Fisher wins rare Olympic bronze for U.S. in 10K; Cheptegei takes gold

Coley Harvey, ESPN Editor-in-ChiefAugust 2, 2024, 6:02 p.m. ET

ClosePreviously covered Florida State for Orlando Sentinel and Georgia Tech for Macon Telegraph Graduated from Northwestern University

SAINT-DENIS, France — For much of his career, Grant Fisher felt like an outsider in his own sport.

Regular fourth and fifth places in international competitions will contribute to this.

But now, as a bronze medalist, the American is as much a 10,000-meter insider as anyone.

“I've been close to medals before, but I've never had one until now. 1722705986” said Fisher, who came to the Olympics fresh from podium contention at the last Olympics and world championships.

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It was in the thrilling final race of the first full day of Olympic track and field events at the Stade de France that Fisher earned a third-place finish, helping to showcase the long-distance prowess that the American runners were desperate to prove they possessed.

Although his finish was partially overshadowed by Ugandan runner Joshua Cheptegei's Olympic record of 26:43.14, it was nonetheless an achievement Fisher had reason to celebrate.

“There are a handful of guys who have made it to the top three, but they’re rare,” Fisher said. “When I was a kid, they used to say that in the United States, you couldn’t compete with the East African guys. You couldn’t compete with the top European guys. And I hope I’ve shown that I can do that.”

Fisher's American teammate Nico Young believes Fisher's arrival demonstrated exactly that.

“This sets the standard for what Americans can do at this event in the future,” Young said.

“People are capable of great things, and you have to put yourself in their shoes and believe in yourself for good things to happen,” said Grant Fisher, who thus secured the first place on the 10,000-meter podium for the United States since 2012. YOAN VALAT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

The bronze marks only the fourth time an American runner has medaled in the event at the Olympics. Galen Rupp was the last to do so, winning silver at the 2012 Games. Billy Mills, who recently backed Fisher as a potential gold medal hopeful, won gold in 1964. In 1912, Lewis Tewanima won silver in Stockholm.

Fisher, 27, has long considered Mills a hero. He still owns a T-shirt that Mills allegedly signed when Fisher was a child and he saw him speak at a ceremony in Michigan.

Lately, Fisher has begun to feel like he can have a similar impact on his sport to Mills.

“Over the last three years, my mindset has changed a lot, I feel more like I belong in these positions,” Fisher said. “I hope people can see that as my mindset has changed, everyone in America should see it too. People are capable of great things, and you have to put yourself in their shoes and believe in yourself for good things to happen.”

Part of that mindset shift came last year, when Fisher moved to Park City, Utah, to train at altitude like some of the runners he regularly lost to.

“It’s a piece of the puzzle that allowed me to shave a second off the 10K, and I think it’s an important piece,” Fisher said. “If you look at all the people who win 10K medals year after year, almost everyone lives at altitude.”

It was a spectacular final lap that saw Fisher enter Friday night's race, moving up from the top five to third. Although he ultimately couldn't catch Cheptegei, Fisher and silver medallist Berihu Aregawi gave it their all in the final 100 metres to claim gold.

“For me, it’s a very special day here in Paris,” said Cheptegei, 27. “I really have a huge respect for these guys, and maybe for me, it’s time to hit the road.”

“I think these are my last Olympics, and maybe my last athletics matches.”

On several occasions after the race, Cheptegei hinted that his glittering 10-year career, which included multiple world championships and another gold medal in the 5,000 metres, was over.

In addition to this new Olympic record – a time that 13 riders in the peloton have surpassed in other competitions – Cheptegei also holds the current world record of 26:11.00, set in October 2020.

Sources 1/ https://Google.com/ 2/ https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/40710927/fisher-secures-rare-bronze-medal-us-10k-cheptegei-strikes-gold The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article

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