So much for the trash-talking showdown. When they finally ran the men’s Olympic 1,500-Meter final, neither Jacob Ingebrigtsen nor Josh Kerr kept their word. Instead, the United States’ Cole Hocker used his patented kick to take gold in an Olympic record of 3:27.65, pulling away from Kerr on the inside.
It was a wild finish, and one that will be remembered as a revival of American middle-distance running. Yared Nuguse won the bronze in 3:27.80, a personal best, and almost outleaned Great Britain’s Kerr (3:27.79) for silver.
And what about Ingebrigtsen? The defending Olympic champion, who claimed the race would be a “walk in the park,” led, as expected, for the first three laps, pushing the pace. But the field pushed back and Ingebrigtsen was dying so much in the stretch that Flagstaff-based 21-year-old Hobbs Kessler threatened to overtake him. As it was, Kessler, in his first Olympics, finished fifth in a personal best of 3:29.45.
It was the first time since 1968 that the U.S. has had three runners in the 1,500 final and the first time in more than 100 years that the U.S. won two medals.
The other Flagstaff-based runner in the final, Dark Sky Distance’s Neil Gourley, representing Great Britain, finished 10th in 3:30:88.
The morning began with the opening round of the women’s 1,500, and there were few, if any surprises, none involving the two Flagstaff-based runners competing, Nikki Hiltz and Dark Sky Distance’s Susan Ejore.
Both advanced to the semifinals by finishing in the top six of their respectivre heats.
Hiltz, coached by NAU’s Mike Smith, finished third in the second heat in 4:00.29, just ahead of Olympic champion and world record holder Faith Kipyegon in fourth in 4:00.74. Both did just what they had to do to advance to the semifinals. This was Hiltz’s first Olympic race, the so-called “rust-buster,” and they enjoyed the experience.
In a post-race interview with NBC Sports, Hiltz said: “It was all about patience this past month, and today in the race, that’s what I kept repeating to myself – patience. I mean, I get so excited for the rounds, because it’s a tactical game out there, and the finals are probably going to be fast, which is a game in itself.”
Kipyegon was coming off Monday’s controversial silver-medal performance in the 5,000 meters, in which she was initially disqualified and then reinstated.
In her heat, Ejore, representing Kenya, finished third behind Ethiopia’s Tsegay Gudaf (the runner involved in the altercation with Kipyegon in the 5,000) and Great Britain’s Laura Muir. Ejore ran 3:59.01 in what proved to be the fastest heat of the morning.
The women’s 1,500 meter semifinals are slated for Thursday.
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