Stefan Nillessen kicks past a bunched field for a surprise European 1500 m title
The Dutch European U23 champion won in 3:35.70 with the top five inside a second; Andrew Coscoran came through on the inside for Ireland's bronze.
Photograph: Stefan Nillessen at the 2024 European Cross Country Championships in Antalya, by Erik van Leeuwen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsStefan Nillessen of the Netherlands won the men's 1500 m at the European Championships in Birmingham on Saturday in 3:35.70. Samuel Pihlström of Sweden took silver in 3:36.16 and Andrew Coscoran of Ireland bronze in 3:36.24, with Britain's Jake Heyward and Arlo Ludewick fourth and fifth in 3:36.40 and 3:36.65. The first five finished within 0.95 seconds.
Nobody had him down for it. The favourites were all off the podium, and Nillessen, the European U23 champion, won by kicking past a field that had bunched up for the finish. RunBlogRun notes he is only the second man to go from a European U23 1500 m title to the senior one.
Coscoran's race was the one worth replaying. He was seventh on the last lap and in trouble, saw a gap on the inside down the back straight, committed to it and came through the field to take bronze by eight hundredths from Heyward. It is his first senior outdoor medal at a major championship, and he had been fourth in his heat in 3:41.86 the day before.
Six men within a second in a championship final. The 1500 m rewards the one who decides earliest, not the one who is fastest.
Sources: Marathon Handbook; Athletics Ireland; RunBlogRun.
