In the men’s 1500 meters at the Paris Olympics, Cole Hocker came from the middle of the pack with a powerful final kick to pull off a stunning upset and win the gold medal for the United States.
2021 Tokyo Marathon gold medalist Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway led for much of the race but a dramatic final lap around the Stade de France saw Hocker and Great Britain’s Josh Kerr take the lead.
Carr led the group going into the final leg, but was passed by Hocker just before the finish line. Another American, Yared Nugse, took third place to win the bronze medal.
Hocker’s time of 3 minutes 27.65 seconds was an Olympic record, breaking his personal best by nearly three seconds.
The Indianapolis native had won a silver medal in the 1,500m at the 2024 World Indoor Championships after finishing sixth in the same event at the Olympics three years ago, but was not expected to be a gold medal contender in this race.
For much of the race, he didn’t look like he was in the running to win either.
2024 Paris Olympics
This is the U.S. team’s third gold medal in track and field and their 10th and 11th medals overall, both of which put them far ahead of the rest.
