This summer in Tokyo, two former Hopkins High School runners will compete in the Olympics. This past weekend, Joe Klecker, a 2015 alumnus of Hopkins, qualified for Team USA by finishing third in the 10,000-meter run at the USATF Olympic Trials.
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J. Klecker Olympic Games
Klecker excelled as a runner at the University of Colorado and is now a professional runner. Joe Fahnbulleh, a 2019 graduate of Hopkins, will compete at the summer games for Liberia, from which his parents immigrated.
Fahnbulleh is the current 200-meter NCAA champion for the University of Florida. The Olympic Summer Games begin on July 23.
The former Hopkins star began the race in the midst of the group of 27 competitors. However, he fell behind in a race held in oppressively humid conditions.
Joe Klecker did his best to prepare for the challenges that awaited him. Klecker completed his final training during the warmest part of the day to prepare his body for the men’s 10,000-meter event at the Olympic Games. Tokyo is notorious for its sticky, humid summers, so Klecker completed his final workouts during the hottest portion of the day.
This tactic was ineffective against what Klecker’s teammate Woody Kincaid termed “next-level heat.” Friday, Klecker, a native of Minnetonka and alumni of Hopkins High School, finished 16th in arduous conditions. Grant Fisher, the third American runner, placed fifth. Kincaid placed one rank higher.
At Olympic Stadium, African runners swept the top four positions. Ethiopia’s Selemon Barega won in 27 minutes, 43.22 seconds, followed by Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo. In the penultimate lap of the 10,000-meter race, Barega overtook Cheptegei, the world champion and record-holder.
The Race was the Opening Medal Event of the Track and Field Competition at the Tokyo Olympics.
Throughout the Olympics, the weather has lived up to Tokyo’s reputation for oppressive heat and humidity. When the race began at 8:30 p.m. Japan Standard Time, the temperature was still 77 degrees, the humidity was 93%, and afternoon showers gave the air a tropical feel.
Friday AM local time, Klecker, a former University of Colorado distance expert, ensured that his trip was a successful business trip and not a vacation. In his Olympic debut, Klecker completed the 10,000-meter run in 28 minutes, 14.18 seconds to place sixteenth.
Friday AM local time, Klecker, a former University of Colorado distance expert, ensured that his trip was a successful business trip and not a vacation. In his Olympic debut, Klecker completed the 10,000-meter run in 28 minutes, 14.18 seconds to place sixteenth.
Last Words
Joe Klecker is a genuine All-American athlete who grew up with the Minnesota Range as a backdrop for his cross country training…nordic skiing, snowshoeing, and running through the cold winters strengthened Joe’s soul…
Joe is a Pac-12 champion, seven-time All-American, and two-time NCAA runner-up; he studied biochemistry, ecology, and evolutionary biology at Colorado, where he also competed on the track and field team. Thanks for reading our article J. Klecker Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
