24 Nov 2009

Shaun Creighton is one of Australia’s best-ever distance runners. He trained at the Australian Institute of Sport from 1990 to 1999, first as a 3000-metre steeplechase runner, and then moved on to the 5000 and 10 000 metres and eventually the marathon.

Shaun represented Australia 24 times, including the 1996 Atlanta and Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, two world championships (1993 and 1999), four Commonwealth Games (1990, 1994, 1998 and 2002) and nine world cross country championships.

In addition to winning the 5000 metres silver medal at the 1998 World Cup, Shaun had five top-ten marathon finishes, which included second place in his debut race: the 1997 Houston Marathon. He won 11 national track titles in the 3000-metre steeplechase, 5000 metres and 10 000 metres, and the Australian marathon title in 1999.

In November 1996 Shaun set a new Australian 10 000-metre record, beating Ron Clarke’s 31-year-old record, which he retained up until April this year. He still holds the Australian record for the 3000-metre steeplechase, which he set in 1993.
Towards the end of his athletic career, Shaun began a Bachelor of Laws at the University of New England in Armidale, which he studied by correspondence while based in the United States training and competing for three months of the year. He also holds a Master of Business Administration.

After graduation, Shaun worked as an in-house legal counsel at the Australian Sports Commission, as well as for the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games Corporation, the Melbourne stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race and Airservices Australia. He also worked as Athletics Australia’s national coordinator for distance events.

In July 2006, Shaun joined the Canberra-based Buchanan Law commercial firm, and became its practice director and principal lawyer in May 2009. He specialises in intellectual property and sports law with clients that include athletes, national sporting organisations, media outlets and event organisers. Shaun also recently established a separate firm — ARUNA Trade Mark Attorneys.

Shaun and his wife Stella live in Canberra and have two young children. He is still occasionally motivated to run old training courses, including Robert De Castella’s 22-mile loop in Stromlo Forest Park, but finds these runs becoming more difficult.