Sport
4 January, 2024
A decade on, Riali repeats
Ivanhoe’s Nathan Riali pulled off a terrific win in the Men’s 70 m Final as a backmarker. Riali had to overtake all his rivals to score victory, and eventually finished with a time of 7.841 to win by 0.021 from Jerome Lugo, while Nicholas...
Ivanhoe’s Nathan Riali pulled off a terrific win in the Men’s 70 m Final as a backmarker.
Riali had to overtake all his rivals to score victory, and eventually finished with a time of 7.841 to win by 0.021 from Jerome Lugo, while Nicholas Antonino finished in third.
As a mark of how tight the race was, just 0.098 seconds separated the entire field.
None of that mattered to Riali, who felt the race opened up at just the right time.
“I thought at the halfway mark that I had a bit of work to do, and the last 20 metres opened up a bit and the race came together,” he said.
“I looked across as we finished and I had no idea I won — I knew I had finished in the top three, but I wasn’t confident I had won.”
This is Riali’s second win in Maryborough, having taken victory 10 years ago in the same event.
Riali also noted how tough it was to be a backmarker in such a short race.
“It’s tough being a backmarker in the 70 metres. The last time I won this event was in Maryborough about 10 years ago, so my body must like the track,” he said.
“If you miss one step or don’t get something right with the reaction, the race is over. Especially as a backmarker. Everything needs to go perfect to get the win.”
As Riali continues running, he noted that recovery has become more important in his career to ensure that he gets the best out of himself.
“I think recovery has become a lot more important as I have got older,” he said.
“I used to train seven sessions a week when I was 25-26, but I’ve now cut it down to three or four with two recovery sessions. And full-time work takes priority. But I am enjoying it a lot more, and the results are coming with that.”
That, Riali credits, is helped along by his coach and training partners.
“My coach, Matt Harris, is back in Camberwell and couldn’t make it up, and my training partners, Michael and Jackson, keep me very honest at training,” he said.