Run With It

45: Jack Anstey - Gold Medal Highs, Selection Lows & Overpriced Coffee

It’s been a season of contrasts for Australian middle distance runner Jack Anstey – from a World Cross gold medal, to the disappointment of missing a major championship team. Dialling in from Flagstaff, Jack shares his unforgettable experience at the World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, including the pressure of a late call-up, and what it was like racing with Olli Hoare, Linden Hall and Jess Hull in that winning 4 x 2k relay team. Jack also speaks candidly about missing selection for the World Indoor Championships, despite meeting the World Athletics qualifying standards and being within the quota. He articulates the impact of Australia’s selection policies on athletes, and why he chose to speak out publicly. We also chat about growing up in Alice Springs, Jack’s late start (and rapid rise!) in the sport, and his set up in Flagstaff training with Under Armour’s pro team, Dark Sky Distance. Plus: World Cross medal show-and-tell, overpriced coffees, bike training, book recommendations, and what’s next for Jack. -- Jack Anstey is an Australian middle-distance runner based in Flagstaff, Arizona where he runs with the Under Armour pro team, Dark Sky Distance. He recently won a World Athletics Cross Championships gold medal in the 4 x 2k relay in Tallahassee, Florida, as part of a star-studded team comprising Olli Hoare, Linden Hall and Jess Hull. Jack holds the 1000m short track national record (2:16.95) which he ran in Boston 2024. He also represented Australia at the 2022 World Indoor Championships in Belgrade and again in the road mile in Riga in 2023 where he came 10th (3:58.30). Jack went to college at Illinois State University, and is now completing a teaching degree in Australia. -- Subscribe to Run With It wherever you get your podcasts, so you don’t miss a thing! -- Follow us on Instagram: @jackanstey @runwithit.pod @elisebeacom -- Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom Graphic design by Kate Scheer

44: Bendere Oboya - Finding Her Voice & Running For More Than Herself

Bendere Oboya joins Elise to talk about her transition from Olympic 400m runner to 800m athlete, and why she is now building something even bigger than her own career. Bendere reflects on representing Australia at the Tokyo Olympics, the Commonwealth Games and World Championships, the rapid rise of her early career, and the courage it took to step away from the 400m and back herself in a new event. She tells us about changing coaches, briefly retiring from the sport, and finding new purpose in athletics. We also dive into Bendere’s upbringing after moving to Australia from Ethiopia as a young child, the sacrifices her family made, and how those experiences have shaped her drive to create more opportunities for others. At the heart of this episode is the Oboya Foundation, Bendere’s new initiative aimed at removing financial barriers to sport and creating safe, inclusive spaces for young people to belong, move and dream bigger. She shares why representation matters so deeply, how the foundation is already taking shape, and why this work has given her own running a whole new meaning. Plus: Returning to the 400m for the domestic season, life in Melbourne, fashion off the track, embracing her voice, and running with joy in 2026. -- Bendere Oboya is an Australian 400m and 800m runner. She has represented Australia in the 400m at the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and World Championships, and holds a national record in the 600m. In recent years, Bendere has switched her focus to the 800m event. She trains with On Athletics Club Oceania and is coached by Craig Mottram. Bendere has recently launched the Oboya Foundation, which provides free weekly athletics coaching, with additional needs-based financial support available to cover competition fees, uniforms and essential equipment for families facing financial, cultural or social barriers.  Oboya Foundation: https://oboyafoundation.org/ [https://oboyafoundation.org/] Run Girl documentary (stream on SBS): https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/run-girl/2052085315730 [https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/run-girl/2052085315730] The Good Gratitude: https://www.thegoodgratitude.com/shop [https://www.thegoodgratitude.com/shop] -- Subscribe to Run With It wherever you get your podcasts, so you don’t miss a thing! -- Follow us on Instagram: @_bendere @runwithit.pod @elisebeacom -- Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom Graphic design by Kate Scheer

43: Phil Sesemann – Incremental Gains, Mileage Mutts & Nesquik

Phil Sesemann joins Elise to break down a big couple of years of marathoning – two 2:07 performances (Amsterdam and Valencia), Olympic reflections, and the steady, linear progression that’s taken him from 2:12 to the fifth fastest Brit of all time. For Phil and his coach Andrew Henderson, marathon progress is built block by block (never biting off too much), with incremental gains shaping Phil’s professional career. He talks about “hedging his bets” by racing marathons close together to maximise the chance of perfect weather, and the factors that separated a smooth Amsterdam from a tougher Valencia. We get into 140-mile weeks (that’s 225km!), “easy runs with purpose”, and his go-to fuelling ritual for healthy bones – a pint of chocolate Nesquik after every run. Phil shares how training with athletes like Emile Cairess has improved his own self-belief and lifted his ceiling. Plus: life as a new dad (fewer training camps and more disrupted sleep), the legendary Mileage Mutts (his dogs Eliud Kipchoge and Haile Gebrselassie), moving away from a career in medicine, his commitment to an Olympic tattoo, and what a “best ever performance” at the forthcoming London Marathon really means. -- Phil Sesemann is a professional runner sponsored by ASICS and based in Leeds, UK. He ran 2:07:11 at Valencia in 2025, which is the 5th fastest time ever by a British athlete. He represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the Paris Olympics in 2024. -- Subscribe to Run With It wherever you get your podcasts, so you don’t miss a thing! -- Follow us on Instagram: @philsesemann @runwithit.pod @elisebeacom Check out Phil's YouTube channel: youtube.com/@phil_sesemann -- Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Sole Sisters - 23: Winter Olympics, Bone Stress Shade & Marathon Szn

Do you know how to twizzle?! Neither do we! Alice and Elise settle in for another chat, with AB sporting a numb lip, and Elise coming off a filthy cold and a truly rude crook neck. Neither have been doing anything dangerous on the snow or ice, but there’s a heap of Winter Olympics chat – the injuries, the drama, the sizzle, the Aussie pride. It’s a very surface-level summary focusing on memes, ill-placed declarations of love, violent crashes and why on earth someone created a sport that involves skis AND guns. AB and EB compare the injuries on the slopes to the injuries we face on the roads/trails/track. There is a lot of chat about the advent of bone stress injuries and the online commentary surrounding them. Rest, sleep, nutrition and load management are all your best friends here, and the social media comparison trap is NOT IT. There’s also hype building as we come into marathon season, with loads of Australians lining up at Osaka, Tokyo, Boston and London! Truly love this time of year! Make sure you come along to our free International Women’s Day event with Love the Run next Sunday 1 March at Collingwood Athletics Track from 3:30pm. There’ll be a run, some pilates and a panel discussion with Australian race walker and Olympic medallist Jemima Montag, four-time World Championships marathoner, Sarah Klein, and the one and only Alice Baquie, with Elise Beacom on the mic. Can’t wait to see you there! Register here: https://www.lovetherun.com.au/iwdrunning -- Subscribe to Run With It wherever you get your podcasts, so you don’t miss a thing! -- Follow us on Instagram: @runwithit.pod @alicebaquie @elisebeacom -- Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Sole Sisters - 22: Beer Miles, the Running Ick & Plans for 2026

Alice and Elise are back for a very 2026 catch-up, starting with Elise’s birthday done properly: Torquay Run Club, some casual golfing, and a beer mile relay (with Marty’s sculling skills doing the heavy lifting). There’s also zucchini cake (thank you, Jess Stenson) and a rogue veggie-patch “zucchini vandal.” Alice talks about getting the “running ick” post-Valencia, what it feels like when motivation drops off, and why a blood test can be a game-changer. She takes us inside training camp life at Falls Creek and how it helped her re-find her mojo. Elise is building back into a marathon block (which one?!). Alice reveals her 2026 goals (water… and being early), and they announce an upcoming International Women’s Day event on Sunday 1 March at Collingwood Athletics Track - run + pilates + panel (guest speakers to be revealed). Save the date! Peace, love, and light. -- Subscribe to Run With It wherever you get your podcasts, so you don’t miss a thing! -- Follow us on Instagram: @runwithit.pod @alicebaquie @elisebeacom -- Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom Graphic design by Kate Scheer