The fastest meet on Austrian soil - Track Night Vienna brings swift racing and festival vibes to the capital
Track Night Vienna, the third installment of On’s global running series, On Track Nights, took place at the LAZ athletics stadium in Vienna’s famous Prater Park. The event, billed at the fastest meet on Austrian, soil did not disappoint.
Vienna, Austria, June 18, 2023 - The On Track Nights series made its stop in the Austrian capital of Vienna at a spectacular venue In the shadow of the prestigious Ernst-Happel-Stadion. A day chock-full of racing action and festival vibes, Track Night Vienna offered 20 races and was intersected by different music of sports performances that brought out the festival character of the event.
Freerunner Stefan Dollinger and his crew and mountain biker Gabriel Wibmer amazed spectators with their tricks on the finish straight while music acts Elly & Rose May, Eli Preiss, and Pajel invited visitors and participants alike to party in front of the event stage. Different food trucks, a T-shirt customization station, and a children’s play area offered plenty of non-racing entertainment to the approximately 2000 spectators who enjoyed a summery day in the green of Vienna’s Prater Park.
On the sportive side, the event showcased racing at its best. Not only did the meet offer the fastest women’s 5000m and 3000m steeplechase events on Austrian soil ever but also the men’s 800m and men’s 3000m steeplechase were the fastest races of their kind in Austria in 8 and 20 years respectively. A total of 111 athletes recorded new personal best times throughout the day and four times, the standard for the World Championships in Budapest in August was met. Six further athletes achieved the standard needed for the European Championships in 2024, 6 for the U23 European Championship, and 9 for the U20 European Championship Standard. In addition, Austrian athletes Lotte Luise Sailer, Eva Hagen, and Kevin Kamenschak delighted the crowds with new Austrian records.
Hobby runners and the stars of track share the start line
The first four races of the day were mixed 5000m races with pacing ranging from 25:00 to 17:30 minutes that offered the chance for hobby runners to experience the Track Night Vienna feeling in a group, regardless of gender. Many clubs and charities used the opportunity to be part of the program and runners Zaman Hajati and Luzia Meister, Deepak Sharma and Lea Johow, Daniele Tabacchi and Elena Koller, as well as Carla Meister, Andro Winter were the happy winners.
Afterward, the action got consecutively faster: Niklas Lienau won the first of club-level 5000m events in 15:43.01. His performance was followed by wins of Germany’s Svenja Ojstersek (16:37.42), Belgium’s Siebe de Winter (15:23,04), and France’s Maël Gouyette (13:36.24), and local hero Lars Demuth (14:32.67). Tuscany Camp’s Therence Bizona claimed third place in a new personal best of 13:39.47, and Jonathan Hofer was thirteenth with a new personal best of 14:05.84.
In between the longer races, two shorter 1000m National League races changed up the rhythm on the track. Slovakian Peter Kovac (2:29,18) and Slovenian Tja Tanja Zivko (2:49,29) were the winners.
Further on in the program. the distances got even shorter. Five 800m races were on schedule and also here, the performances did not disappoint, and the winners showcased the diversity of participating nations. On the men’s side, Elias Lachkovics (1:49,92) from Austria, Czech Republic’s Daniel Kotyza (1:47,34) and Kenyan Koitatoi Kidali (1:45,25) crossed the finish line first. The two women’s victories went to Hana Grobovsek (2:04,69) from Slovenia and Canadian Addy Townsend (2:02,40). OAC Oceania’s Tess Kirsopp-Cole took third place in 2:02.59, and Julia Cherot was sixth with a season-best of 2:04.69.
In good Track Nights Vienna tradition, the 3000m steeplechase featured prominently as the second-but-last event of the night. Briton William Battershill and American Gabrielle Jennings were the winners in 8:23,31 and 9:28,19 respectively. New On athlete Olivia Gürth delivered an in-form performance and claimed second place in a new personal best of 9:29.99, improving her old time by almost 12 seconds. Rihab Dhahri Dhari of the Tuscany Camp also had a strong race by finishing in fourth place in a new PB of 9:46.23. Fellow On athlete Frederik Ruppert claimed third place in the men’s A race in 8:29.02.
Four World Championship standards and one repeat winner
The women’s elite-level 5000m race turned into a race-long battle between Ethiopia’s Yalemget Yaregal and Tuscany Camp athlete Francine Niyomukunzi. In the end, both women stormed to new personal bests of 14:51.14 and 14:53.02 respectively, and delivered World Standard performances. On’s Verity Ockenden finished tenth in 15:30.30 while OAC Oceania’s Maudie Skyring also ran to a new personal best of 15:48.29.
In the final 5000m race of the evening, Night of the 10,000m PBs winner Paul Chelimo returned to On Track Nights and took his second victory in the series. 13:03.12 meant a new season best and World Standard for the American who had dueled with On Athlete Egide Ntakarutimana for the entire duration of the race. Both men shared a heartfelt embrace after finishing just heartbeats apart. After impressively racing also in Paris last weekend, Ntakarutimana was rewarded a new personal best of 13:03.61 and confirmed his World Standard performance yet again.
Among the On athletes on start, Dominic Lobalu finished seventh with a season-best of 13:24.28 even if he had to let go of the leaders towards the end of the race. Jamal Abdelmaji Eisa Mohammed was 18th in 13:40,19, and Konstantin Wedel claimed position 22nd (13:46,99). As the only drop of bitterness in an otherwise magnificent day local hero and OAC Europe athlete Sebastian Frey unfortunately had a difficult day race at his much-awaited home competition and finished last in 14:10.40.
Still, Race Director Christoph Sander was overjoyed with his event: "It was incredible. I think we more than made good on our promise - it was a track party for everyone with great shows, acts and worldclass performances. The fastest times on Austrian soil ever in the final 5000m races was the famous cherry on top. I would like to thank everyone who watched, in person or on the livestream and of course also the DSG Wien and all partners who helped to make this possible."
You can find all results here.
Next up: Melbourne
With the event in Vienna, the On Track Night series concludes in Europe and will next more to down under where a fifth event is on schedule later in the year in Melbourne. Further details are going to be unveiled soon.
High-res images available for download here (photo credit: Theo Mclnnes & Sofieke van Bilsen/ On).
About On
On was born in the Swiss Alps with one goal: to revolutionize the sensation of running by empowering all to run on clouds. Thirteen years after market launch, On delivers industry-disrupting innovation in premium footwear, apparel, and accessories for high-performance running, outdoor, and all-day activities. Fueled by customer recommendation, On’s award-winning CloudTec® innovation, purposeful design, and groundbreaking strides in sportswear’s circular economy have attracted a fast-growing global fan base — inspiring humans to explore, discover and dream on.
On is present in more than 60 countries globally and engages with a digital community on www.on.com.