If recent global championships are any indication, the Rio Olympic women’s 1500m final could be chaotic.
Not only is it likely to be a fast race (at some point) if Ethiopian world-record holder Genzebe Dibaba is in the field, but strange happenings have been known to occur.
At the World Championships last month, American Jenny Simpson ran the last 600 meters with one shoe on, finishing with a bloodied foot.
Then there’s Sydney 2000.
Another American, Suzy Favor Hamilton, in her only Olympic final in three Games, led that women’s 1500m on the final lap, looking to become the first American to win an Olympic track event longer than 400 meters since 1972.
Favor Hamilton, back in the news this week with her book on life as an Olympian-turned-escort set to be published, saw five runners pass her coming around the final curve.
So Hamilton made a conscious decision to collapse to the track when she realized she wouldn’t earn a medal, though she wouldn’t admit it until years later.
Favor Hamilton, running in remembrance of brother Dan who committed suicide in 1999, eventually made it across the finish line in last place, 17.95 seconds behind Algerian winner Nouria Mérah-Benida. It marked Favor Hamilton’s final Olympic race.
MORE TRACK AND FIELD: Watch Usain Bolt and Justin Gatlin’s first race together from 2005