Hassan intended to try and win a quadruple of medals at the Paris Olympics, including the 1500 meters, but ‘very bad’ event scheduling at the Games forced her to withdraw from the event.
Sifan Hassan has finally shed light on why she opted against taking on Faith Kipyegon in the 1500 meters at the Paris Olympics, a decision that ultimately ended her historic pursuit of quadruple medals at the same Games.
Heading into Paris 2024, Hassan had set her sights on an unprecedented feat—becoming the first woman to medal in four different running events at a single Olympics.
She had entered the 1500m, 5000m, and 10,000m races, as well as the women’s marathon. However, she made a crucial tactical shift, withdrawing from the middle-distance event to concentrate on the longer races.
Despite her ambitions to defend her 5000m and 10,000m titles from Tokyo 2021, she had to settle for bronze in both, as Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet stormed to victory.
Additionally, she was unable to outpace Faith Kipyegon, who claimed silver in the 5000m. However, Hassan did triumph in the marathon, clocking a Games record of 2:22:55.
Now, Hassan has revealed that her decision to drop the 1500m was influenced not by competition concerns, but by what she described as an unfair scheduling challenge imposed by the Games organizers.
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Sifan Hassan has revealed what makes marathon the toughest event in athletics as she continues gearing up for the London Marathon.
“It was crazy, but when I look back, I had given it serious thought,” Hassan told Citius Mag. “I already had a gold medal at the Olympics, so I wanted to try it for fun and see whether it was possible or not. But the way they scheduled the events was very bad.”
She explained how the 1500m final’s timing would have severely impacted her recovery ahead of the marathon.
“We used to race in the evening, go back to the village at midnight after taking the bus, and sometimes we’d arrive at 1 AM,” she detailed.
“I looked at the schedule and realized that if I did this, there was no way I’d get enough sleep. If I won a medal, it meant I’d get back at 2 AM, take a shower, eat something, and then by 4 AM, I had to be on the shuttle to the starting line for the marathon. You have to be in the call room by 6 AM.”
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Faced with the grueling logistics, Hassan knew she had to make a call.
“I looked at that and decided, ‘No way,’” she admitted. “Had the schedule been normal, it would have been possible.”
Her revelations shed light on the challenges athletes face beyond just competing against their rivals. While her marathon triumph cemented her legacy, her remarks highlight how scheduling conflicts may have cost fans the chance to witness an electrifying clash between her and Faith Kipyegon in the 1500m.
