Bor wins steeplechase title, qualifies for Tokyo Olympics

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Photo: Megan Brandt/Iowa State D

Hillary Bor positions himself during the 3,000-meter steeplechase June 8, 2011. Bor competed in the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. 

Adarsh Tamma

Former Iowa State All-American athlete Hillary Bor qualified for his second consecutive Olympics on Saturday by winning the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon.

Bor, who won the 2019 National Championship, stayed near the lead of the pack for a majority of the race in the final and was in second place coming off of the last water jump. Over the last 100 meters, he unleashed a kick for home, passing Bernard Keter on the home straight to book his place at next month’s Tokyo Olympics in a time of 8:21.34. Bor finished seventh in the steeplechase at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, crossing the line in a then-personal-best time of 8:22.74 behind teammate and silver medalist Evan Jager.

June 21 also saw the first Cyclone to compete in a final, as senior Daniel Nixon took part in the men’s 800 meters. Nixon, who finished the NCAA Championships at Hayward Field a week before, found himself in this race after running a personal-best time of 1:46.15 in the first round before clocking 1:46.21 in his semifinal heat to earn his place in the final. One of three collegians in that race, Nixon again ran a personal best, closing out his collegiate career with a seventh-place finish by clocking 1:45.56 to record the second-fastest time in school history.

After a three-day rest period, the Cyclones were back on the track Thursday as senior Eric Fogltanz competed in the first round of the men’s 400-meter hurdles. The Manitowoc, Wisconsin, native concluded his Iowa State career by finishing fifth in the opening heat of the first round with a time of 51.63 seconds. Fogltanz collected Second Team All-American honors at the NCAA Championships by finishing 12th overall, earning six All-American honors in total during his time as a Cyclone.

Junior Cailie Logue concluded the meet for Iowa State on Saturday by taking part in the women’s 10,000-meter final. She was one of two collegians in the race along with Rice University sophomore Grace Forbes and finished 32nd in the race with a time of 33:32.51. Logue finished 14th in this event at the NCAA Championships with a season-best time of 33:07.63 and defended her Big 12 titles in both the 5K and 10K earlier this season at the conference championships.

Bor will toe the line at 9 a.m. Japanese Standard Time (7 p.m. Central Standard Time) on July 30 at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo for the first round of the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase.