World Championships team: Desleigh Owusu makes history

3 September 2025

World Championships team: Desleigh Owusu makes history

Today 28 NSW athletes were named on the Australian team for the Tokyo World Championships.

With the growing opportunities like the World Relays and World University Games teams, it is a very experience NSW group with just one NSW athletes making their senior Australian team debut in Tokyo. Five athletes have now banked more than 10 senior championships including Nicola Olyslagers, Eleanor Patterson, Brandon Starc, Rohan Browning and Jessica Hull.

The inform Nicola Olyslagers, who last week raised the Australian high jump record, heads a strong NSW contingent which are 32% of the national team.

UTS Norths triple jumper Desleigh Owusu makes history as the first Australian woman to compete at a global (Olympics/World Champs) in the women’s triple jump. With her selection, Australia have now competed in every event on the Olympic or world championships program. Previously Australia had four athletes go to the Commonwealth Games in the women’s triple jump.

Over the last two years, Desleigh has chased qualification for the world championships or Olympics via the World Athletics ranking points, but alas just fell short for Budapest and Paris.

Recently Desleigh spoke about missing the 2024 Olympics.

“Every athlete dreams of going to the Olympics. Having it be so close yet so far was a challenge I had to overcome this past year,” she said.

Determined to make the Tokyo World Championships, Desleigh’s 2025 campaign has been perfect. She has jumped big when it counted to score sufficient World Athletics points to qualify. She set two PBs at the Australian Championships 12.74m and 12.75m, ahead of winning the bronze medal at the World University Games in Germany in July where she bounded out to 13.86m, an 11cm PB and moved her to #3 Australian All-time. It was also the longest jump by an Aussie for 11-years.

Desleigh is one of three jumpers Andrew Murphy has put on the team, along with Connor Murphy and Sam Dale. Murphy also assists Brisbane-based Liam Adcock. Connor Murphy was NSW’s leading male athlete in 2024, making the Olympic triple jump final. He arrives in Tokyo in terrific form after a win at the World University Games where he defeated world number two, India’s Praveen Chithravel.

Joining Nicola Olyslagers in the high jump, is Eleanor Patterson – a 5-time global medal winner in the high jump, who won the world title in 2022.

Olympic medallists Jessica Hull and Rose Davies head a strong NSW line-up in the distance events. Compared to her dream 2024 campaign Jessica has had some challengers in 2025. Ill early in the year where she missed some planned races in the US, her Grand Slam Track racing program was cut short with the cancellation of the last event. Based largely in Europe over winter, Rose Davies has been in blistering form, breaking three national records. Two weeks after she placed 3rd in the national 5000m, she broke the Australian record clocking 14:40.83 in China. Then in June, she broke the Australian 10,000m record in Oslo (30:34.11) and in July took nine seconds off her national 5000m record clocking 14:31.45 in London in July.

After making her debut at the recent World University Games, Blue Mountains javelin thrower Lianna Davidson makes her global debut in Tokyo. Lianna was unlucky not to make the team for Paris, but assured her selection this year, starting with a monster throw of 63.79m in March.

Not just NSW, but Australia’s rising race-walking star Lizzy McMiller, will compete in the 20km walk. In July she won the World University Games in an equal championship record time. She is now the fourth best in Australin history.

NSW members of the Australian team for the 2025 World Championships

MEN (11)

100m: Joshua Azzopardi (Camden, Rob Marks), Rohan Browning (Sydney Uni, Jack Edwards)
800m: Luke Boyes (UTS Norths, Ben St Lawrence)
3000m Steeplechase: Ed Trippas (Bankstown, Craig Mottram)
High Jump: Brandon Starc (Parramatta, Alex Stewart)
Long Jump: Liam Adcock (self coached, Sydney Uni)

Triple Jump: Connor Murphy (Sydney Uni, Andrew Murphy)
Javelin Throw: Cameron McEntyre (Sydney Uni, Angus McEntyre)
4x100m Relay: Azzopardi, Christopher Ius (Sydney Uni, Andrew Murphy), Browning, Connor Bond (UTS Norths, Mick Zisti)
4x400m Relay: Luke van Ratingen (UTS Norths, Ben Liddy)

WOMEN (17)

100m: Ella Connolly (Epping, Andrew Murphy)
200m: Kristie Edwards (UTS Norths, Andrew Murphy)
800m: Jessica Hull (Bankstown, Simon Hull)
1500m: Hull
5000m: Rose Davies (Newcastle Runners, Scott Westcott)
100m Hurdles: Liz Clay (Sydney Uni, Andreas Behm)
400m Hurdles: Sarah Carli (Kembla Joggers, Abbie Taddeo)
High Jump: Nicola Olyslagers (Sydney Uni, Matt Horsnell), Eleanor Patterson (Bankstown, Fayazz Caan), Emily Whelan (New Lambton, Matt Horsnell)
Long Jump: Samantha Dale (Epping, Andrew Murphy), Delta Amidzovski (Athletics Wollongong, Becky Amidzovski)
Triple Jump: Desleigh Owusu (UTS Norths, Andrew Murphy)
Javelin Throw: Mackenzie Little (Sydney Uni, Angus McEntyre), Lianna Davidson (Asics Wests, Angus McEntyre)
20km Race Walk: Elizabeth McMillen (Sydney Pacific Manly Warringah, Jared Tallent)
35km Race Walk: Allanah Pitcher (Sydney Uni, Frank Overton)
4x100m Relay: Connolly, Edwards

4x400m Relay: Jemma Pollard (Newcastle Runners, Tim Eschebach), Carli

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW

Image: Desleigh Owusu (courtesy of David Tarbotton)

State membership explained – by David Tarbotton

The State athletes are attributed to is complex. I am not one to over claim, but the background to the issue.

-Institutes/Academies require athletes in their State using their services, to be registered with the local Member Association as the programs are jointly managed.

-Some athletes are registered in other States from where they are resident and others are registered in multiple States.

-Some athletes live across two States.

Specific to the 2025 World Champs team

-Eleanor Patterson has advised myself she wishes to remain registered in NSW

-Liz Clay, after growing up in NSW and spending a decade in Queensland is currently in the US, but evidence indicates she is reverting to her home State of NSW.

-Liam Adcock is resident in QLD but only registered in NSW. I expect QAS will require him to be listed at QLD in the future.

-Ed Trippas is resident in Victoria and using VIS facilities, similarly probably required to listed as a Victorian athlete.