Ready To Go | Declan Tingay's Road to Tokyo

Declan Tingay will make his Olympic debut in Tokyo in the 20km Race Walk, joining a long and illustrious group of Australian Walkers.

Having previously represented Australia at the World Junior Championships, Race Walking World Cup and World University Games, Tingay says he is “ready to go” in Tokyo.

Starting his career as a Little Athlete in the Under 6’s in Victoria, Tingay’s lifelong connection with the sport has only grown stronger as he has progressed. Moving across to WA at 10, his decision to focus on the walks a few years later has proven to be a momentous one.

For four straight years at the Australian Junior Track and Field Championships, Tingay was a constant on the podium, including Gold in 2017 and 2018. It was at the end of 2018 when Declan started to recognise that the Olympics were on the horizon.

“It was in my mind in the later stages of 2018. At the end of World Juniors, I knew I was at a level where I could be competitive against my peers internationally.”

Tingay’s optimism was well-founded. Placing fourth in the 10km Race Walk, Tingay broke the Australian under 20 record with his time of 40:49.72, formerly held by Rio Olympic bronze medallist Dane Bird-Smith.

However, an injury-plagued 2019 shifted his mindset significantly. 

“2019 wasn’t a good year for me, I was injured most of the time and so coming into 2020 I was not fit, and still kind of injured”

“I wrote myself off at the beginning of 2020. I was questioning what I was doing in this sport if I wasn’t going to be making teams. Not an amazing place to be at.”

When news broke about the COVID pandemic and its subsequential impact on Tokyo 2020, Tingay seized the opportunity.

“To have the whole year cancelled, I had time to recover and rehab myself and become fit and healthy again. I had the time to get back to full health mentally and physically.”

“The downtime in 2020 was my motivator, it helped me come back to how I felt in 2018. I spent a lot of 2020 at work, cross-training, not dedicating all my time to walking. Which helped me mentally recharge and come back this year ready to go.”

Since then his form has been undeniable. Tingay won a bronze medal at the 2021 Oceania Race Walking Championships in Melbourne in March with a personal best time of 1:24.27, pushing him not only into the Australian All-Time top-20 but also securing him a spot in Tokyo.

“[Tokyo] represents the next step in my career. To go from a junior walker making teams to a young senior making teams, this represents my emergence onto the senior ranks.”

Competing in Australia’s most successful Athletics discipline at the Olympics, seven Olympic medals across the 50km and 20km Race Walk event, Tingay is ready to stake his claim.

“Australian walkers definitely hold themselves to a high standard. We like to try and keep that high-performance culture alive. I feel I can add to that culture.”

“I am feeling good, ready to go. I am feeling confident.”

Declan Tingay will line up for the Men’s 20km Race Walk final alongside fellow Australian Kyle Swan on Thursday 5^th August from 3:30 pm WST.

To watch all the athletics action, head to Channel 7’s coverage of the Tokyo Olympics and follow Athletics West and Athletics Australia’s social media channels.

By David Smith, Athletics West

Photo Credit: Michael Angus (Athletics Australia)