Paris Olympics: American Cole Hocker races to stunning win in 1500m

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PARIS — The fastest men in the Olympic 1,500 meters final made the mistake of allowing Cole Hocker to stay in striking distance.

The American national champion made them pay, unleashing one of his signature devastating last-lap kicks to pull a stunning upset.

Hocker raised his arms in triumph as he crossed the finish line in 3:27.65, an Olympic record time and nearly three full seconds faster than his personal best in the event. He bypassed five other men in the race’s final 200 meters, including reigning world champion Josh Kerr of Great Britain and reigning Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway, the overwhelming pre-race favorites in this event.

Kerr matched Hocker stride for stride until the race’s final steps and hung on for second place, just 14-hundredths of a second behind the American. Another American, Yared Nuguse, delivered a kick of his own and blew past a fading Ingebrigtsen to claim bronze in 3:27.80.

The men’s 1,500 final was considered one of the glamor races of the Paris Olympics because of the long-simmering feud between Ingebrigtsen and Kerr. The two bitter rivals have traded jabs and insults through the media while also claiming the past three global championships and separating themselves as the fastest men in the world over 1,500 meters.

All the attention on Ingebrigtsen and Kerr fed the mistaken narrative that this was a two-man race. In reality, Nuguse had displayed the ability to hang with Ingebrigtsen and Kerr in the past, and Hocker had worked to turn himself into a more than just a man with an outrageous kick.