Buffs Alums Simpson, Coburn Gear For Olympics

BOULDER — If there's one thing to be learned from an athlete's first Olympic experience, it is how to deal with the distractions that accompany such a monumental event.

Those athletes good enough to live the experience again apply those lessons from their maiden voyage.

Jenny Simpson and Emma Coburn have learned. The two University of Colorado graduates and training partners will line up in August at the XXXI Olympiad in Rio with the first-time jitters out of the way and their eyes focused clearly on medal-worthy performances.

Simpson, an NCAA champion and multiple-time All-American as a Buff, made her Olympic debut in 2008 in the steeplechase in Beijing, where she finished ninth. She then competed in the 1,500-meter run in London in 2012, advancing to the semifinals, and this year will compete again in the 1,500 in her third Olympic appearance.

Coburn, also an NCAA champion and All-American at CU, ran in her first Olympics in London in the steeplechase and finished ninth. She'll compete in the same event this year after setting the American steeplechase record earlier this year — breaking the mark previously held by Simpson.

Simpson is no stranger to success on the world stage. She won gold at the 2011 World Championships in the 1,500, then added a silver medal to her collection in 2013. But missing from her collection is an Olympic medal, something she would like to rectify in her third appearance.

"I hope I'm getting better as I go," she said Thursday morning at a press conference at the CU Champions Center. "When you wear the red white and blue and you represent your country, it's this incredible feeling that you have. I do think I appreciate a lot of my participation and the opportunity ahead of me more than I did in 2008 and more than I did in 2012. While my respect for it and appreciation for it is growing, so is my ability to focus in on one thing and eliminate the distractions. … I think is a good thing for me to be able to focus strictly on my performance."

Coburn doesn't have quite the international experience that Simpson possesses, but she is by no means a stranger to the world stage. Along with her 2012 Olympics appearance, she also competed in the 2015 World Championships and has a host of other international races under her belt.

"Like Jenny said, the first of the Olympic experiences are a little overwhelming," Coburn said. "There are moments that gave me chills. Just being in the (Olympic) Village, being in the Opening Ceremonies. But I would say this time around is definitely less about that Olympic experience and more about that Olympic race and more about those nine minutes on the track."

Both women will be among the favorites to land a spot on the podium, as both have run times among the top 10 in the world in their event this year. Simpson's 4:01.57 clocking earlier this year in Eugene, Ore., is ninth-best in the world this year while Coburn's 9:10.76 at the same meet is fourth-best in the world. Both also won their events at the recent U.S. Championships, which served as the Olympic trials.

But Olympic events — championship racing — are always more tactical than other meets. They require calculated planning through the qualifying rounds and a keen strategic approach in the final.

"My fitness, when it comes to these sorts of races, is secondary," Simpson said. "To engage in and win the chess match — that's my favorite part about the 1,500 meters. I love championship-style racing because I think it brings out the best in me. I love standing on the line and thinking, 'Everyone is freaking out because they don't know if it's going to go out hard or if it's going to go out slow.' And when we get to 300 meters to go, if I'm in a good position, I know that fast or slow, I'll be hard to beat."

Coburn has only relatively recently begun assessing the difference between simply running as fast as she can and executing a careful strategy.

"In 2014 I sought out fast times," Coburn said. "I didn't really care if I won or came in third or came in fifth. I just wanted to run fast times. Since then, the mindset has definitely shifted to learning how to win, learning how to close well and learning how to race tactically. I think I'm as fit as I've been the last two years, but the difference how is that I've felt a little more confidence in my tactical championship racing."

The two former Buffs both train under CU cross country and track coaches Mark Wetmore and Heather Burroughs. Simpson did spend a couple of years training with another coach, but returned to Wetmore's tutelage after the 2012 Olympics.

Now, they both run on the same outdoor track, on the same mountain trails and on the same roads and paths that they have traveled for years — and they do so under coaches who know their every habit. At CU, Wetmore and Burroughs have trained at least a dozen Olympic athletes, which only adds to Simpson's and Coburn's confidence and comfort level.

"We have a good system here," Coburn said. "Training at CU, using the facilities, being in a program that I've been in for eight years now, knowing every Sunday we do the same thing, every Tuesday we do a workout. The routine of that is reassuring when there are Olympics and World Championships and all the other aspects of professional life that go into this. It's nice to have the routine of something so familiar that gives me some comfort and gives me some ease. I'm going to show up and do what I'm told and my coaches are going to prepare me well and I never have to question it."

Simpson said her regular training schedule — one with which she has become intimately familiar over the years — relieves her of "decision fatigue."

"You are so familiar with the routine and you know it that you don't have to wake up in the morning and decide where to run or decide what training to do because you've done the same thing for so long and you trust it," Simpson said. "Even on days when I don't feel as well as I think I should, or a run doesn't go as well as I would have wanted, having such a long history with the same coaches, you can't replace the trust in that relationship and you can't build that in a short period of time. It's having the faith in the program and having seen results year after year after year that's irreplaceable when it comes to an athlete's confidence."

Both are also quite firm in their support of the running community in Boulder, a city long known as a mecca for distance runners, as well as the university.

"Boulder has always been a special place to me," Coburn said. "I grew up going to Buffs games. The CU life was one that I always wanted and I never imagined that I'd be an athlete here. That wasn't even a dream of mine. … Living in Boulder and being around the students here and still being somewhat involved with the program means a lot to me. It just feels like home, it feels like where I belong. It's a beautiful place to train every day, to go up in the mountains and run. It's really easy to stay motivated here. Everyone is incredibly fit, everyone takes their health and wellness seriously. It's a really easy place to be an elite athlete."

Simpson is equally effusive in her praise for her home.

"What Boulder has to offer is unparalleled to any city in the United States," she said. "The combination of the outdoor culture, the college being here, the excellent restaurants, the pedestrian mall. … The training is excellent and also the ability to kind of detach from the training and have a really wonderful life independent of training is possible here. It's a really special place."

Simpson will be the first of the two to run when she opens competition on the evening of Friday, Aug. 12, in round one of the 1,500. The semifinals are set for Aug. 14 and the finals Aug. 16. Coburn will run in the first round of the steeplechase in the morning on Aug. 13 with the finals set for Aug. 15.

There's little doubt what will be on each of their minds.

"A gold medal at the Olympic games is really the pinnacle of the sporting world," Simpson said. "It's not the pinnacle of running or of the women's 1500 meters, it's the pinnacle of athletic achievement in the world. Along the way there are different benchmarks that you dream of and hope for and work for, and the gold medal at the Olympic games is the superlative."

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu

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