World Athletics U20 Championships – NSW Preview

4 August 2026

World Athletics U20 Championships – NSW Preview

Thursday morning 30 NSW athletes, members of the 73-strong Australian team, commence their 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships campaign. The XXI edition of the championships will be for the second occasion held at the famous Hayward Field, in Eugene, known as ‘Track Town USA’.

Four NSW athletes, competing at their second World U20s, are the leading prospects for the entire Australian team – Izzy Louison-Roe (high jump), Isaac Beacroft (5000m walk), Mason McGroder (long jump) and Daniel Williams (800m).

IZZY LOUISON-ROE
The silver medallist in the high jump two years ago, Izzy cleared 1.89m in Lima, but in the two years since has on eight occasions jumped higher, with a best of 1.95m. Also selected in the triple jump, she will likely not compete in the event which clashes with her high jump final.
She starts in Eugene as the world leader. Three other athletes has jumped into the 1.90s this year: Pooja (IND) 1.93m, Lilianna Batori (HUN) 1.92m and Ella Mikkola (FIN) 1.91m.

OLLY MCDONALD
Since the announcement of the team in May, NSW’s Olly McDonald has been added. He will have an opportunity to run on two 4x400m relays – the men’s and the mixed. It is a great reward for a talented all-round sprinter who chased selection all year after opening the summer season with an impressive time of 46.85.

DANIEL WILLIAMS
Celebrating his birthday yesterday, Daniel has already experienced Hayward Field competing at the Prefontaine Classic last month. Daniel placed 6th in the 800m in a time of 1:45.42 - the third fastest of his career. Ahead of Eugene, he is the world leader in the event, but in a tactical race many can be a danger. The second fastest junior in Australian history, Daniel competed in the 1500m at Lima in 2024.

ISAAC BEACROFT
Winning the Commonwealth Games title last week could not have been a better boost for Isaac ahead these championships. In 2024, he placed 4th in the 10,000m walk, but in Eugene the race distance has been reduced to 5000m. Isaac will face steep competition in Eugene, starting as seed number five. Ahead of him are athletes from race walking powerhouses – Italy, Mexico and Peru. The world leader is Indian Nitin Gupta with a time of 18:54.37, 33 seconds ahead of the field and 48 seconds faster that Isaac with his seed time of of 19:42.80. However, I suspect Isaac’s PB (19:23.96) is ready for revision.

MASON MCGRODER
The long jump bronze medallist from the 2024 World U20s, Mason may not have improved on his jump of 7.80m, but he certainly has progressed with six 7.70m plus jumps in the last two years. His season best of 7.77m sees his start in Eugene ranked twelfth. However, he is not far short of third seed at 7.89m. The top-two seeds, from India, have marks of 8.30m and 8.12m.

ZOE WOODS
Arriving in Eugene seeded 4th in the 5000m race walk, Zoe Woods is definitely one of our brightest hopes. With the experience of two previous Australian teams, Zoe could surprise with a podium finish.

Schedule and how to watch the championships
A timetable with the Australians listed is available in the media guide on the Australian Athletics World Athletics U20 Championships hub:
https://www.athletics.com.au/fan-hub/2026-world-athletics-u20-championships-hub/

The championships will be broadcast on 7Mate, 7two and 7+. The schedule is in the media guide.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW
Image: Izzy Louise-Roe on the dais at the 2024 World U20 Championships