Jess Hull vows she wants to inspire a young generation of Australian athletes - and she's proved as good as her word in Nanjing, galvanising her promising teammate Ky Robinson to emulate her as a global medallist.
Ever stronger, more confident and increasingly comfortable in her role as a high-profile Olympic star, Hull wasn't just content to land another international medal, a bronze, in the 3000m at the world indoor championships in Nanjing on Saturday.
Better still, she was glad straight after her run to offer a pep talk as a senior pro to her young Brisbane teammate Robinson before his maiden major championship final.
She calmed him and told him to go and have a good time. Suitably encouraged, the 23-year-old then went out to land his own, rather more unexpected, bronze in the equivalent men's race quarter-of-an-hour later.
"We got to look at the screen in the call room. I saw Jessica, asked for a little bit of a tip. She said 'the track's fast, just have fun!' - so that's what I did," smiled Stanford-based Robinson after finishing third behind the great Norwegian winner Jakob Ingebrigtsen.
"It's amazing to be part of a team with seniors like Jess. It's my first year competing as a professional runner, and a big jump from the collegiate scene in America to the world stage.
"I just wanted to bridge that gap and I did that today. Having all those people around, great names in Australian running, they've inspired me and elevated me to get to this spot."
Wollongong's Hull is now revelling as an experienced hand who believes she's grown in confidence ever since her Olympic 1500m silver-medal run in Paris.
"I want to show the younger generation in my country that if you find the one discipline in athletics that's for you and you truly love it, there's no limit on how far you can take it," she explained, after finishing third behind victorious Ethiopian Freweyni Hailu.
"It's hard, but if you really love what you do, the improvement is really fun to see. I'll just continue to improve on my best, and I have to run for gold now, I have to raise that bar for myself."
Last year, she was fourth in the same race in Glasgow.
"I was probably surviving out there last year. Now I'm controlling it, I am making the moves, sort of dictating the race, which is a new position for me to be in.
"I feel like I have some power out there now. It's confidence and belief in myself, in my ability and my preparation, that allows all this to happen.
"Once you get a medal, you have to start being a medallist, regardless of whether you are ready for it or not."
Now it's Robinson's turn too to be determined to prove an inspiration.
"You got so many people back home watching, so many young kids we can inspire. I remember I was one of them, looking up to some of the great runners from Australia, and thinking hopefully they'll look up to me and I can be a good role model for them," he said.
"This medal's something I hoped to achieve at some point in my career and it's come a bit early, so I'm not going to complain - but now the pressure is on to keep the standard up and keep going."
