From the Seymour oval to the tracks of Tokyo

How Izzi chased her Olympic dream

It all started for Izzi at a City to Bay Fun Run in Adelaide aged nine, where she held her stepdad’s hand throughout the event. Fast forward to 2021 and Izzi was stood on the start line of a track in Tokyo, proudly wearing the green and gold, about to make her Olympic debut.

After graduating from Seymour in 2013, with countless school records to her name and having held the position of sports captain, Izzi took an opportunity to study and train in the USA. Spending five years at the University of Washington, earning herself a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Psychology, Izzi’s passion for running grew.

In 2016, Izzi began competing in the 5000 and 10000m events and a year later made her debut for Australia at the University games. Injuries would unfortunately hinder her progress for many months but highlighting the resilience and determination instilled within her, her comeback was soon on.

2020/21 was a breakthrough season for Izzi, as she ran significant personal bests over the 3000 and 5000m events. In late May a trip to Europe meant a chance to run an Olympic qualifier, where she earnt a qualifying time of 15:04.10.

Outside of her personal running, Izzi has set up her own business, RunAsOne, which offers running groups and coaching. As part of this venture, RunAsOne now has its own coffee shop with a running theme. Located at 38 Charles Street in Norwood, the café sells coffee, drinks, small eats and specialty running retail.

Izzi most recently competed at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, where she finished 8th in the 10000m with a time of 32:04:52, and was a late inclusion in the 5,000m, placing the highest of the three Australian runners.