Tara Murray
A whirlwind trip home to Australia proved to be a winning one for Amy Cashin.
The Western Athletics star was home for just seven days to compete at the Australian National Championships in the 3000 metre steeplechase.
Cashin, who is based in America, proved too slick in the final to run away from the pack and claim her second national title.
Cashin said she was stoked and relieved to have raced well.
“2023 was a tough year for me mentally and physically, and so to be able to feel like myself again running was something I had worked really hard on,” she said.
“Just felt extra special to have felt that way at nationals and winning was the cherry on top.”
For Cashin it was her first steeple race of the year, with America in a different time of the season.
She said being the first race of the year can always be daunting.
“My fitness has been really good, however due to a minor hamstring injury in Feb, I had been very limited in my hurdling and water barriers,” she said.
“I had a few races indoors which showed me I was in a better place compared to last year, and all around I was just happier which I think made a huge difference.”
The trip was extra special for Cashin with her brother Liam Cashin, claiming bronze in the men’s steeplechase.
Amy said she’s super proud of her brother,
“He has been working hard and it’s paying off for him. I think over the next few years we will continue to see him improve and emerge as one of Australia’s top male steeplers making some Aussie teams.”
With a national title under her belt, Cashin is focused on her big goal for this year, making the Olympic team.
She said she doesn’t have the time standard at the moment, however she is in a position to qualify in the points.
“My plan though is to get in a few fast steeples and run the standard which is 9.23,” she said.
“My PB [personal best] is 9.21, so I know I am capable of it, it’s just about getting all the small things right.
“Tokyo was a whirlwind as I feel like it happened so quickly from when I qualified to when we raced.
“I feel like I learned a lot from it that I could utilise this year. My experience at two world champs and the Comm Games also would help me to be better prepared and thus I would hope that I could perform better than Tokyo.
“It would also be super special as I could have family and friends come this year, who unfortunately were unable to come to Tokyo due to the pandemic.”
Having been in college for 11 years, Cashin is set to finish her studies in the next six months.
She said she’s really enjoying it, but is ready to be done with school work.
“I did my undergrad in sport and exercise psychology, with minors in psychology and athletics coaching, my masters in clinical mental health counselling and currently doing my doctorate degree in coaching and teaching studies looking at burnout in high performance coaches,” she said.
“I am an assistant coach for the WVU track and XC team which I love and is a great experience, and I also work as a success coach- helping students to either adjust to college or helping students on academic probation to navigate college. I am not sure what is next, just taking it one step at a time.
