In the storied history of USA Track and Field, one event in which the country had never claimed an Olympic medal was in the women’s 1500. Thanks to Jennifer Simpson, that’s no longer the case.
Simpson’s time of 4:10.53 was good enough to claim bronze in the final, with Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon taking gold by a comfortable margin. Simpson just missed out on silver, with Ethiopia’s Genzebe Dibaba finishing in 4:10.27. Prior to Tuesday’s final the best finish by an American in this event was fifth, with Shannon Rowbury achieving that four years ago.
Rowbury was also in the final, finishing fourth with a time of 4:11.