 Beamish after winning the 1500 m at the2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1996-10-24)24 October 1996 (age 29) Hastings, New Zealand |
| Sport | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Sport | Track and field |
Events | |
| University team | Northern Arizona Lumberjacks |
| Club | On Athletics Club[1] |
| Coached by |
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| Achievements and titles | |
| Personalbests |
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Medal record | |
George Beamish (born 24 October 1996) is a New Zealandmiddle- andlong-distance runner,[2] who is the reigning2025 World Athletics Champion at the3000 m steeplechase. He also won the1500 metres at the2024 World Indoor Championships. He holds theOceania area record in the3000 m steeplechase of 8:09.64 and theNew Zealand record in the indoor3000 and5000 m.
Beamish was born to parents Simon and Josi Beamish. He has three siblings: Hugo, Lucinda, and Eve Beamish.[3] Hugo is also an athlete, having run cross country and track atVillanova University.[4] George attendedWhanganui Collegiate as a boarder from 2012 to 2014 (from Year 10).
AlongsideOAC teammatesMorgan McDonald andOlli Hoare, Beamish hosts theCoffee Club Podcast in which they discuss their lives as professional runners.[5]
Beamish was the NZ Under-18 2000 m steeplechase champion in 2013 and the NZ Junior Men's 1500 m champion in 2014 and 2015.[6] He was also the NZ Junior Men's 3000 m champion in 2015. He has also been a NZ secondary schools cross-county champion.
Beamish attendedNorthern Arizona University, where he competed for theNorthern Arizona Lumberjacks and was coached byMike Smith. He was NCAA Division I Indoor Men's Mile champion in 2019 and is a two-time NCAA All-American in cross country (2017, 2018).[7]
On 30 January, Beamish made his debut for NAU running a 4:24.48 mile inFlagstaff. He competed in four indoor meets, setting a mile personal best of 4:07.59 at theIowa State classic.[8]
In his debut collegiate cross country season, Beamish placed ninth at theBig Sky Championship, and finished 97th at theNCAA DivisionI Cross Country Championships, as the seventh man on the NAU championship winning squad.[9]
Indoors, Beamish set a personal best time in the 3000 m of 8:10.06 at theIowa State Classic.
He opened the outdoor season with a personal best of 13:53.59 over 5000 m at theStanford Invitational, followed by a 3:41.87 1500 m personal best at the Bryan Clay Invitational.[9]
Beamish ended his outdoor season finishing eighth in the 5000 m at theBig Sky Championships and tenth in his heat of the 1500 m at the NCAA West Preliminaries.
He finished his second collegiate cross country season by placing 40th at the national meet, earning All American honors and another national team title with NAU.
Beamish competed in just one race during the outdoor season (after suffering injury) where he finished 13th over 5000 m in 13:55.65 at the Stanford Invitational.
During the cross country season, he placed placed fourth at theBig Sky Cross Country Championship, 14th at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, and 25th at Wisconsin Pre-Nationals. To finish the season, he earned All-American status and placed 39th in at the NCAA Championship.[9]
On 23 February, he won theBig Sky Conference Indoor Men's Mile Champion with a time of 4:10.90. He then won an NCAA title in the mile at theNCAA Division I Indoor Championship, in a time of 4:07.69. Outdoors, he set a 5000 m personal best at the Payton Jordan Invite with a time of 13:31.58. At theNCAA DivisionI Outdoor Championship, he placed 10th in the 5000 m with a time of 14:13.18.
In cross country, he won the NCAA D1 Mountain Region Championship, and finished 37th at the NCAA national championship.[9]
In early 2020, Beamish set a personal best of 7:44.67 over 3000 m at theBoston University Valentine Invitational, and finished sixth at theMillrose Games Wanamaker Mile in a personal best time of 3:56.90.[9]
In August 2020, Beamish turned professional, joining the newly formedOn Athletics Club, coached byUS OlympianDathan Ritzenhein.
In August 2021, after missing out on the postponed2020 Summer Olympics, Beamish ran personal bests of 3:54.86 in the mile at thePrefontaine Classic and 7:42.39 over 3000 m inRovereto, Italy.
In December 2021, he set aNew Zealand indoor record in the 5000 m at Boston University with a time of 13:12.53.
At theMillrose Games on 29 January, Beamish won the 3000 m in a New Zealand national indoor record of 7:39.50.[10]
In March, he competed in the3000 m at the World Athletics Indoor Championships inBelgrade, Serbia. In the preliminary round, he placed second in his heat and then finished 10th in the final in a time of 7:46.91.[2]
Outdoors, he set a personal best of 3:36.53 in the 1500 m at the Sound Running TEN and an outdoor 5000 m personal best of 13:19.90 at theParis Diamond League. At the2022 World Athletics Championships inEugene, Oregon, he competed in the 5000 m, where he was eliminated in the heats.[2]
He finished his season with two sixth-place finishes at the2022 Commonwealth Games 5000 m and theFifth Avenue Mile.[2]
At the 2023Millrose Games, Beamish finished sixth in the 3000 m to lower his own New Zealand record to 7:36.22. Two weeks later, at the BU Last Chance qualifier, he set a personal best in the mile of 3:51.22, just missingNick Willis'New Zealand national indoor mile record of 3:51.06.[2]
On 13 April, Beamish made his debut in the3000 metres steeplechase atMt. SAC in a time of 8:42.56.[11] On 21 July, he set anOceanian record of 8:13.26 in the event at theMonaco Diamond League, and on 22 August he finished fifth at the2023 World Athletics Championships in the 3000 m steeplechase inBudapest, Hungary.[2]
In September, he finished third in both theFifth Avenue Mile, in 3:50, and the steeplechase at theDiamond League Final inEugene, Oregon, in a time of 8:14.01.[2]
On 26 January, Beamish finished fourth in a 5000 m in 13:04.33 at the Boston University John Thomas Terrier Classic. This time, he broke his own New Zealandindoor record and also bettered the New Zealand outdoor record. It was also under the Olympic standard of 13:05.00.[12][13]
Two weeks later at the2024 Millrose Games, Beamish set anOceanian record in the indoor 2 miles in a time of 8:05.73. In the process, he recorded a 3000m time of 7:34.88, faster than the New Zealand record, but Athletics New Zealand does not at present recognise intermediate times for national records.
On 3 March, Beamish won the gold medal in the1500 m at the2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships.[14]
On 7 July, Beamish improved hisOceanian record to 8:09.64, finishing fifth in the 3000 m steeplechase at theMeeting de Paris.[15]
On 15 September 2025, Beamish won the3000 m Steeplechase at the2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.[16]
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