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Olympians Up Close

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Former ñ track stars Jenny Simpson (Econ, PolSci’09) and Emma Coburn (Mktg’13) each won bronze medals during the 29th summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, burnishing CU’s decades-long Olympic legacy.

Three other CU alumni competed at Rio also: Jeremy Dodson (Soc’10) ran in the qualifying heat of the 200-meter race for Samoa, Flora Duffy (Soc’13) competed in the triathlon for Bermuda, finishing 8th, and Katerina Nash (A&S ex’03) placed fifth in mountain biking for the Czech Republic.

In all, nearly 90 ñ alumni have competed in the Olympics to date. Eleven have won medals.

Jenny Simpson

  • Age: 29 at time of Rio Olympics
  • Height: 5'5"
  • Weight: 118
  • Hometown: Oviedo, Fla.
  • At CU: Four NCAA track and field titles, three in steeplechase, one in indoor 3,000 meters.

Medal: Bronze

  • Event:1,500-meter race
  • Time: 4 min., 10.53 sec

Prior Olympic appearances:

  • 2008 Beijing
  • 2012 London

  • Where do you keep your medal:
  • It's currently in a sock in my suitcase
  • Who has worn your medal:
  • Everyone I've taken photos with. Friends, family and fans
  • Pre-race ritual:
  • Braiding my hair
  • Last meal eaten before Olympic medal race:
  • Rice with grilled vegetables
  • First meal after race:
  • Black bean soup with wild rice and chicken (I cooked it myself at 2 a.m. in my apartment in Rio.)
  • No. pairs of running shoes brought to Rio:
  • 9, including 3 pairs of spikes

  • No. days between Olympic medal and next race:
  • 11
  • 1st
  • American woman to medal in the 1,500-meter race
  • Days off after medal race before next training session:
  • 0
  • Miles typically run per week:
  • 80
  • Days off:
  • 0
  • Hours slept night before medal race:
  • 10
"The last 100 meters, when I was running my guts out, that’s my favorite part of the race,” she told the Denver Post. “I love this sport. I love how competitive it is, I love how hard the 1,500 meters is."

Emma Coburn

  • Age: 25at time of Rio Olympics
  • Height: 5'8"
  • Weight: 120
  • Hometown: Crested Butte, Colo.
  • At CU: Three-time NCAA champion, twice in steeplechase, once in indoor mile.

Medal: Bronze

  • Event:3,000-meter steeplechase
  • Time: 9 min., 7.63 sec

Prior Olympic appearances:

2012 London

  • Where do you keep your medal:
  • In my suitcase or my purse, because I've been traveling so much. Once I'm home I'll probably keep it on a bookshelf.
  • Who has worn your medal:
  • Hundreds of people. The day I won it I was letting every single stranger in Rio try it on and walk around with it.
  • Pre-race ritual:
  • The meal that I have is probably the most rigid part of my routine.
  • Last meal eaten before Olympic medal race:
  • Bagel with banana and peanut butter, the same meal I always eat three hours before the gun goes off.
  • First meal after race:
  • Recovery bars. Probably cheesecake and a burger.
  • No. pairs of running shoes brought to Rio:
  • 2 spikes, 3 pairs training shoes

  • No. days between Olympic medal and next race:
  • 12
  • 1st
  • Olympic steeplechase medal for a U.S. woman; her time beat her own American record in the event.
  • Days off after medal race before next training session:
  • 0
  • Miles typically run per week:
  • 80
  • Days off:
  • 0
  • Hours slept night before medal race:
  • 8
"The last four or five laps were tough. I just kept on telling myself to keep chipping away at the gap and once I got my position, all I wanted to do was to hold it. It wasn’t until the last 400 or 600 meters when I realized that I had it and just couldn’t lose it."
Sources: teamusa.org; the athletes; ñ

See videos of Emma and Jenny:

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UlJ1fkzvGA]

[video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KZCvX40-MQ]

[video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCzpi_IDKPI]

Photos by © Harry How/Getty Images