Batt-Doyle's Half Marathon debut culminates in a win on the MCG

SA Olympian Isobel Batt-Doyle had never run a Half Marathon or stepped onto the MCG turf before, but she ticked off both items with a win at the Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival last Sunday (December 12, 2021). 

After running the 5000m in the Tokyo Olympic Games in July, Batt-Doyle turned her attention to completing a debut Half Marathon, and finished the event in a Course Record time of 1:10:15.

The Flinders Athletic Club runner won the Women's Half Marathon ahead of Leanne Pompeani (1:10:40) and fellow South Australian, Hills Districts Athletics Club's Jessica Stenson (1:12:45).

Batt-Doyle's partner Riley Cocks also made his Marathon debut in Melbourne on Sunday, finishing fourth in the Men's Marathon event in a time of 2:17:44, behind winner Brett Robinson (2:14:33), Thomas Do Canto (2:14:41) and Edward Goddard (2:15:13).

Images by Ola Wicik

Batt-Doyle said she was thrilled to get the win, which was accompanied with an unexpected Course Record.

"I am so happy to get the win," she said.

"This is a big deal for me, and getting the Course Record wasn't even something that was on my radar so I am stoked with that.

"To come across the line and realise that I had broken Lisa Weightman's course record (from 2015) by around 45 seconds was something I was very happy to find out.

"I am happy with the time, especially on that course as it's not known as the fastest course to run a Half or Full Marathon, so we were lucky with the conditions.

Batt-Doyle said she had great respect for her rivals heading into the race.

"Having not had a lot of road races to run in the last couple of years, this Melbourne Marathon was probably the deepest field ever," she said. 

"There was about 20 Olympians take part which led to strong fields across all distances (Marathon, Half Marathon, 10km and 5km) in both the Men's and Women's events, so to get the win means a lot.

"I knew Jess (Stenson) would be a tough competitor, having done many Half and Full Marathons - she had the most expertise in the field.

"Leanne (Pompeani) might not be as well known on the running scene, but she made the World Half Marathon Championship team last year and she is a really good runner, who has previously run 71-minutes.

"We were running together for the first 10km - Jess was pushing the pace for the first 5-10km and there was a good pack running with us.

"By the 10km mark I was the one pushing the pace and I felt that every moment after the 10km mark I was getting away from them.

"Thirteen kilometres in, I managed to get some space on Leanne, who was right with me up until that point and for the last 7km I was running on my own and trying to latch onto some of the male competitors here and there.

"In the back stages of the race I was running solo, trying to keep my pace up and will my way through to the finish.

"Coming into the MCG was special, and I tried to kick it in during that last lap with the crowd watching."

Given that it was her first Half Marathon, Batt-Doyle said she wasn't entirely sure of her goals heading into the race. 

"It's tough to know when you are heading into a new event," she said.

"I had done the work, in terms of putting in weeks of training for this race and over the past year or so I have laid a good foundation to prepare myself for a Half Marathon. 

"Based on my threshold sessions, I thought I would be around that 3:20 pace, which is a tick over 70 minutes, but I wasn't sure about how it would play out on the day in race conditions."

Despite her efforts to qualify for the Olympics on the track, Batt-Doyle always believed that she would make a solid long distance runner.  

"I have wanted to run a Half Marathon for a number of years," she said. 

"My training and engine has always reflected that I would be good at the longer events, so when the opportunity presented itself - with nothing else on the calendar in the December period - it was a good opportunity to get involved with such a cool event - the Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival and test myself."

Batt-Doyle said that her initial plan included an overseas Half Marathon after her Olympic campaign, but she decided to return home to Australia (after being abroad for several months in the lead up to the Olympics). 

"I am pleased to tick one off and be happy about the result, and Riley (Cocks) feels the same about his Marathon as it has been a long term goal for him," she said. 

"He (Riley) has dealt with some nasty injuries, and he was originally planning to run the Gold Coast Marathon which didn't happen, so for him to run a Marathon and run a great time is a great start for him.

"With a bigger training base and a bit of race day tweaking he will reduce that time by a few minutes." 

Batt-Doyle plans to return to the track in January, turning her preparation towards the Zatopek 10km Championship (Australia Day, 2022). 

Her return to running from her post-Olympic break has been successful, with wins at the 5km Noosa Bolt in October, last month's SA 5000m Championships and now the Melbourne Half Marathon.