‘Felt a little bit like bullying in some sense’: Olympic runner Lauren Ryan hits out at Australian Athletics

Olympic distance runner Lauren Ryan has accused Australian Athletics of "bullying" and said the national federation had left her doubting if she deserved to be in the sport.

A private stoush between Ryan and Australian Athletics (AA) turned public when the reigning 10,000m national champion aired her grievances on Instagram this week, slamming the governing body ahead of Saturday night's Maurie Plant Meet, the leading event on the Australian track and field calendar.

Ryan, a US-based professional runner born and bred in Melbourne, accused AA of "not taking into consideration individual athletes' decisions" and hit out over a "lack of communication". She went harder when contacted by Wide World of Sports.

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Ryan and AA are at loggerheads because the athlete wanted to race in the 1500 metres in Melbourne on Saturday night whereas the governing body insisted it was 3000 metres or nothing.

AA invited Ryan to compete in the 3000m, she declined the offer, and AA refused to do a backflip and bow to her wish.

Given the status of the event and the calibre of athlete — Ryan is a two-time 10,000m national champion and a former 10,000m national record holder — her omission was notable.

Ryan's argument

The Melbourne product specialises in the 5000m and 10,000m. She wants to double in those events at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games this year.

But she wants to pick up some 1500m races in the meantime to improve her speed.

She wanted to run in the 1500m at the Maurie Plant Meet specifically — the only gold-level World Athletics event in the southern hemisphere — because of the plethora of world ranking points on offer and the superb competition she'd be up against. She doesn't currently have a 1500m world ranking and wants to get one.

She feels it's unfair that AA let athletes into the Maurie Plant 1500m field who have slower personal bests than hers in the metric mile. Ryan's personal best is 4:03.79.

AA's argument

For AA to satisfy World Athletics' gold-level requirements it needs high-level fields across the board, rather than only in one or two events.

In Georgia Hunter Bell, Linden Hall, Sarah Billings, Claudia Hollingsworth and Sophie O'Sullivan, AA had a 1500m field heaving with top-end talent. Abbey Caldwell was also entered to run but withdrew late. Hunter Bell won gold in the 1500m at the world athletics indoor championships in Poland last weekend.

The 1500m promised to be one of the top events of the night and it delivered in spades. At just 20 years of age, the prodigiously talented Hollingsworth was the toast of the field, powering into the lead on the back straight of the final lap and holding off Hunter Bell in a win from the top shelf. If Ryan was in the race and matched her personal best, 4:03.79, she would have finished equal fourth.

While Ryan doesn't have a 1500m world ranking, she is ranked 31st in the world in the 3000m, and it was in the best interests of AA to strengthen the 3000m field with the inclusion of Ryan. Rose Davies and Georgia Griffith are magnificent talents and they were locked in for the Maurie Plant 3000m, but across the board the 3000m field was weaker than AA's line-up for the 1500m.

AA has to satisfy both World Athletics and the official broadcaster, the Seven network, with the product it dishes up.

Additionally, AA was planning to, in part, use the Maurie Plant 3000m to pick its 5000m runners for the Commonwealth Games, and Ryan is aiming to run in the 5000m in Glasgow.

Ryan's 'bullying' claim

The Paris 2024 Olympian elaborated on her gripe with AA when contacted by Wide World of Sports.

"I just think regardless of the outcome of Maurie Plant, it's really disappointing that the governing body of our sport is ignoring communications of athletes and their wants and needs are not even being considered," Ryan said.

"It's very much what's gonna be the best thing for Athletics Australia to look like this great governing body and we have this amazing meet in Melbourne, but are they actually looking out for us athletes and what's in the best interests for our preparations in terms of nationals, which is in 10 days' time? Then we have the Commonwealth Games.

"AA has been forceful. It also has felt a little bit like bullying in some sense."

AA's top brass explained their reasoning to Ryan via emails.

However, the 28-year-old claimed some of her correspondence was "completely ignored".

Ryan's disillusionment

"I'm really fortunate to have a great team, coach, agent and support network over here in the US," she said from her training base in Flagstaff, Arizona.

"And I don't feel like AA are there to support me on the other end when they're our governing body, who should 100 per cent be there to uplift us ... And I especially don't feel that my place is valued within AA.

"I'm sitting here questioning whether I even deserve to be in this sport almost."

AA declined to comment when contacted by WWOS.