{"id":1040007426,"date":"2025-09-10T03:18:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T02:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/?p=1040007426"},"modified":"2025-09-10T08:44:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T07:44:52","slug":"izzi-batt-doyle-the-10000m-is-going-to-be-more-of-a-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/izzi-batt-doyle-the-10000m-is-going-to-be-more-of-a-game-1040007426\/","title":{"rendered":"Izzi Batt-Doyle: \"The 10,000m is going to be more of a game\""},"content":{"rendered":"

The Australian talks through her expectations over 25 laps in Tokyo, setting multiple road national records in Japan and the importance of a sound mind in a sound body<\/p>\n

Izzi Batt-Doyle cannot wait to represent Australia at a major global championships once again.<\/p>\n

This weekend [September 13] the 29-year-old will don her nation\u2019s green and gold colours as she competes over 10,000m at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.<\/p>\n

Batt-Doyle is a regular to Japan \u2013 this will be her 11th time visiting \u2013 and has fond memories of previous trips.<\/p>

\n
\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n

The delayed Tokyo Olympics was the first time that Batt-Doyle ran for Australia on the world stage and, more recently, she\u2019s set two national records in the country.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Izzi Batt-Doyle (Albin Durand)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Back in February, Batt-Doyle broke Kerryn McCann\u2019s 25-year-old Australian half-marathon mark of 67:48 with 67:17 at the Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon.<\/p>\n

Two months later she then took apart her own national 10km record of 31:12 with 30:44 at this ASICS Tokyo Speed Race.<\/p>\n

Batt-Doyle qualified for both the marathon and the 10,000m for the upcoming World Athletics Championships but decided to do the latter as she wants to compete over 26.2 miles in Valencia in December.<\/p>

\n
\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n

At last year\u2019s edition, Batt-Doyle ran her personal best of 2:22:59 and has eyes on Sinead Diver\u2019s national record of 2:21:34 later this year.<\/p>\n

For now though, Tokyo is the priority. Ahead of her 10,000m, AW caught up with the ASICS athlete on her definition of success over 25 laps, balancing up the distances and the importance of a sound mind in a sound body.<\/p>\n

\"\"
ASICS Tokyo Speed Race (Albin Durand)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Why the 10,000m over the marathon and how are you feeling for it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think the big decision for me is that I\u2019ve got a decade ahead of running marathons ahead of me. That's where my future is going to go. I can see myself running the marathon at the 2027 World Athletics Championships and LA 2028 Olympics.<\/p>

\n
\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n

When I saw I was able to qualify in the rankings for the 10,000m, I just decided I'd like to do that this time around, as I\u2019d like the opportunity to compete in Tokyo in the National Stadium with a full crowd. The 10,000m is also a straight final so I felt like I had to grab the opportunity with both hands.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve competed in the 5000m at both Olympics (Tokyo and Paris) but in a championships it can be more like a 1500m or 3000m race. So the 10,000m plays into my strength in that sense as well. It\u2019s also pretty cool to be in a race where medals are up for grabs.<\/p>\n

Given you have set 10km and half-marathon records in Japan this season, how excited are you to compete in the country again?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always really enjoyed my time in Japan. The Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon was a mixed race so I had the opportunity to chase down the guys in the last half of it, which really helped me.<\/p>\n

I finished third but to run 67:17 was something that, yeah, even I didn't expect to happen. It was a record that had stood for a quarter of a century so it was a big one to break. It meant a lot to me, and probably I think it's my best race to date.<\/p>\n

The 10km [30:44] really played into my hands as it was a flat course, had white lights and male pacemakers. It was pretty perfect and I felt like I had to grab the opportunity with both hands.<\/p>\n

Going forward, I\u2019d love to break 67 minutes in the half-marathon and I think it\u2019s the perfect distance as it\u2019s a blend of both strength and speed.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Izzi Batt-Doyle (Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How are you feeling for the 10,000m and what\u2019s the definition of success for you in Tokyo?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I hope it\u2019s not a race that\u2019s too hard where I\u2019m out the equation early on. Running a 10,000m is hard because there are women who are two minutes faster than me and would lap me in an all-out fast race.<\/p>\n

But I think with the hot and humid conditions it\u2019s going to be more of a game and just staying composed in the race. If I could just be competitive, of course, I'd love a top eight finish. But really it's more of a feeling, I think, knowing that you\u2019ve given your all.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re doing the Valencia Marathon once again this December \u2013\u00a0what\u2019s the target over 26.2 miles?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t done a marathon since March [2:23:29 in Nagoya] so I\u2019m really excited to do one again soon. Obviously, the Australian record of 2:21:34 is something I'd like to target but, even more than that, I'd love to be looking towards the 2:20 barrier.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a big ask but we've seen the likes of Emily Sisson and Keira D\u2019Amato from the US in recent years do it. I'd like to put myself in that mix. Whether or not that's something that I feel is within reach at the end of this year or in the coming years.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Izzi Batt-Doyle (Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What does Sound Mind, Sound Body mean to you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Being an ASICS athlete, there's a big focus on the mental as well as the physical side. I actually have a psychology degree, so I think it really ties in well! I really believe that when you are in a sound place in your mind, your body follows and vice versa. So it\u2019s awesome that ASICS is really involved in promoting that lifestyle.<\/p>\n

I really have to work on my mindset in the marathon for example so that when you get those tough moments and you're 28km into the race with no one else around you, what do you think about?<\/p>\n

How do you get yourself going? What is your why? Why are you pushing yourself every inch further? Like I don't meditate or work with a sports psychologist every week necessarily but I do find that the mindset stuff is naturally something that I think about in day-to-day life.<\/p>\n

For example, last year\u2019s Valencia Marathon was really hard for me because I'd had a close friend pass away the week that I left Australia. And I was really unsure whether I could make the start line. I was pretty upset, you know, in the days and weeks leading in. The fact that I felt I was doing it for someone definitely spurred me on a lot.<\/p>\n

Finally, where does your inner strength and motivation come from?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My mum. She\u2019s 66 and finished her sixth marathon major in Tokyo earlier this year. New York is coming up now and she\u2019s training for that. I actually coach her and say she\u2019s my \u2018star athlete\u2019.<\/p>\n

The people who are big motivators for me are those who are training for races and fit it in around kids, life, work and everything else. I\u2019m just training every day and working towards goals but I'm fortunate to be doing it as a job.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Australian talks through her expectations over 25 laps in Tokyo, setting multiple road national records in Japan and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":579563,"featured_media":1040007427,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","inline_featured_image":false,"wds_primary_category":12,"wds_primary_championship":0,"wds_primary_country":0,"wds_primary_sports":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,12],"tags":[],"championship":[],"country":[36615],"sports":[35990],"class_list":["post-1040007426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","category-news","country-australia","sports-10000m"],"acf":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/izzi-batt-doyle-the-10000m-is-going-to-be-more-of-a-game-1040007426\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Izzi Batt-Doyle: \"The 10,000m is going to be more of a game\"","url":"http:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/izzi-batt-doyle-the-10000m-is-going-to-be-more-of-a-game-1040007426\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/news\/izzi-batt-doyle-the-10000m-is-going-to-be-more-of-a-game-1040007426\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Izzi-Batt-Doyle-200x300.jpg","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Izzi-Batt-Doyle-scaled.jpg"},"articleSection":"Interviews","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tim Adams"}],"creator":["Tim Adams"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Athletics Weekly","logo":"https:\/\/athleticsweekly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AW-logo_with-website.png"},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2025-09-10T02:18:00Z","datePublished":"2025-09-10T02:18:00Z","dateModified":"2025-09-10T07:44:52Z"},"rendered":"