Sifan Hassan traded elbows with Tigst Assefa with 150 meters left in the women’s marathon, then passed her along the railing to win the race for her third distance medal of the Paris Games on Sunday.
Hassan, an Ethiopian-born racer who runs for the Netherlands, finished in an Olympic record time of 2 hours, 22 minutes, 55 seconds. Assefa won silver for Ethiopia, three seconds behind, and Kenya’s Hellen Obiri took the bronze.
The Ethiopian team lodged a protest to have Hassan disqualified for obstruction, but it was rejected by the Jury of Appeal. It looked as if Assefa was blocking Hassan, who was twice impeded before they traded elbows.
Hassan raised her hands and yelled as he crossed the line, then wrapped the Dutch flag around her head as she celebrated. Wearing an orange bucket hat, she put her arm around Nepal’s Shantoshi Shrestha, whose smile was as bright as the sun pouring down on them.
Then, taking in the enormity of her win, Hassan plunged her head in her hands and appeared to weep with joy.
The 31-year-old Hassan 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 from tradition, the women’s Olympic marathon was held on the final day instead of the men’s race.
Hassan used the same tactic in the hilly, 26.2-mile course as she does on the oval. She lingered behind the leaders for the bulk of the race before summoning up the energy for a late-race kick that will go down as one of the best the sport has seen.
This one, amazingly, had more the look of a crowded race on the oval down the stretch. As Hassan gathered to make her last pass, Assefa tried to block her path. Hassan moved to the inside around a bend.
Assefa tried to squeeze her against the barrier separating the course from the cheering fans. The runners traded elbows, then Hassan took off past Assefa and sprinted in for the win.
She’s used to winning the hard way, after all.
Her legend started building three years ago at the Tokyo Games when she was tripped up in a heat of the 1,500 but scrambled to her feet to win the race. She then went on to claim the bronze.
She wasn’t as dominant over the past two years, in part because she was storing up for this feat: covering a total of 38.5 miles over 10 days with Olympic medals on the line.
Hassan raced in the 5,000 meters last Monday and the 10,000 meters on Friday — giving her roughly 35 hours to recover for the marathon.
She entered the Games looking to match Emil Zatopek’s performance from 1952, when the Czech runner swept the 5,000, 10,000 and the marathon at the Helsinki Games.
She didn’t manage to accomplish the feat, but she leaves with a gleaming gold medal.
Sharon Lokedi of Kenya was fourth and defending champion Peres Jepchirchir, her compatriot, placed 15th.
After 21 miles (almost 34 kilometers), Jepchirchir started falling back. That’s 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 dropped off the pace near the end, making it a four-way race for gold, which became three when Lokedi fell back on the approach to the finish opposite the gold-domed Invalides monument, site of French emperor Napoleon’s tomb.
Women have competed in the discipline since the 1984 Los Angeles Games — which was 88 years after Greek runner Spiridon Louis won the inaugural men’s race.
The marathon route has significance, too, in that it traces the footsteps of an historic march that took place during the French Revolution.
The Women’s March on Versailles in 1789 was organized by women in the marketplace of Paris as they protested the high price of bread, leading to their trek from Paris to Versailles.
Starting out from Hôtel de Ville (City Hall), the route passed through the parks and forests dotted along the way. Despite its scenic aspect, the somewhat hilly route was billed as extremely difficult with inclines as steep as 13%.
Under blue skies, runners took in landmarks such as Opéra Garnier and the Louvre museum. About halfway through, they passed near the regal grounds of the Palace of Versailles — once the home of French royalty — before doubling back through Meudon forest toward Paris and past the Eiffel Tower.
After about 18 miles (29 kilometers) the runners tackled a steep hill, and downhill was tricky as well. They held their arms up for balance to prevent toppling forward. Japan’s Yuka Suzuki almost tumbled into a runner right in front of her.
Suzuki finished sixth behind Shankule.
