro in 2020, she broke four national records and earned six new personal bests in distances including the 1500m, 3000m and the 5000m as well as the indoors 1500m. 

In 2020, in an Athletics Illustrated interview she said, “Running for the University of Oregon was the perfect bridge between my junior career in Australia and being ready to live and train as a professional athlete. I was coached by Maurica Powell for three years and Helen Lehman-Winters for my senior year. At Oregon, there was a gradual progression of mileage, intensity and the incorporation of strength and conditioning work to my training under both coaches.” Progress started to show in my Junior year (redshirt sophomore season) with Maurica and then Helen was good at reminding me that each day we should just be working to be a little bit better than the day before. Both Maurica and Helen taught our team not to put a limit on what we could be capable of.”

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