Cole Hocker, who recently won gold in the 1500-meter race at the Paris Olympics, recounted how God carried him over the finish line to take first place when it seemed impossible. The runner finished with a personal best and Olympic record time of 3 minutes and 27.65 seconds, overtaking several other runners ahead of him in the final 100 meters of the race.
Speaking to NBC after the race he said, “Yeah, I think it was such a rare kind of way that that unfolded. But I knew initially, when I opened up, I thought, oh, like, that’s my that’s my path to gold. Like, I know that I’m gonna out-kick these guys. But then I got, you know, he shifted in and closed me out, and I had to reassess. And it’s not always. It’s not easy to find a gear again once I’ve already committed. So I mean, I don’t know what it was divine intervention or what, but I got the next gear.”
Commenting on the amazing finish he said, “I just saw, obviously, Kerr and Ingebrigtsen just battling, kind of having their own battle. And I knew that in my head that they were so focused on each other.” Once he found the opportunity to win the race Hocker said he “just let God carry me through the finish line.”
In past comments, Hocker illustrated his faith and how it plays into his running. “The reason I run is because I have a God-given talent,” he said in 2021. He also mentioned that he believes his running abilities are a gift from God. “I just feel God has given me the gift of running, and my job is to give it my best,” he claimed. “On top of that, because I’ve been given that, I want to take advantage of it. And it’s more gratifying because of how hard I have worked.”
Many Olympic athletes have recently used their platform to express their Christian faith. The Christian Tribune recently reported on comments from legendary track and field athlete and outspoken Christian Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who gave the credit to God after becoming the first female athlete in history to win two consecutive gold medals in the 400-meter hurdles.
“I credit all that I do to God. He’s given me a gift. He’s given me a drive to just want to continue to improve upon myself,” she told the press after the win. “I have a platform and I want to use it to glorify Him, and so whenever I step on the track, it’s always the prayer of ‘God let me be the vessel in which you’re glorified’ whatever the result is, how I conduct myself, how I carry myself, not just how I perform.”
“So it’s just freedom in knowing that regardless of what happens, He’s going to get the praise through me,” she said. “And yeah, that’s why I do what I do.” Commenting on the race, McLaughlin-Levron added, “I’m feeling great. Honestly, woke up. Surreal. … Honestly, you just got to run through the line. You never really know what’s going on behind you. And you never know how close anybody is with the crowd screaming like that. So you just got to keep running your race, clear those 10 hurdles, and just sprint to the line.”
Featured image credit: Lorenzomontgomery, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hocker_Cole-FH-USAind24.webp