1,500 metres, Women
| Date | 21 – 23 August 2008 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Beijing Guojia Tiyuchang, Beijing Aolinpike Gongyuan, Beijing |
| Participants | 33 from 18 countries |
Prior to the Olympics, the Russians were expected to challenge for the medals in this event. But the entire Russian athletics team was roiled by multiple doping irregularities, and their three top 1,500 women were eliminated – Yelena Soboleva, 2008 indoor World Champion and 2007 World silver medalist; Yuliya Fomenko (Chizhenko-), 2008 indoor silver medalist; and Athina silver medalist Tatyana Tomashova. They had not actually tested positive but were found to have substituted clean urine at doping control, and when found out, were banned for two years. The favorite’s role fell to Ethiopian-born Bahraini Maryam Jamal, the 2007 World Champion, but the event was open. The final was led for two laps by the lone remaining Russian women in the event, Anna Alminova. Jamal took the lead on the homestraight of the third lap, planning a sustained kick. But at 1,250 m., Nancy Langat burst to the front, and ran her last 200 in 29.4 to win the gold medal by over 10 metres. Jamal fell back to fifth. Langat was little-known, her last major international title being the World Junior title at 800 back in 2000.
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | R1 | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2282 | Nancy Langat |  KEN | 4:03.02 (1 h3) | 4:00.23 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 3105 | Iryna Lishchynska |  UKR | 4:13.60 (1 h2) | 4:01.63 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 3069 | Nataliya Tobias | UKR | 4:03.19 (2 h3) | 4:01.78 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 1798 | Lisa Dobriskey |  GBR | 4:03.22 (3 h3) | 4:02.10 (4) | |||
| 5 | 1254 | Maryam Jamal |  BRN | 4:05.14 (1 h1) | 4:02.71 (5) | |||
| 6 | 1622 | Natalia Rodríguez |  ESP | 4:05.30 (2 h1) | 4:03.19 (6) | |||
| 7 | 3173 | Shannon Rowbury |  USA | 4:03.89 (4 h3) | 4:03.58 (7) | |||
| 8 | 1592 | Iris Fuentes-Pila | ESP | 4:14.10 (2 h2) | 4:04.86 (8) | |||
| 9 | 3124 | Hanna Mishchenko | UKR | 4:05.61 (4 h1) | 4:05.13 (9) | |||
| 10 | 2384 | Siham Hilali |  MAR | 4:05.36 (3 h1) | 4:05.57 (10) | |||
| 11 | 3328 | Anna Alminova |  RUS | 4:04.66 (5 h3) | 4:06.99 (11) | |||
| 12 | 2408 | Btissam Lakhouad | MAR | 4:14.34 (3 h2) | 4:07.25 (12) | |||
| 4 h2 r1/2 | 1835 | Susan Scott | GBR | 4:14.66 (4 h2) | – | |||
| 5 h1 r1/2 | 1045 | Sarah Jamieson |  AUS | 4:06.64 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 5 h2 r1/2 | 2262 | Viola Kibiwott | KEN | 4:15.62 (5 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h1 r1/2 | 1843 | Stephanie Twell | GBR | 4:06.68 (6 h1) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r1/2 | 1655 | Gelete Burka |  ETH | 4:15.77 (6 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h3 r1/2 | 2579 | Sylwia Ejdys |  POL | 4:08.37 (6 h3) | – | |||
| 7 h1 r1/2 | 2628 | Anna Jakubczak | POL | 4:07.33 (7 h1) | – | |||
| 7 h2 r1/2 | 2481 | Agnes Samaria |  NAM | 4:15.80 (7 h2) | – | |||
| 7 h3 r1/2 | 2722 | René Kalmer |  RSA | 4:08.41 (7 h3) | – | |||
| 8 h1 r1/2 | 3262 | Christy Wurth-Thomas | USA | 4:09.70 (8 h1) | – | |||
| 8 h2 r1/2 | 3161 | Erin Donohue | USA | 4:16.05 (8 h2) | – | |||
| 8 h3 r1/2 | 2883 | Sonja Roman |  SLO | 4:08.52 (8 h3) | – | |||
| 9 h1 r1/2 | 2274 | Irene Jelagat | KEN | 4:09.92 (9 h1) | – | |||
| 9 h2 r1/2 | 1068 | Lisa Corrigan | AUS | 4:16.32 (9 h2) | – | |||
| 9 h3 r1/2 | 1397 | Liu Qing |  CHN | 4:09.27 (9 h3) | – | |||
| 10 h1 r1/2 | 1948 | Konstantina Efentaki |  GRE | 4:15.02 (10 h1) | – | |||
| 10 h2 r1/2 | 2572 | Lidia Chojecka | POL | 4:19.57 (10 h2) | – | |||
| 10 h3 r1/2 | 1681 | Meskerem Assefa | ETH | 4:10.04 (10 h3) | – | |||
| 11 h1 r1/2 | 1009 | Nahida Touhami |  ALG | 4:18.99 (11 h1) | – | |||
| 11 h2 r1/2 | 1854 | Domingas Togna |  GBS | 5:05.76 (11 h2) | – | |||
| 11 h3 r1/2 | 2387 | Bouchra Chaabi | MAR | 4:19.89 (11 h3) | – |
Round One
| Date | 21 August 2008 |
|---|---|
| Format | Top three in each heat and three two fastest advanced to the final. |
Heat #1
| Time | 19:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Start Order | Competitor | NOC | Time (Automatic) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1254 | Maryam Jamal | BRN | 4:05.14 | ||
| 2 | 1622 | Natalia Rodríguez | ESP | 4:05.30 | ||
| 3 | 2384 | Siham Hilali | MAR | 4:05.36 | ||
| 4 | 3124 | Hanna Mishchenko | UKR | 4:05.61 | ||
| 5 | 1045 | Sarah Jamieson | AUS | 4:06.64 | ||
| 6 | 1843 | Stephanie Twell | GBR | 4:06.68 | ||
| 7 | 2628 | Anna Jakubczak | POL | 4:07.33 | ||
| 8 | 3262 | Christy Wurth-Thomas | USA | 4:09.70 | ||
| 9 | 2274 | Irene Jelagat | KEN | 4:09.92 | ||
| 10 | 1948 | Konstantina Efentaki | GRE | 4:15.02 | ||
| 11 | 1009 | Nahida Touhami | ALG | 4:18.99 |
Split Times
| Time | Athlete(s) | NOC | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400 m | Hanna Mishchenko | | 1:07.96 | |
| 800 m | Hanna Mishchenko | | 2:13.98 | |
| 1,200 m | Maryam Jamal | | 3:18.80 |
Heat #2
| Time | 19:09 |
|---|
| Pos | Start Order | Competitor | NOC | Time (Automatic) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3105 | Iryna Lishchynska | UKR | 4:13.60 | ||
| 2 | 1592 | Iris Fuentes-Pila | ESP | 4:14.10 | ||
| 3 | 2408 | Btissam Lakhouad | MAR | 4:14.34 | ||
| 4 | 1835 | Susan Scott | GBR | 4:14.66 | ||
| 5 | 2262 | Viola Kibiwott | KEN | 4:15.62 | ||
| 6 | 1655 | Gelete Burka | ETH | 4:15.77 | ||
| 7 | 2481 | Agnes Samaria | NAM | 4:15.80 | ||
| 8 | 3161 | Erin Donohue | USA | 4:16.05 | ||
| 9 | 1068 | Lisa Corrigan | AUS | 4:16.32 | ||
| 10 | 2572 | Lidia Chojecka | POL | 4:19.57 | ||
| 11 | 1854 | Domingas Togna | GBS | 5:05.76 |
Split Times
| Time | Athlete(s) | NOC | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400 m | Gelete Burka | | 1:11.41 | |
| 800 m | Iryna Lishchynska | | 2:24.93 | |
| 1,200 m | Viola Kibiwott | | 3:30.41 |
Heat #3
| Time | 19:18 |
|---|
| Pos | Start Order | Competitor | NOC | Time (Automatic) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2282 | Nancy Langat | KEN | 4:03.02 | ||
| 2 | 3069 | Nataliya Tobias | UKR | 4:03.19 | ||
| 3 | 1798 | Lisa Dobriskey | GBR | 4:03.22 | ||
| 4 | 3173 | Shannon Rowbury | USA | 4:03.89 | ||
| 5 | 3328 | Anna Alminova | RUS | 4:04.66 | ||
| 6 | 2579 | Sylwia Ejdys | POL | 4:08.37 | ||
| 7 | 2722 | René Kalmer | RSA | 4:08.41 | ||
| 8 | 2883 | Sonja Roman | SLO | 4:08.52 | ||
| 9 | 1397 | Liu Qing | CHN | 4:09.27 | ||
| 10 | 1681 | Meskerem Assefa | ETH | 4:10.04 | ||
| 11 | 2387 | Bouchra Chaabi | MAR | 4:19.89 |
Split Times
| Time | Athlete(s) | NOC | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400 m | Liu Qing | | 1:02.71 | |
| 800 m | Shannon Rowbury | | 2:11.44 | |
| 1,200 m | Anna Alminova | | 3:17.40 |
Final Round
| Date | 23 August 2008 — 19:50 |
|---|
| Pos | Start Order | Competitor | NOC | Time (Automatic) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2282 | Nancy Langat | KEN | 4:00.23 | ||
| 2 | 3105 | Iryna Lishchynska | UKR | 4:01.63 | ||
| 3 | 3069 | Nataliya Tobias | UKR | 4:01.78 | ||
| 4 | 1798 | Lisa Dobriskey | GBR | 4:02.10 | ||
| 5 | 1254 | Maryam Jamal | BRN | 4:02.71 | ||
| 6 | 1622 | Natalia Rodríguez | ESP | 4:03.19 | ||
| 7 | 3173 | Shannon Rowbury | USA | 4:03.58 | ||
| 8 | 1592 | Iris Fuentes-Pila | ESP | 4:04.86 | ||
| 9 | 3124 | Hanna Mishchenko | UKR | 4:05.13 | ||
| 10 | 2384 | Siham Hilali | MAR | 4:05.57 | ||
| 11 | 3328 | Anna Alminova | RUS | 4:06.99 | ||
| 12 | 2408 | Btissam Lakhouad | MAR | 4:07.25 |
Split Times
| Time | Athlete(s) | NOC | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400 m | Anna Alminova | | 1:05.90 | |
| 800 m | Anna Alminova | | 2:13.70 | |
| 1,200 m | Maryam Jamal | | 3:16.41 |