Jared Tallent will walk proudly into retirement as Australia's most prolific Olympic male track-and-field medallist.

He can be just as proud of the public stance he took against the scourge of doping in sport — mostly, in his case, the systemic cheating by Russian athletes that robbed him of major titles.It's somehow fitting that the crowning moment of Tallent's career, winning the 50km title at the 2012 Olympics, needed almost four years to reach its denouement.

Tallent had crossed the line in London in second spot behind Sergey Kirdyapkin, only to later discover that the Russian had tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs both before and after the Games.

It took until mid-2016 for the Australian to finally have the gold medal draped around his neck at a ceremony in Melbourne.

"I've definitely made peace with that" said Tallent, 36, who retired today after a hamstring injury ruled him out of Saturday's national championship race, ending his last chance of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics.

His statements to Australia Athletics.

“I had planned for Tokyo to be my swansong but I’ve had a number of setbacks from an injury to my hamstring, with the latest one putting a halt to my final preparations for the Australian 50km Race Walking Championships this weekend”.

“Unfortunately that was the last chance for me to qualify for Tokyo so it is with mixed emotion that I announce my retirement from elite sport.”

The Olympic record holder in the 50km Walk said while he leaves athletics earlier than he had anticipated, he looks back on his career with pride.

“I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve achieved. The medals I’ve won at the Olympics are by far my highlight as they were beyond my wildest dreams when I started race walking all those years ago”.

“To go to an Olympics is an achievement, and then to go on to win three medals in a row in one event is something I’ll never forget.

“I’ve made long lasting connections and friendships through athletics and I’m grateful to take them away with me. In particular, I’d like to thank my family and friends for their support and also my coaches over my career, Daryl Biggin, Brent Vallance and Adam Didyk for the support and guidance they’ve provided me along the way. I also want to thank Professor Louise Burke at the Australian Institute of Sport. Much of the my success in London is because of the knowledge she shared with me. I really couldn’t do it without that team”

From today we will be a little more alone. We will miss your smile, your determination and your intellectual honesty.

Good luck for your future dear friend of Marcia dal Mondo.

Career highlights

(by Heel and Toe # 26, 2021 - AUS)