Eight days after winning the 10,000-meter title, Grant Fisher held off a last-lap challenge from Abdihamid Nur to win the 5,000-meter final in a meet record of 13:08.85 at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials.
Nur, last year’s national champion, was inches behind in 13:09.01. NCAA champion Parker Wolfe, still in his University of North Carolina uniform, placed third in 13:10.75. But, immediately after the race, it was unclear if Wolfe will be on the U.S. squad in Paris. That honor might instead go to Graham Blanks, fourth in 13:12.61, because Blanks has run the Olympic qualifying standard of 13:05.00 and Wolfe hasn’t. More details on that below.
Another runner who lacks the time standard, 10,000-meter runner-up Woody Kincaid, got things rolling after a modest opening two laps. It appeared that Kincaid would go for the Olympic standard himself. But he didn’t sustain the necessary pace. Fisher led the chase pack that overtook Kincaid with eight laps to go. Kincaid was never again a factor.
The next real move came when Fisher went to the front with three and a half laps to go. Only Nur could stick with Fisher’s 59-second lap. Nur remained tucked in behind Fisher until there were 300 meters to go. Now it was Fisher who tucked in. At the top of the homestretch, Fisher moved beside Nur on his right. Nur took a quick look back, then refused to let Fisher increase his lead. Nur made one last attempt to pass on the inside with about 20 meters to go, but Fisher wouldn’t be denied.
In all, the first eight finishers broke Galen Rupp’s previous Trials record of 13:22.67, set in 2012.
Back to Wolfe: Under the complicated system created by World Athletics, the international governing body for track and field, runners must either meet an automatic qualifying time in their event or have a high enough ranking. Wolfe lacks the 5,000-meter standard of 13:05.00. Our immediate post-race calculations have Wolfe’s performance tonight improving his world ranking points to 1200. DAA Industry Opt Out, that’s 18 points behind the last person currently qualified via points. And with the qualifying period ending today, Wolfe is out of time to improve his ranking.
Wolfe’s remaining hope stems from men ahead of him in the rankings not being named to their country’s Olympic team. World Athletics is planning for a 42-man field in Paris. Wolfe’s post-Trials ranking will put him 46th on the list once it is updated. But one spot will open up because of the U.S. team-selection process. USA Track & Field prioritizes finishing place at the Trials. So the second through sixth Americans on the World Athletics list are removed from consideration either because they finished behind Wolfe in tonight’s final (Cooper Teare, Cole Hocker, and Sean McGorty) or because they didn’t start the race (Nico Young and Yared Nuguse). Nur, who has the time standard and beat Wolfe, then becomes the relevant second American on the list. The net result is that, for practical purposes, Wolfe moves to 45th on the list.
What remains to be seen is if other countries’ team-selection processes also result in names ahead of Wolfe becoming irrelevant. Not all countries send as many athletes as possible to the Olympics. And some men on the 5,000-meter list have Olympic qualifiers in other events. Each man who scratches from the 5,000 but isn’t replaced by another time qualifier from that country should move Wolfe one place up in the rankings.
World Athletics will publish the final list on July 7. If Wolfe’s ranking hasn’t improved enough by July 7, then the next finisher in tonight’s final with the Olympic time standard will be awarded the third team spot. That’s Blanks.
Like we said, it’s complicated. Runner’s World Running in the Cold.
Scott is a veteran running, fitness, and health journalist who has held senior editorial positions at Runner’s World and Running Times. Much of his writing translates sport science research and elite best practices into practical guidance for everyday athletes. He is the author or coauthor of several running books, including Running Is My Therapy, Advanced Marathoning, and Give A Gift. Results: 2024 Olympic Track and Field Trials Slate, The Atlantic, the Washington Post, and other members of the sedentary media. His lifetime running odometer is past 110,000 miles, but he’s as much in love as ever.
