Athletics New Zealand is pleased to announced a 13-strong team for the 2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen, Denmark, the strongest contingent the country has ever assembled for these championships.
World steeplechase champion Geordie Beamish, 17-year-old national mile record holder Sam Ruthe, and two-time Olympian Sam Tanner make up a men’s road mile trio that selectors have been unable to separate at this stage of the selection process.
Ruthe’s presence alone makes this one of the most remarkable men’s road mile entries New Zealand has ever fielded. In January, the then 16-year-old shattered Sir John Walker’s New Zealand mile record, a mark that had stood for 44 years, running 3:48.88 at the Boston University Terrier Classic to set the world under-18 best and place himself 11th on the all-time global indoor mile list.
Beamish brings formidable road-mile experience to the event, having competed at the prestigious Fifth Avenue Mile in New York and the Merrie Mile in Hawaii, alongside his standing as the reigning world steeplechase champion. Tanner, meanwhile, is one of New Zealand’s most decorated road competitors, having won the national road mile championship at The Spectacle in Nelson against a quality international field, and boasts the experience of multiple World Athletics Championships campaigns.
With two spots available on the Copenhagen start line, all three athletes have been provisionally named while selectors finalise the starting pair ahead of an August announcement. The road 5km, staged on the same day, provides the third athlete an opportunity to still compete in Copenhagen should they miss out on the mile.
The Quax name will once again take pride of place on the front of the iconic black singlet, as Theo Quax, son of New Zealand distance running legend the late Dick Quax, earns selection for the Road 5km at the 2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships.
Dick Quax is one of the most celebrated runners in New Zealand history. Part of the golden generation of New Zealand middle-distance running in the 1970s alongside Sir John Walker and Rod Dixon, he won silver in the 5000m at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games before setting the 5000m world record in Stockholm in 1977 with a time of 13:12.87. He coached his son Theo and remained a passionate servant of the sport until his passing in 2018. That his son will now line up on the global stage in a road 5km event carries its own significance.
“It’s an honour to don the black singlet for the first time.” said Quax
“It’s something that I’ve aimed for and hoped for, for a very long time and frankly since I was young and first got into the sport and first learned about how successfully Dad competed for New Zealand and how well he represented the country. So that’s something that I’m hoping to replicate in my career.
“As far as the competition itself, I’m just hoping to go out there and compete the best I can. You know, toe the line with a quality field and see how many people I can beat, how many people I can get finish in front of. At the end of the day, that’s competition at this level, and that’s racing. I want to be able to execute a solid race.”
Women’s Road Mile and 5km
Two athletes will represent New Zealand in the women’s road mile in Copenhagen.
Alison Andrews-Paul is one of New Zealand’s most accomplished middle-distance runners on the international stage, having represented New Zealand twice at the World Athletics Indoor Championships over 800m. At the 2026 championships in Toruล, she delivered her strongest performance at the event, progressing to the semi-final after running 2:01.38.
Kimberley May makes her first New Zealand senior team in Copenhagen. The world-class miler represented New Zealand at the 2025 World University Games and announced herself at the NCAA level by finishing second at the 2024 NCAA Division I National Championships in the 1500m, behind fellow New Zealander Maia Ramsden.
Hannah Gapes lines up in the road 5km. One of New Zealand’s most consistent long-distance performers across road and cross-country, Gapes was the top New Zealand finisher at the 2026 World Cross Country Championships over 10km.
Half Marathon
Toby Gualter and Georgie Grgec lead New Zealand’s half marathon challenge in what shapes as an exciting chapter for both athletes at the world stage.
Gualter arrives in Copenhagen fresh off securing his seventh national title. The Wellington runner won the 2026 New Zealand Half Marathon Championships in Christchurch in April, running 1:03:15. His recent national title haul spans the road 5km, mountain running, 5000m on the track, and the half marathon across 2025 and 2026, making him the standout figure in New Zealand men’s road running.
Grgec heads to Copenhagen in the form of her career. The Auckland City Athletics Club runner broke the 70-minute barrier in the half marathon for the first time at the Berlin Half Marathon in April 2025, running a personal best of 1:09:13 in a world-class field. She backed that up with a strong 10km performance in Launceston earlier this year and won the New Zealand road mile title in 2025 as sheโs found her place in the half marathon distance as her focus event.
Also competing in the men’s half marathon are Oli Chignell, William Little, and Connor Melton. Katherine Camp joins Grgec in the women’s half marathon.
Athletics New Zealand Chief Executive Cam Mitchell said the team reflected the current strength of Athletics in New Zealand.
“This is the strongest team we have ever named for the World Athletics Road Running Championships,” Mitchell said. “Across every event, we have proven international talent backed by genuine depth โ athletes who have competed at Olympic Games, World Championships, and at the top of the domestic circuit for years.
“To have three of the four fastest milers in New Zealand history competing for selection in the same event, and to see the Quax name return to the black singlet, speaks to the quality of what we have across the sport right now.”
The 2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark from 19โ20 September. The mile and 5km road events take place on 19 September, with the half marathon the following day. The half marathon programme will be followed by a sold-out mass participation event, with 35,000 registered participants set to race through the streets of Copenhagen.
New Zealand Team โ 2026 World Athletics Road Running Championships
Men’s Mile and 5km
Geordie Beamish โ Road Mile* (Wanganui Harrier Club, Coach: Dathan Ritzenhein)
Sam Ruthe โ Road Mile* (Athletics Tauranga, Coach: Craig Kirkwood)
Samuel Tanner โ Road Mile* (Athletics Tauranga, Coach: Craig Mottram)
Theo Quax โ Road 5km (Pakuranga Athletic Club, Coach: Mike Smith)
Women’s Mile and 5km
Alison Andrews-Paul โ Road Mile (Athletics Wairarapa, Coach: Brit Townsend)
Kimberley May โ Road Mile (Auckland City Athletics, Coach: Mark Coogan)
Hannah Gapes โ Road 5km (Lake City Athletic Club, Coach: Laurie Henes)
Men’s Half Marathon
Oli Chignell โ Half Marathon (Hill City University, Coach: Matthew Clarke)
Toby Gualter โ Half Marathon (Olympic Harriers, Coach: Alastair Leslie)
William Little โ Half Marathon (Whippets Running Project, Coach: Sam McLean)
Connor Melton โ Half Marathon (Whippets Running Project, Coach: Sam McLean)
Women’s Half Marathon
Katherine Camp โ Half Marathon (Te Awamutu Athletic Club, Coach: Craig Kirkwood)
Georgie Grgec โ Half Marathon (Auckland City Athletics Club, Coach: Nic Bideau)
Non-travelling Reserves
Scarlett Robb โ Mile
Taonga Mbambo โ Half Marathon
Chris Dryden โ Half Marathon
*Provisional selection. Final mile starting pair to be announced in August 2026.