Cole Hocker won the 1500m final last night after sprinting down Matthew Centrowitz in the last 100m. It was an electrifying race, postponed due to extreme heat, that would end in two collegiate athletes finishing in the top-3.
Although Hocker does not have the Olympic Standard, his world ranking is now high enough that he will likely qualify without having to chase the standard. He sprinted to a 3:35.28 finish over Centro and the rest of the field. The finish was almost in a repeat of his NCAA title run in the same event just over two weeks ago.
Yared Nuguse, who set the collegiate record in the 1500m earlier this season, finished in a tough third. He had to battle over 1500m favorite Craig Engels in the last 100m and the Notre Dame miler took the third spot on the team. All three of Hocker, Centro, and Nuguse have the ability to kick hard at the end of a tactical race and could be set up for a great finish in Tokyo if they can battle their way to the final.
.@cole_hocker battles it out with @MattCentrowitz to win the men’s 1500m final!@usatf | #TrackFieldTrials21 x #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/7StRV4Q0yM
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) June 28, 2021
This was one of the best finishes of the entire Trials. You can watch it over and over again. Under the light at Hayward Field, what gets better than that? The 2016 gold medalist, Centro, is going to try to find a little magic left in his kick and hope to recreate his race from Rio. Perhaps Hocker is in the midst of a legendary season that ends with an Olympic medal later this year?
This Olympic team should be one for the record books and really has been already. With Sydney McLaughlin absolutely destroying the 400m hurdles record in the same night among many other great performances, this team is shaping up to be one to remember.
