Of the three Americans running in the women’s 1500 semifinal heats Sunday night, two managed to qualify for the final.
Shannon Rowbury and Jennifer Simpson are headed to Friday’s final, with Rowbury posting the sixth-fastest time at 4:04.46 and Simpson finishing seventh at 4:05.07. Ethiopia’s Genzebe Dibaba, who won the 1500 at last year’s World Championships, posted the top qualifying time of the semifinals at 4:03.06. Dibaba was one of three runners to post a time below 4:04, with Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands and Faith Chepngetich Kipyegon of Kenya being the others.
The United States has never won a medal in the women’s 1500, so Rowbury and Simpson will look to make history Friday night.