It has been a whirlwind ride to the top for former Cohuna lad, Jamie Harrison.

The 22-year-old competed in the Australian Track & Field Championships in Brisbane at the weekend making it through to the finals of the 800m event.

For Jamie, athletics training and university have gone hand in hand for the past few years but he is happy to combine the two things he is passionate about. When the chance to compete in serious competitions arose in January, training amped up and his event calendar was filled with meets around the country.

Running was not a priority during Jamie’s teen years, he didn’t even attend Little Athletics. It wasn’t until later in his secondary schooling that he realised he enjoyed the sport and was picked up by a coach in Bendigo, focussing on the 400m event, but school and distance prevented full commitment.   

A move to Melbourne for university in 2019 and a new coach saw him integrate his study and training, only to be interrupted by Covid-19 and an injury.  

In 2022, he returned to running but with a new coach and new distance – the 800m – and realised he was much better at that than the 400m.  

His personal best is 1:46.64 – considerably faster than his starting point of 1:55.80 when he first started running the 800m distance in November last year.

Jamie competed in races in Melbourne, then in February and March he was invited to compete in the Athletics Continental Tour in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane – a tour that sees only the top eight athletes invited to compete in one race at each venue – no heats and no final.

Last weekend he competed against athletes from across Australia in the Australian Open and Under 20 Track & Field Championship (including Para events) in Brisbane from March 30 to April 2.

Jamie placed second in the 800m Mens Open preliminary and semi-final events, and sixth in the final in a time of 1:48.64, his best time for the competition. He was the only Victorian to make it through to the final.

“I only ran my first proper 800m back in November, and then, five months later, I was lining up with probably some of the best guys in Australia,” said Jamie of his achievement.

The final proved frustrating when he found himself boxed in the pack and couldn’t get out, even getting tripped up, resulting in him losing 4-5 metres on the rest of the pack. 

While he didn’t win, Jamie points out that it’s not always about winning. “The fact I was there and in for a chance to win it is an exciting thing of itself. I can’t be too hard on myself because I was running against guys who have been doing it for several years. So, they’ve just got much more experience and they know how to position themselves and they know how to race.

“The reason I do it, and I like doing it so much is because I think it’s really satisfying to push your body and see yourself progress. It’s really rewarding. The competing is just another element of that, it’s not everything. A lot of the enjoyment comes from the training and everything associated with it, and getting fitter and getting better.

“I’m having fun with it. I’m just still figuring it out,” he said. Jamie is also quick to point out that there are others involved in his progress and achievements. “It’s not just me, I’m the one that does the running, but I’ve got Mum and Dad supporting me [Tarina and Gary Harrison], and I’ve got my girlfriend, Sarah. On the surface, to the outside observer it looks like an individual sport, but in reality, there’s 15 other guys that I train with. I’ve got my coach and my coach works with physiologists, and I’ve got physios. It’s a real big group of people that come together to make it happen. So, I think it’s important to recognise them.”

The Tour and Championships were aired on 7plus and the final was called by television sports personality Bruce McAveney – a voice Jamie said he recognised about 100m into the run.

Back home in Melbourne, Jamie was straight back to his uni commitments and training nine sessions a week. His next goal is the European summer season, where he hopes to improve on his personal best time.

Jamie has advice for Cohuna and district youngsters who are keen on athletics. “The most important part is keeping it fun and enjoying it. If you find that it’s fun, the stuff that’s hard isn’t so hard, and the stuff that’s bad isn’t so bad. Keep it fun and don’t take yourself too seriously. That’s what works for me, anyway.”

This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 6 April 2023.