From Boulder to Belgrade, bold Beamish eyes big chance indoors
Kiwi athlete among team of six heading to world athletics indoor championships in Belgrade. By Marc Hinton.
It hasn’t been too tough for Kiwi athlete Geordie Beamish to switch into competitive mode ahead of the looming world indoor athletics championships.
As he’s packing his bag ahead of the trip from his base in Boulder, Colorado, to Belgrade, Serbia, for the March 18-20 championships, and multi-tasking by talking to the Sunday Star-Times at the same time, his flatmate, and fellow On Athletics Club squad member, Ollie Hoare, is waving his Australian singlet under the Kiwi’s nose.
That’s part of the transTasman banter they have in a house where the Aussies outnumber the Kiwis two to one (with 5000m runner Morgan McDonald also on hand), but where the New Zealander makes sure he gives as good as he gets.
Hoare’s antics only serve to raise Beamish’s anticipation levels even further for what will be his first experience representing his country. He is part of a six-strong group that will line up in Belgrade, alongside shot put exponents Tom Walsh and Jacko Gill, sprinter Zoe Hobbs, high jumper Hamish Kerr and fellow 3km man Hamish Carson, and it is fair to say the 25-year-old former Whanganui athlete is pumped about the opportunity.
Sure, bigger things lay ahead in 2022, with Beamish – part of the new wave of Kiwi middledistance running elite alongside Sam Tanner – set to line up at both the Oregon world outdoor champs and the Commonwealth Games that follow in Birmingham.
But there’s something about running indoors that suits the tall athlete with the long locks and big kick, and he’s eager to measure himself among a potentially elite field in Serbia.
In December he ran 13min 12.53sec for the 5000m indoors in Boston to not only set a national record (it was the second fastest time ever run by a Kiwi for the distance), but tick off the qualifying standard for the world champs and Commonwealth Games. Not long after he won the 3000m at New York’s Millrose Games in a NZ record 7:39.50, heading home, among others,
Tokyo Olympic 1500m finalist Cole Hocker with a blistering final lap.
‘‘Indoors is never going to be the pinnacle of our sport, but I’ve had a lot of fun running indoors in the US,’’ said Beamish who in 2020 finished up at Northern Arizona University, with a degree in civil engineering, and turned pro. ‘‘It’s a nice change, lets you run track in winter when it’s miserable over here, and I’ve had some good performances indoors.
‘‘I’m pretty comfortable on the little track and it makes for fun and entertaining racing when the crowds are so close to you.’’
In terms of difference, it essentially comes down to the track being half the size of an outdoors one.
‘‘It’s mostly the positioning and tactics involved,’’ added the 2019 NCAA indoor mile champion. ‘‘There’s a little more contact with the other runners and it’s harder to get round people. You have to defend your position more and make decisive moves so you don’t end up running on the outside of bends for laps at a time.
‘‘It’s pretty fun running the last lap hard on an indoor track. You get up high on the bank, and it goes by so quick. Hopefully I can use it to my advantage again.’’ Beamish feels positive about his prospects for 2022, mainly on the basis of the quality
‘‘I’m pretty comfortable on the little [indoor] track and it makes for fun and entertaining racing when the crowds are so close to you.’’ Geordie Beamish
group he’s found himself with at altitude in Boulder, where the 10 athletes are coached by wellregarded American Dathan Ritzenhein.
Between the time they have as professionals, the resources at their disposal and the company he’s keeping, Beamish feels like he’s taken a major step up in his running. He’s also happy flitting between 1500 and 5000m for now, though suspects the longer distance is where his best prospects lie.
‘‘Getting to live and run with people like Ollie is amazing. He’s the No 4 ranked 1500m runner in
the world, and there’s not too many training partners who can compare to that. It’s been pretty special and hopefully that translates to the track this year.’’
After Belgrade, Beamish will return to Boulder for a twomonth training block before gearing up for the Prefontaine Classic in May, and the lead-in to the world champs and Commonwealth Games in July. He aims to return to New Zealand next summer for an extended run in to the world crosscountry champs in Australia.
Beamish is a laidback type, but understands the responsibility that sits on the shoulders of he and Tanner, and one or two others, succeeding the great Nick Willis at the forefront of New Zealand middle-distance running.
‘‘They’re some pretty big shoes to fill, but I think Sam and I are up to the task, and hopefully we’ll be competing side-by-side at these events for a few years to come.’’
Meantime, bragging rights for the house will be at stake, with Hoare lining up in the 1500m in Belgrade and Beamish doing his thing in the 3000.
The Boulder-based Antipodeans put out a podcast they call ‘The Coffee Club’ in which much ribbing takes place. ‘‘They’re actually pretty useless at following other sports, and I have to tell them when things are happening, otherwise I don’t think they’d even know,’’ muses Beamish.
They’ll all certainly be well aware of what unfolds in Belgrade. It could dominate the chat in a fair few training runs to come.