Simpson became the first American woman ever to claim an Olympic medal in the 1,500 meters, earning the bronze at the games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Simpson, who failed to get out of the semifinals at the 2012 Olympics, could become the first US woman to medal in the 1500-meter.
Advertisement
Simpson ran a time four minutes, 10.53 seconds to reach the podium.
Both Rowbury and Simpson were mired behind the top pack heading into the final lap, with both Kipyegon and Dibaba seemingly in total control for the top two spots.
As for the Americans, for the first time in the history of the 110 hurdles at the Olympics they failed to get an athlete onto the medal stand (with the exception of their boycott of the 1980 Games in Moscow).
Like many middle- and long-distance track events, the 1,500 has been dominated by runners from Kenya and Ethiopia.
Simpson is a two-time world championships medalist. Her coach, however, has a bit of a shady past, having been arrested as recently as two months ago after authorities suspected he was trafficking performance-enhancing drugs.
Advertisement
“I think that you know a tree by the fruit that it bears”, said Simpson.
