For the second time ever, two former CU Buffs will compete in the Olympics in the women’s steeplechase at the same time as Emma Coburn and Val Constien punched their tickets to Tokyo at the USATF Olympic Trials Thursday evening.
With a 68-second last lap, Crested Butte High School graduate Coburn won her ninth national championship and made her third Olympic team in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase. The 2016 Olympic bronze medalist finished in 9:09.41, setting a meet record.
Behind Coburn, 30, American record-holder Courtney Frerichs, 28, finished second in 9:11.79.
Battle Mountain High School graduate Val Constien placed third in 9:18.34, a personal best, for the final spot on Team USA heading for Tokyo this summer.
Both Coburn and Constien are graduates of the University of Colorado. Coburn, the 2017 World Champion in the steeplechase, makes her third Olympic team in the event after taking the bronze in Rio in 2016 and qualifying alongside teammate Shalaya Kipp in 2012 while both women were current CU athletes. Constien, who interned with the CU athletic department post graduation, was the 2019 Pac-12 Champion in the event and will make her first Olympic team after running nearly 20 seconds faster than she did in college two years ago.
“I think that US women’s steeple is the deepest it’s been,” Coburn said after the event. “It was knowing my strength and depth. I knew that I could push really hard the last two laps. Courtney started pushing in and it thinned out the pack, and I tried to stay behind her. I knew I had to really grind if I was to get some real estate between her.”
“With three laps to go, Emma and Courtney took off and Leah (Falland) went with them,” Constien stated. “I knew I couldn’t keep that pace with three laps to go, so I decided I would sit in fourth in case anything happened. Unfortunately, Leah fell down at some point and I knew that was my shot. If I could capitalize off that mistake I could end up beating her and making the team. I had no idea if she was on my shoulder or if I was pulling away. I just gave it my all, and with 100 meters to go I was just running as hard as I could.”