Jeffrey Riseley

Fast Facts

Sport: Athletics
Event: 800m
Olympic History: Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020
Club: Knox Athletics Club
Year Born: 1986
State Born: VIC

About Jeff

After a five-year break from the national team, arguably Australia's best all-round middle-distance runner (800m/1500m) Jeff Riseley will go his fourth Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Like most it was an early start in the sport for Riseley, who started in under 8's at Dandenong Little Athletics. While he stopped competing in athletics once he hit U13's, Jeff returned to the sport in year 11 of high school. 

Just before his 19th birthday he ran 1:52.7 for 800m and over the next year (2006) while still in his teens he clocked impressive times of 1:49.0 for 800m and 3:48.91 for 1500m. Astonishingly within 12 months, he would run times of 1:46.35 (800m) and 3:38.56 (1500m) and compete at his first world championship team in 2007. 

Over the ensuring 14 years there have been so many highlights as he fluctuated between the 800m and 1500m events.

After running the 1500m at the Beijing Olympics, it was back to the 800m for London, Rio and now Tokyo. After his World Championships debut in 2007, he competed at the 2009, 2011 and 2015 championships. The Commonwealth Games has provided highs and lows for his career. One of his finest achievements was fifth in both the 800m and 1500m in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, with five races in five days. But in 2018 he was controversially not selected after placing third in the trials.

He has won six 800m or 1500m national titles including the double in 2015, the first to achieve the double in 24 years. Unfortunately, later in the year he had to withdraw from the 2015 Beijing World Championships due to requiring double plantar fascia surgery. 

His pursuit of selection for Tokyo started slowly in the summer of 2020/21 with two 1:51 + runs just out of Melbourne’s COVID lockdown. He was sub-1:47 by mid-summer, but was unable to make the national 800m final in April. In Europe, in June, he was in great form with two 1:45 runs, just outside the Olympic standard. Then on June 20, he nailed the standard running 1:44.85, his fastest time for nine years.

After a five-year break from the national team, arguably Australia best all-round middle-distance runner (800m/1500m) Jeff Riseley was selected for Tokyo – his fourth Olympic appearance. He joined elite company with Tokyo Team mates Dani Stevens and Lisa Weightman joining him in a club with just 11 members that have competed at four Olympics.

But he was not in Tokyo to make up the numbers, progressing to the semi-finals to place 21th overall. It was his highest place at his four Olympics and only once at his other global meets – the world championships, has he placed higher in his four appearances.

Off the track, Jeff has completed a double degree in exercise sports science and sports management at Deakin University and is currently studying a Masters in high performance sport at ACU.