Fisher secures rare Olympic bronze for U.S. in 10K; Cheptegei strikes gold

SAINT-DENIS, France -- For so much of his career, Grant Fisher has felt like an outsider in his own sport.

Regular fourth- and fifth-place finishes in international competitions will do that.

But now, as a bronze medalist, the American is as much a 10,000-meter insider as anybody.

"I've been close to the medals before, but I've never gotten one until [now]," Fisher, who came into the Olympics just off podium contention at the last Olympics and world championships, said.

It was during the thrilling final race of the first full day of Olympic track and field events at the Stade de France when Fisher earned the third-place finish that helped showcase the long-distance prowess American runners have been desperate to prove they possess.

While his finish was partially overshadowed by Ugandan runner Joshua Cheptegei's Olympic-record time of 26:43.14, it was an accomplishment Fisher had reason to celebrate, nonetheless.

"There's a handful of guys that have made it to the top three, but they're few and far between," Fisher said. "The narrative when I was a kid was the U.S., you just can't run with the East African guys. You can't run with the best European guys. And I hope I showed that I'm capable of that."

Fisher's U.S. teammate, Nico Young, believes Fisher's finish showed exactly that.

"It sets the standard of what Americans can do at this event going forward," Young said.

This bronze marked only the fourth time an American runner has medaled in the event at the Olympics. Galen Rupp was the last to do so, earning silver at the 2012 Games. Billy Mills, who recently has been steadily backing Fisher as a potential gold medal hopeful, won gold in 1964. In 1912, Lewis Tewanima earned silver in Stockholm.

Fisher, 27, has long regarded Mills a hero. He still owns a T-shirt that he said Mills signed when Fisher was a kid and saw Mills speak at a function in Michigan.

Lately, Fisher has started feeling like he can have an impact on his sport similar to the one Mills had.

"In the past three years my mindset has shifted a lot, that I kind of belong in these positions more," Fisher said. "I hope that people can see that as my mindset shifts so should everybody in the U.S., as well. People are capable of great things, and you have to put yourself in the positions and believe in yourself in order for good things to happen."

Part of the shift in mindset came last year, when Fisher moved to Park City, Utah, to train in altitude like some of the runners he was routinely losing to.

"That was one piece of the puzzle that bumped me up one second over the course of a 10k, and I think it was a big piece," Fisher said. "You look at everyone that medals in the 10k year after year, pretty much everyone lives at altitude."

It was during a dramatic final lap when Fisher made his move in Friday night's race, easing his way from the top five all the way into third place. Although he ultimately couldn't catch Cheptegei, Fisher and silver medalist Berihu Aregawi were pushing hard in the final 100 meters for gold.

"For me, it's a very special day here in Paris," Cheptegei, 27, said. "Really huge respect for these guys, and maybe for me, maybe it's time to go to the roads.

"I think this is my last Olympics, and maybe my last track and field."

On more than one occasion after the race, Cheptegei hinted that his illustrious 10-year career, which includes multiple world championships and another gold medal in the 5,000 meters, was over.

In addition to this new Olympic record -- a time that 13 runners in the field have surpassed in other competitions -- Cheptegei also holds the current world record of 26:11.00, set in October 2020.