Elle St. Pierre qualifies for Paris in blistering 1,500 final at US Olympic Trials

Elle St. Pierre will get another chance to run the 1,500 at the Olympic Games.

The 29-year-old Vermont native finished third in a record-setting 1,500-meter final during Sunday night's U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene, Oregon, to seal another spot on the American team headed to Paris next month.

Last week, St. Pierre captured a photo finish in the 5K, setting a Trials record in the process. In 2021, St. Pierre placed 10th at the Tokyo Olympics in the 1,500.

In her fifth race of these Trials and third in four days, St. Pierre took command early in Sunday's 1,500, charging out with a 61-second first lap, according to the NBC broadcast. St. Pierre held the lead until the final straightaway, when training partner Emily Mackay inched ahead before Nikki Hiltz blasted in the front of both of them to set a new meet record.

Hiltz's time of 3 minutes, 55.3 seconds broke St. Pierre's previous mark of 3:58.3 set in 2021.

Mackay, a former America East Conference like St. Pierre, earned a time of 3:55.90. St. Pierre finished in 3:55.99. The top eight runners broke 4:00 and all set personal bests.

"I just wanted to make it honest," St. Pierre told the Register-Guard newspaper. "I knew I could run fast and I was honestly surprised how well my legs felt after running two 5Ks and two other rounds of the 1,500."

Although St. Pierre qualified in two events, she'll likely just run the 1,500 in Paris, according to her coach, Mark Coogan, who spoke with Citius Mag editor Chris Chavez on Sunday night.

"We’re 100% leaning toward just running the 1500m in Paris," Coogan told Chavez.

Later Sunday, St. Pierre confirmed to Citius Mag that she would run just the 1,500.

Timeline of St. Pierre's rise in track and field world

St. Pierre's rise in the world of track and field has been years in the making. Here's a brief synopsis of St. Pierre's ascension, in chronological order from high school to college to the pro circuit and U.S. Olympic team.

► 2009-2013: At Richford High School, St. Pierre became a multi-year state champion in cross-country running and outdoor track. She still holds five Division IV state records (four individual, one relay) in outdoor track, won the New England cross-country title twice and was the 2012 Northeast Regional XC champion.

► 2013-2018: In her career at the University of New Hampshire, St. Pierre continued her climb as one of the nation's elite. She's the most decorated athlete in UNH school history, winning the NCAA indoor mile as a senior, was an 11-time All-American and claimed 17 conference titles in America East.

► 2019: After signing with New Balance and turning pro in 2018, St. Pierre placed 11th in the 5,000 meters at the 2019 world championships in Qatar.

2021 file:Timeline of the Vermont Olympian's rise from Montgomery to Team USA

► Feb. 2020: St. Pierre smashed a 37-year national mark in the mile (4:16.85), the second-fastest time ever. 

► Feb. 2021: On a winter day on Staten Island, Purrier St. Pierre reset the American indoor 2-mile record (9:10.28) at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix.

► June 2021: After regaining her composure after getting pushed off the track in the opening meters of the 1,500, St. Pierre won wire-to-wire in a new meet record time to seize the U.S. national championship at the Olympic Trials. The 3:58.3 effort was also a personal best and clinched her spot on Team USA for the Tokyo Games.

► Aug. 2021: Made the final of the 1,500 at the Olympic Games and finished 10th in Tokyo.

► Feb. 2022: Captured gold in the 3,000 and bronze in the 1,500 at the U.S. indoor national championships.

► June 2022: Competing while pregnant, St. Pierre took third in the 1,500 at the U.S. outdoor championships.

► Feb. 2024: Returning to racing after giving birth to a son, St. Pierre broke her own American indoor record (4:16.41) to claim the Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games in New York.

► March 2024: Stormed to her first world championship title, earning victory in the 3,000 (8:20.87) with a new national record.

► May 2024: Set a personal-best in the 1,500 at a meet in Eugene, Oregon (3:56.00), which is the second-fastest time ever by an American woman.

► June 2024: Breaks Trials record in the 5K (14:40.34) to book spot in the Paris Olympic Games in August.

Contact Alex Abrami at aabrami@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter: @aabrami5.