Australian middle-distance runner Olli Hoare discusses the mental and emotional toll of social media abuse following his disappointing performance at the Paris Olympics. He reflects on the challenges of 2023, including injuries and mental health struggles, and how these impacted his preparation for the games. Hoare also shares his journey of recovery and resilience, emphasizing the importance of seeking support and learning from adversity.
When Olli Hoare failed to progress from the first heat in the 1,500 metres at the Paris Olympics , the abuse started. He received 'horrible' comments and messages on Instagram and reluctantly spent time deleting them before his repechage — where he also missed out. 'I felt tired but ready to go mentally and physically, just wanted to give it the best possible shot, and didn't run well,' he told ABC Sport from his training base in Boulder, Colorado.
'When you're at a very low point mentally or physically, it's very easy for things to seep through that usually don't seep through, and that sort of stuff got to me quite a bit. 'The negative feedback was mostly from people that weren't track and field fans. It was mostly the general public. 'I think why it was so impactful to me personally, because it was Australian people that were saying these things.'But a challenging 2023 on and off the track, including mental health struggles, and serious injuries, hampered his preparation for Paris. After making the 1,500m final at his first Games in Tokyo, falling short in Paris was already hard to stomach, compounded by the social media abuse.Struggles with his mental health almost drove Australian running champion Olli Hoare to retire. Now, he's 'crushing workouts' in an Olympic year, ready to launch assaults on Adelaide and Paris. The 27-year-old took a break from social media in the aftermath of the Games, seeking support from Athletics Australia, the Australian Olympic Committee, World Athletics, and his family. Now, months later, Hoare is able to take the positives from what was a 'very, very challenging Olympics'.'And then going into Olympic Games, being a Commonwealth Games champion and having a reputation of running very well, and executing races more at that level — when you don't do that, you get repercussions from it, which is just a part of the sport. 'And that's something I learnt I have to deal with, and it's given me a thicker spine .
Olli Hoare Athletics Olympics Social Media Abuse Mental Health
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