Tokyo, August 2 World champion Sifan Hassan made an incredible recovery from a fall at the final bell to win her 1,500 metre heat at the Olympics on Monday.

Hassan picked herself up after getting in a tangle with Kenyan runner Edinah Jebitok at the start of the last lap. She sped around the outside of the pack on the back straight and ended up crossing the line first in 4 minutes, 5.17 seconds to qualify for the semifinals.

It kept alive the Dutch runner’s bid for a rare distance-running treble at the Tokyo Games.

Also read: Tokyo Olympics: Dutee Chand finishes last in heat race

Hassan has qualified to run in the 5,000 metre final later Monday at the Olympic Stadium, when the energy she expended on that last-lap scramble in the 1,500 heats might catch up with her.

She’s expected to battle with two-time world champion Hellen Obiri of Kenya for the 5,000 metre gold.

Hassan, who won a 1,500-10,000 metre double at the world championships in 2019, says she will also run in the 10,000 metres at the Tokyo Games and go for three medals.

That gruelling schedule means she will have to run six races in eight days in the Tokyo heat and humidity, including the two races on Monday and the 1,500 metre and 10,000 metre finals on back-to-back days on Friday and Saturday.

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