By Mikayla van Loon, with AOC
Paris will be well represented with athletes hailing from the outer east, with five sports people looking to make their mark at the world’s biggest sporting event.
Three athletes will be making their debut at the 2024 Olympic Games, with Warrandyte’s Abbey Caldwell taking on the 800m race, Mooroolbark’s Tayleb Willis looking to claim a podium in the 110m hurdles and Tim Anderson from Eltham taking on the rapids in the canoe slalom.
Boxer Harry Garside and cyclist Kelland O’Brien make a return to donning the green and gold in their second appearance after debuting in 2020 (2021).
While Garside made a name for himself claiming the first Australian boxing Olympic medal in 33 years, O’Brian and his pursuit team also collected bronze after a seesawing battle with New Zealand.
But as the Olympic veterans challenge their titles, up-and-comers Caldwell, Willis and Anderson have their sights set on making an impression.
Willis, 21, started his athletic career with the Yarra Ranges Athletics club, having already tried a number of sports including swimming, karate, ballet, and gymnastics.
“After trying out every event in athletics I came across hurdling and became in love with it as my flexibility from gymnastics and my natural born speed came together,” he told the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC).
Despite a fall when he was eight-years-old, Willis regained confidence watching his sister Lateisha Willis and went on to win his first state title in U12s.
From there he continued to impress, finishing fourth in the U14 Australian Little Athletics Championships, winning his first national medal in the U16s then going on to win five national titles and set various state records.
As a 17-year-old, Willis notched up times of 13.52/13.43w in the 91cm 110m hurdles.
The pandemic lockdowns didn’t dampen the rising star’s performance either, setting a new PB of 13.48 in the summer of 2021 – then the third fastest junior in Australian history.
Qualifying for the World U20 Championships, the pandemic prevented travelling, leaving a disappointed Willis eager to show his talent.
“I was gutted because I was in the greatest form ever and was ranked second in the world so had a great chance to medal or even win,” he told the AOC.
The pause for lockdowns and a broken toe six weeks before his next attempt at the World Juniors, saw Willis produce a fifth place finish.
But the transition to the open competition wasn’t as smooth as he’d liked. He finished fourth at nationals in 2023, setting off a determination unlike before.
“I remember after my race at nationals, I went straight to the toilet, cried and said to myself, ‘this is not the athlete I am. This is not the athlete I’m destined to be’.”
Acquiring the coaching skill of former hurdles athlete Kyle Vander-Kuyp and physiotherapist Sam Leslie, Willis returned to the 2024 season a changed person and athlete.
He clocked a 13.66 with a 2.8m/s wind in the first race of 2024. The next race was a PB 13.79, then a close second at nationals in a big PB of 13.62.
The defining race was his appearance at the Oceania Championships in June where he claimed the win and ultimately secured himself a spot on the Olympic team.
Caldwell, 23, also began early in proving her athletic capability but found the Covid years and transition to senior competition a challenging one as well.
Her name became known in middle distance running when medals came her way in the Australian championships and her 2018 selection for the World U20 Championships.
Despite missing out on 3000m selection she was named in the 1500m, going on to compete in the heats at the global junior event in Finland. She again wore the green and gold in 2019 at the world cross country championships.
Claiming her first placing in the seniors competition coming second behind Linden Hall in the National 1500m title, Caldwell went on to gain a bronze medal in the 1500m at the Commonwealth Games.
Smashing personal bests and getting close to the national record for the 800m, Caldwell picked up a spot on the 2023 Australian team in the 800m and 1500m for the Budapest World Championships, becoming just the second Australian woman to compete in that double at the world championships.
It was this and her 2024 domestic season which gained her a ticket to Paris.
Growing up around the Yarra River in Eltham, Anderson, 30, followed his brother Alastair into the sport but it soon became his own passion.
Missing out on selection for the Rio and Tokyo Olympics, Anderson never gave up the dream of competing and that determination paid off, seeing him race some of his best times and finishes yet.
It began at the 2022 World Championships in Augsburg, Germany where he finished eighth, which led to his first World Championships men’s kayak final
Placing fifth, it was the best result of his career so far and the near faultless run secured Australia a spot in the Paris 2024 Olympic competition.
In kayak cross, he also made the quarter-finals in all five races of the 2023 World Cup to finish third in the overall standings.
February brought with it a title of best-placed paddler crowning Anderson as the Oceania champion at the Oceania canoe slalom titles at the Penrith Whitewater Centre.
The confirmation of getting a place on the Australian Olympic Team was a weight lifted off Anderson’s shoulders.
“It’s awesome. I can’t explain how good it feels to have the pressure off,” he said.
The Olympics get underway on Friday 26 July and run until 11 August.
