The race of the century? Unpacking the tactics that helped Hocker to 1,500m Olympic gold

What made the men’s 1500m in Paris an all-time classic was that Kerr, Neguse and Ingebrigtsen could have all won if their tactics had been slightly different

USA's Cole Hocker celebrates winning the Men's 1500m Final as Great Britain's Josh Kerr and Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen look on dejected at the Stade de France on the eleventh day of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games in France. Picture date: Tuesday August 6, 2024.

It was one of the greatest Olympic 1500m finals in history. Perhaps even the greatest. And while Cole Hocker was a deserved champion for the United States, what really made it an all-time classic was that Britain’s Josh Kerr, the US’s Yared Neguse and Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen could have all won if their tactics had been slightly different.

Ingebrigtsen went too fast early on. Neguse let Hocker slip past him on the back straight, while Kerr was also a bit too wide when he struck for glory. In a race of such fine margins, pacing strategies and even the Stade de France track made all the difference in a race for the ages.