Leading Aussie gold-medal chance ruled out of worlds

A serious hamstring injury has ruled one of Australia’s leading gold-medal hopes out of the upcoming world athletics championships.

Dual Olympic walking medallist Jemima Montag has made the heartbreaking decision to undergo hamstring surgery, ruling her out of a red-hot tilt for gold at next month’s world athletics championships in Tokyo.

Montag has been one of Australia’s very best performers on the global stage in recent years, claiming silver at the 2023 world titles in Budapest and bronze in the 20km and the marathon mixed relay at the Paris Olympics.

Gold was very much on the agenda in Tokyo for the 27-year-old until she suffered a recurrence of a distal hamstring injury at an altitude camp in St Moritz earlier this month.

“Knowing at that point we would only have five or six weeks until Tokyo and that this hamstring tendon injury has the propensity to recur, ultimately the medical team decided it was best to fly home, get it operated on and prioritise the longer-term vision,” Montag told AAP on Tuesday.

“It’s such a heart-sinking moment because I’d felt it before (at a training camp in June).

“You’ve been hoping and praying throughout the rehab that you’ve got enough time, that you’re simultaneously taking things slowly enough but also progressing quickly enough that you’ll be good for the world championships when it matters.

“So feeling that sharp pain in the hammy for the second time was fairly heart-breaking.”

Although Montag’s withdrawal is a big blow, there are still high hopes Australia will collect a swag of medals at the September 13-21 world titles, with the squad to be finalised early next week.

And after going under the knife on Tuesday, Montag has plenty of other things to occupy her mind for the remainder of the year.

She is midway through a post-graduate medical degree and is getting married in December.

By: John Salvado/AAP

 

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