News & Updates

Fast times are expected as the cream of New Zealand runners tackle the annual 5000m race at the Daikin Night of 5s meeting on Auckland’s North Shore on Saturday evening.

Five athletes have run under 14 minutes, Eric Speakman 13:22.08, Oli Chignell 13:27.03, Julian Oakley 13:34.97, James Uhlenberg 13:51.86 and Cameron Avery 13:59.00.

Speakman, a perennial national championship silver medallist, holds the Night of 5s race record of 13:31.84 in winning in 2020 and he has been asked to pace through to 3km in a time of eight minutes. Chignell has been requested to pace a second group through 3000m to 8:15.

Chignell won the event in March in 13:34.82 and his personal best came a month later in Stanford USA. Oakley won in 2019 in 13:59.25 and his best was achieved in taking second behind Speakman in 2020.

All eyes, however, will be national 1500m champion Sam Tanner who when finishing sixth in the Commonwealth Games 1500m final in Birmingham in August, recorded a blistering time of 3:31.34 to climb to number two on the all-time New Zealand lists for the distance. In his one previous completed 5000m, the Athletics Tauranga athlete ran a time of 14:17.80 12 months ago but he is reportedly in great shape and will be highly fancied to register a new PB.

Uhlenberg raced in the States during 2021 and his best came at the Big 10 invite meeting in Bloomington. Avery, the national mountain running champion, recorded his best in Boston in 2020.

The depth of the field, for the Blincoe Cup, is also evident with Oska-Baynes 14:29.07, Cameron Clark 14:31.15, Christian De Vaal 14:15.22, Christopher Dryden 14:14.07, Russell Green 14:17.97, David Lee 14:23.33, Connor Melton 14:19.74, Jacob Priddey 14:26.10 and Caden Shields 14:20.40 also entered.

There are 21 athletes in the A, B and C grade races with 19 in the D grade and the mixed open race.

Entries for the women’s 5000m are also hugely impressive with 30 athletes competing across the A and the B races.

The women’s 5000m is equally impressive – across the A and the B race it has attracted 30 athletes – spearheaded by 1500m, mile, 3000m and 5000m national champion Laura Nagel, Hannah Miller national 10,000m, 10km, half marathon and marathon champion and Tokyo Olympian and 2021 national 1500m, mile and 5000m champion Camille Buscomb.

Nagel won the Night of 5’s race in March in 16:01.94 and has a best of 15:42.60 from 2013 in Boston and she will aim to go through 3k in 9:30 unless requested otherwise.

Miller also recorded her best of 15:41.28 in Boston in 2021. Buscomb, on her way back after maternity leave, holds the race record of 15:28.78 in 2015 and she also won the race in 2012, 2013 and 2018. Her best came at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha with a second best all-time New Zealand mark of 14:58.59.

Katrina Andrew, the 2019 national 10km road champion, has a best 5000m best of 17:05.21, Chloe Browne 17:13.39, Katherine Camp, 2021 800m champion, 16:23.50, Maiya Christini, 2019 national cross country champion and 2019 winner in 16:27.91. Also entered are recently minted New Zealand Secondary Schools senior girls 3000m gold medallist Bella Earl, Anneke Grogan national steeplechase champion 16:11.92, Emily Roughan 16:22.76 and 2021 national cross country champion Kerry White add to the quality of the line-up.

The field event will feature the pole vault with Olivia McTaggart, Commonwealth bronze medallist Imogen Ayris and Hannah Adye in the women’s and James Steyn, Nick Southgate and Ettiene Du Preez in the men’s event.

Alison Andrews-Paul makes a welcome return to racing in New Zealand in the 800m against national champion Holly Manning and Macey Hilton. Luke Hitchcock, Dominic Devlin, Mikael Starzynski, James Ford and Thomas Cowan will go to their marks in the men’s 800m.

The women’s handicap 100m will feature Georgia Hulls, Rosie Elliott, Symone Tafunai and Livvy Wilson.

Joseph Millar, the national 200m record holder, Hamish Gill and Zachary Saunders are down for the men’s 100m.

By Murray McKinnon

For Night of 5s start lists go here

For Night of 5s results go here

To follow the livestream go here