Ashley Moloney is one of Australia’s most talented athletes with a bright future ahead. Already with a swag of achievements and records to his name, experts say that the best is still to come from the 23 year old Queenslander who hails from Logan.
Like many Australian kids, Ashley’s journey to a Bronze Medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, started at his local Little Athletics Club in Jimboomba. As a then 12 year old, Ashley caught the attention for his jumping, however it was his ability and will to win across a number of disciplines which led him down the path of Decathlon.
The Decathlon is the hardest and most physically demanding event for any track and field athlete. Consisting of ten disciplines each athlete competes in the 100m, Long Jump, Shot Put, High Jump, 400m, 110m Hurdles, Discus, Pole Vault, Javelin, and 1500m across two days. The overall winner of the Decathlon is awarded to the athlete that amasses the most points from each individual event. Currently the World Record stands at 9,126 points.
The past six years has seen Ashley take giant leaps in his career. In 2017, Ashley broke the U/18 Australian Record, before breaking the Australian Record and Oceania Record later that year with a points total of 8,492. In 2018, Ashley won Gold at the 2018 World Junior Championships, breaking the Competition Record and Oceania Junior Record with a points total of 8,190. At this stage, Ashley had put the World on notice as a star to look out for in the future.
However, it was his efforts in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics which caught the attention of the Australian public as we watched our finest athletes in action from our lounge rooms. Starting with a bang in the 100m, Ashley recorded a personal best time of 10.34 seconds, before equaling another personal best in the High Jump just three events later with a result of 2.11 metres. This saw Ashley finishing the first day of events on a high and setting him up at a medal tilt going into day two as he sat second overall. Again, Ashley jumped out of the blocks on day two, achieving a personal best in the 110 metre Hurdles with 14.08 seconds. In the medal hunt throughout day two, it all came down to the final event which was the 1500m which could see Ashley stake his name in the Australian record books as our first medalist in the Decathlon. With the entire nation behind him, Ashley needed to finish within 10 seconds of the winner of the race to ensure he finished on the podium. Rising to the challenge, Ashley ran a personal best time of 4 minutes 39 seconds as he willed his way to the finish line to claim Olympic Bronze. Incredibly, Ashley smashed his previous records, amassing a points total of 8,649 to further improve his Oceania and Australian record.
Post his excellent Olympic Games Ash backed it up with a positive 2022 campaign with a Bronze Medal in the Heptathlon at the World Indoor Championships, amassing 6,344 points which smashed the previous National and Oceania record of 5,949. With his sights set on the 2023 World Championships in Budapest which takes place in August, Ash will use this as the perfect platform leading into the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Outside of his hectic training commitments, Ashley enjoys getting out in his 4WD and going off road, as well as setting some down time aside to spend with friends, family and indulge in some fun with gaming to relax. Ash is a terrific Ambassador, having current and previous agreements with NIKE, Huawei, Wing Drone, and True Protein to name a few.
Achievements:
2022 World Indoor Championships - Bronze Meal
2020 Tokyo Olympics – Bronze Medal
2021 Australian Championship – 1st Place
2019 Oceania Championship – 1st Place
2018 U/20 World Championship – Gold Medal
Australian Decathlon Record Holder
Oceania Decathlon Record Holder