Former Oviedo High standout Jenny Simpson won an Olympic medal Tuesday night.
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Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon (4:08.92) won gold and Ethiopia’s Genzebe Dibaba (4:10.27) took silver, while Simpson almost caught Dibaba during her furious close to the demanding middle-distance race. And she won it in thrilling fashion. “Four years ago I didn’t make the final, so that was something that I wouldn’t allow myself to say out loud today, and now I can probably say it out loud”, Simpson told USA Today.
Teammate Shannon Rowbury finished fourth. Devon Allen, who will return to OR where he’ll play wide receiver for the football team this season, finished fifth with a time of 13.31 seconds. Rowbury had a strong start at the beginning of the race and took the early lead.
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).
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Both athletes closed well and secured the top US finishes since the women’s 1,500 became an Olympic event in 1972.
