Cameron Myers, a 16-year-old high school student, has set a new Australian U18 record and won silver in the senior men’s 1,500m final at the 2023 Australian Track and Field Championships in Brisbane. Myers completed the race in an impressive time of 3:38.02, beating Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s U16 world record of 3:39.92 by nearly two seconds.
Myers has been on a record-breaking spree this season and has become the second-youngest Australian to reach the podium at the national track championships. Though he shared the lead with Matthew Ramsden for most of the race, Callum Davies overtook him in the final 100m, and Myers finished in second place. Davies, who is seven years older than Myers, won the race with a time of 3:37.92.
In addition to his performance in the 1,500m, Myers has achieved personal bests in the mile and 3,000m this season. His record-setting time of 3:38.02 is only three and a half seconds away from the 2023 World Championship standard of 3:34.20.
Myers made headlines earlier this season when he became the second-youngest person to break the four-minute mile barrier, setting a new U16 world record of 3:55.44. Only Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who is younger than Myers, has run a sub-four-minute mile at a younger age.
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Despite his remarkable achievements, Myers trains with a plan that is appropriate for his age, and his training volumes do not exceed 80 kilometers per week. He is coached by Australian distance coach Dick Telford and is currently in his final year of high school at Lake Ginnindera College in Canberra.
Although a few East African athletes have run faster than 3:38 for 1,500m at the age of 16, their ages are not verifiable. Myers’ performances have established him as one of the best young runners in the world, and he is sure to continue to make headlines in the future.
