Thursday, November 2nd, 2023.- Canadian middle-distance runners Charles Philibert-Thiboutot and Robert Joseph Heppenstall secured gold and silver in the male's 1,500 meters event held at Estadio Nacional.

The winner at Santiago 2023 capitalized on a misjudgment by his compatriot, who celebrated prematurely, snatching victory by just two hundredths of a second (3'39''74 and 3'39''76, respectively).

This marks Charles Philibert-Thiboutot's second medal at these Pan American Games, as he had previously won silver in the 5,000 meters on Wednesday.

The bronze medal went to Casey Comber from the United States, with a final time of 3'39''90.

Both Philibert-Thiboutot and Heppenstall, specialists in the 1,500 and 5,000 meters, were favorites to lead the race and made their move on the home stretch, leaving Mexican Fernando Daniel Martínez, who ultimately finished ninth, behind.

Fourth place went to Puerto Rico's Robert Anthony Napolitano (3’40’’12), while fifth was secured by American Kasey Knevelbaard (3’40’’31), who had previously won gold in the 5,000 meters.

Nevertheless, despite the strong finish, the winner couldn't surpass the Pan American record, which is still held by the Brazilian Hudson da Souza, achieved in Rio de Janeiro in 2007.

Representing Team Chile, Diego Ignacio Uribe finished in eleventh place with a time of 3'45''56.

Written by Ernesto Bustos B. – Manfred Schwager; translated by Rocio Rojas / Photosport
Photo by Marcelo Hernandez / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport