Staying true to her word, Jessica Hull bravely took it up to peerless Kenyan Faith Kipyegon in the women’s 1500m final at the World Championships.
She was willing to risk silver to give herself an outside shot at gold.
Bronze was the very least she deserved on Tuesday night… and that’s how it panned out.
But, only just, with a tiring Hull holding off another fast-finishing Kenyan, Nelly Chepchirchir, in the dying stages.
Kipyegon won her fourth world 1500m title in commanding style in 3:52.15 seconds, with the Wollongong-born athlete who now calls Newcastle home the only runner prepared to go with her from the outset.
Fellow Kenyan Dorcus Ewoi ran down Hull in the final straight to grab a surprise silver in 3:54.92.
However, she dug deep to cross the line third in 3:55.16, just nine hundredths of a second ahead of Chepchirchir, who was closing fast.
“I was so committed to giving myself a chance,” Hull said.
“And, I thought, ‘if it’s hard for me, it’s hard for all the women, it’s even hard for Faith’.
“So, I just kept reminding myself to stay in it.”
Hull’s bronze was the first by an Australian in an 800m or 1500m race at a World Championships, coming a year after she pocketed Olympic 1500m silver behind Kipyegon in Paris.
Just last month in Zurich, she was edged out by Chepchirchir in the Diamond League final after dramatically running out of gas in the shadow of the line.
This time, the Aussie would not be denied a spot on the podium.
“I think maybe running a little too fearlessly early on cost me one higher medal,” said Hull, who relocated to the former steel city in 2024.
“But, I’m on the podium again and that’s important… and something to be proud of.
“It’s hard to make the podium, but to make it two years in a row is really, really special.”
Kipyegon has been untouchable for the past five majors, including Olympic gold in Tokyo and Paris, three straight 1500m world titles and multiple world records over 1500m and the mile.
“I don’t know if we’ll really appreciate that until it’s never done again,” said Hull, who claimed Australia’s second medal of the Tokyo championships, 24 hours after pole vaulter Kurtis Marschall finished third behind another all-time great in Mondo Duplantis.
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