Nikki Hiltz Takes the Olympic Trials 1500 Meters ACL surgery just over a year ago, only started running on the ground in September. Tonight, she won the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase in a meet-record 9:03.22 to secure her second Olympic berth.
Courtney Wayment, who was fourth in the 2021 Trials, finished second in 9:06.50, and Marisa Howard was third in 9:07.14; all three will head to the Paris Olympic Games. Their times were also personal bests—in fact, the top nine women in the race all ran the fastest times of their careers.
With Olympic medalists Emma Coburn and Courtney Frerichs Gabby Thomas Wins 200 Meters injury, Constien was the only returning Olympian in the field—she’d placed third in the 2021 Trials and represented the U.S. in Tokyo.
Annie Rodenfels took an early lead, but never quite looked comfortable—before several of the barriers, she stepped slightly sideways before hurdling. The trailing pack caught her around the 1500-meter mark, and Wayment moved to the lead, followed by Constien, Howard, BYU’s Lexy Halladay, 2023 NCAA Champion Olivia Markezich, and Gabbi Jennings.
Heading into the bell lap, Constien began kicking ahead, and Markezich attempted to follow. But Markezich landed awkwardly after the final water jump, allowing Howard to slip past as Constien’s lead continued to build. Wayment passed Howard after the final barrier, and then Markezich fell to the track, cementing the top three spots.
Despite her fall, Markezich finished in 9:14.87 for sixth place, and told reporters afterward the fast pace caused her legs to go lactic. “You never overlook what can happen in the last 200 of a steeple—someone can fall,” she said. “You never think that’s going to happen to you, but it does.”
For her part, Constien was visibly emotional on the NBC broadcast, recounting the timeline of her injury and recovery. “It’s really emotional, because it was really tough,” she told Lewis Johnson. “To just be here is a really big deal, but to be able to ... win and run a huge personal best, I’m just so lucky and so blessed.”
And, talking with reporters in the mixed zone, she paid respect to the Olympians who were missing, crediting them for the fast times despite their absence from the track. “Emma and Courtney Frerichs paved the way; without them we wouldn’t have such a high bar. Everyone’s aspiring, everyone’s inspired by them,” she said. “I think that without them, there’s no way we could’ve done what we did.”
For Wayment, the podium finish represented redemption after finishing fourth last time. “When you watch your dreams run away from you in the last 30 seconds, it makes you feel something you don’t ever want to feel again,” she said. And Howard, a 2015 Boise State roughen who won silver in the steeplechase at the 2019 Pan American Games, waved to her two-year-old son, Kai, who was waiting in the stands.
Allie Ostrander, an outspoken advocate for eating disorder recovery, finished seventh in a personal best 9:21.82; Krissy Gear, who last year edged out Emma Coburn to take the national title in this event, did not finish.
Cindy is a freelance health and fitness writer, author, and podcaster who’s contributed regularly to Runner’s World since 2013. She’s the coauthor of both Breakthrough Women’s Running: Dream Big and Train Smart and Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries, a book about the psychology of sports injury from Bloomsbury Sport. Cindy specializes in covering injury prevention and recovery, everyday athletes accomplishing extraordinary things, and the active community in her beloved Chicago, where winter forges deep bonds between those brave enough to train through it.
