Indy's Cole Hocker fails to land second Olympic berth in 5,000 meters
EUGENE, Ore. – It is not often one runner changes the way a race is run merely because he is in the race.
That runner was Cole Hocker on Sunday. He was hot. He was to be feared.
He could not secure a second spot at the Paris Olympics, however. Otherwise, nothing changes. He will contend for a medal in the 1,500 meters after emptying himself in the 5,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
“I’m as strong as I’ve ever been still. That’s not going away,” he said. “I’ve got two 5K sessions in now. That’s going to help me moving forward in this little three-week buildup to Paris."
Hocker’s bid for an historic double ended when he finished seventh in the 5,000 in 13:20.99 at Hayward Field. The only American to have run both at an Olympics was Bernard Lagat, then 33, in 2008. By then, Lagat had won two Olympic medals and five world medals.
This was the fifth race in 10 days for Hocker, 23, a Cathedral High graduate who set a trials record of 3:30.69 in winning the 1,500 Monday. He is the first to win the 1,500 back-to-back since Jim Ryun in 1968 and 1972.
Grant Fisher won the 5,000 in a stretch duel over Abdi Nur, completing a 5,000/10,000 double. Fisher, essentially running the last mile in 4:01, finished in 13:08.85 and broke Galen Rupp’s 2012 trials record of 13:22.67.
Fisher’s last 1,200 meters were timed in 2:58.85. When he accelerated, Nur was the only one to follow. That’s when Hocker slipped out of contention for one of the three Olympic spots.
“(Hocker's) skill set is very different from mine,” Fisher said. “So going into a 5K, my plan was to turn it into my race. Because if I ran his race, he’s probably going to beat me.
“He’s very dangerous over the last lap, the last 800 meters. But if I can get away from him, that’s a better shot for me.”
Nur, an immigrant born in Somalia, was second in 13:09.01. Parker Wolfe, 20, the NCAA champion from North Carolina, was third in 13:10.75.
Dylan Jacobs, a former NCAA champion at 10,000 for Notre Dame, was fifth in 13:17.26.
Hocker said he doubled back into the 5,000 because there wouldn’t be another such chance until 2028.
“I was confident I could make the team,” he said. “I knew that they had to take it out fast to get me out of it. They didn’t take it out fast but kind of ratcheted it down. They did exactly what they needed to do to keep me out of it.”
Fisher became the fourth to win a 5K/10K double at the trials. The others were Rupp in 2012, Curt Stone in 1953 and Don Lash in 1936.
Lash, of Auburn, Ind., broke Paavo Nurmi’s world record in the two-mile that year. In the 5,000, he tied Louis Zamperini, subject of the “Unbroken” book and movie.
Winger second, and she re-retires
Kara Winger’s bid to become a five-time Olympian fell short ... but not by much.
Maggie Malone Hardin won the javelin with a throw of 211 feet, 10 inches. The 38-year-old Winger, a Purdue graduate, was second by throwing 206-6 on her final attempt.
Because Winger lacks the standard of 210 feet and has not competed in enough meets for a world ranking, she cannot be selected for the Olympics.
“I wanted to prove to myself here that I could compete the way I would want to if I went to Paris, and I did not do that today,” she said. “So I’m all good. I’m all done.”
Winger retired after a 2022 season in which she won a silver medal -- on her final throw -- in the World Championships at Eugene and set an American record of 223-5.
She came out of retirement for a June 9 meet at New York and these trials.
“It just goes to show you don’t get to waltz back in, not compete very much and still deal with the nerves very well,” Winger said. “I don’t get to take a shortcut. I thought about that a lot in this entire process.”
Wiley 11th in historic 1,500
Elsewhere:
>> Huntington’s Addy Wiley, 20, the youngest of 12 finalists, finished 11th in the 1,500 in 4:06.59. The race was extraordinary, in that six women broke the trials record and eight were under four minutes. Nikki Hiltz was first in 3:55.33, followed by Emily Mackay and Elle St. Pierre in 3:55.90 and 3:55.99, respectively. Seven from this race are now in the all-time U.S. top 12. Wiley ranks 13th with a 3:59.17 from September 2023.
>> Indiana State graduate Erin Reese, who was third in the hammer a week ago, improved her chances of making the Olympic team. In a meet Sunday at Kelowna, British Columbia, she threw a season best of 236-6. She lacks the standard but adds world ranking points.
>> Kentucky high jumper Charity Hufnagel of Rushville cleared 6-2¼ Saturday at Kingston, Jamaica, and will improve her world ranking. However, Hufnagel, the 2023 NCAA champion for Ball State and 2024 trials champion, lacks the Olympic standard and appears unlikely to have a world ranking allowing selection.
Contact IndyStar correspondent David Woods at dwoods1411@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indy's Cole Hocker fails to land second Olympic berth in 5,000 meters
