PARIS — Sifan Hassan exchanged elbows with Tigst Assefa with 150 meters remaining in the women’s marathon, then passed her along the rail to win the race for her third distance medal of the Paris Games on Sunday.
Hassan, an Ethiopian-born rider racing for the Netherlands, finished in an Olympic record time of 2 hours, 22 minutes and 55 seconds. Assefa won silver for Ethiopia, three seconds behind, and Kenyan Hellen Obiri took bronze.
The Ethiopian team filed a protest for Hassan’s disqualification for obstruction, but it was rejected by the Appeal Jury. It looked like Assefa was blocking Hassan, who was stopped twice before they exchanged elbows.
Hassan raised his hands and shouted as he crossed the line, then wrapped the Dutch flag around his head as he celebrated. Wearing an orange hat, she put her arm around Shantoshi Shrestha from Nepal, whose smile was as bright as the sun falling on them.
Then, realizing the enormity of his victory, Hassan buried his head in his hands and seemed to weep with joy.
Hassan, 31, also won bronze in the 5,000 and 10,000. By simply completing the marathon, she ran more than 62 kilometers. She now has six Olympic medals. In Tokyo, Hassan won the 5,000 and 10,000 and finished third in the 1,500.
Breaking with tradition, the women’s Olympic marathon was held on the last day, instead of the men’s race.
Hassan used the same tactic on the hilly 26-mile course and on the oval. She remained behind the leaders for most of the race before mustering the energy for a race-ending kick that will go down as one of the best the sport has ever seen.
This one, surprisingly, had more of the look of a crowded race on the oval down the backstretch. As Hassan prepared to make the last pass, Assefa tried to block his path. Hassan went inside after a turn.
Assefa tried to press her against the barrier that separated the route from the fans. The runners exchanged elbows, then Hassan overtook Assefa and raced to victory.
After all, she is used to winning the hard way.
Her legend began to grow three years ago at the Tokyo Games, when she stumbled in a 1,500-meter heat but got up to win the race. She then won bronze.
She hasn’t been as dominant the past two years, in part because she was preparing for this feat: covering a total of 38.5 miles in 10 days with Olympic medals on the line.
Hassan ran the 5,000 meters last Monday and the 10,000 meters on Friday – giving him around 35 hours to recover for the marathon.
She entered the Games looking to emulate Emil Zatopek’s performance in 1952, when the Czech runner swept the 5,000, 10,000 meters and marathon at the Helsinki Games.
She was unable to accomplish the feat, but leaves with a glittering gold medal.
Sharon Lokedi of Kenya came fourth and defending champion Peres Jepchirchir, her compatriot, came 15th.
After 21 miles (almost 34 kilometers), Jepchirchir began to retreat. That was when Hassan and Obiri – a two-time Olympic silver medalist in the 5,000 meters – joined Amane Beriso Shankule and Lokedi at the front.
Shankule slowed the pace towards the end, making it a four-way race for gold, which became three-way when Lokedi backed off on the approach to the finish in front of the gold-domed Invalides monument, site of the tomb of the French emperor Napoleon.
Women have competed in the sport since the 1984 Los Angeles Games – 88 years after Greek runner Spiridon Louis won the inaugural men’s race.
The marathon route also has significance because it traces the steps of a historic march that took place during the French Revolution.
The Women’s March on Versailles in 1789 was organized by women in the Paris market as they protested the high price of bread, leading to their journey from Paris to Versailles.
Starting from the Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall), the route passed through parks and forests scattered along the way. Despite its scenic appearance, the somewhat hilly route was considered extremely difficult, with gradients of up to 13%.
Under the blue sky, runners visited monuments such as the Opéra Garnier and the Louvre museum. About halfway there, they passed close to the royal grounds of the Palace of Versailles – once home to French royalty – before heading back through the Meudon forest towards Paris and past the Eiffel Tower.
After about 29 kilometers, the runners faced a steep hill, and the descent was also complicated. They kept their arms raised to balance themselves and avoid tipping forward. Japanese Yuka Suzuki almost tripped over a runner right in front of her.
Suzuki finished sixth behind Shankule.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
