TOKYO 2020: Cheruiyot leads Kenyan trio to 1500m semis

World 1500m champion Timothy Cheruiyot got his campaign for an Olympics gold off to a comfortable start as he cruised to the semifinal alongside the other two Kenyans Abel Kipsang and Charles Simotwo. 

Cheruiyot was first on the track in heat one and he stayed in the lead from the second lap with Ethiopian Samuel Tefera right on his shoulder. As the speed picked up at the bell, Tefera found himself jostled out of position as Belgian, Ismael Debjani crossed the libe first in 3:36.00 with the Kenyan 0:01seconds slower as he eased into second place. 

Australian Oliver Hoare was third (3:36.09). As USA's Cole Hocker, Morocco's Abdelatif Sadiki and Pole Michal Rozmys completed the six automatic qualifiers from the first heat. 

Kipsang, in a slower second heat elected to race at the helm of the pack that. He took the bell in third place but quickly raced back to the front and put a gap between him and the Olympic defending champion Mathew Centrowitz to cross the line in first place in 3:40.68 as the American came second in 3:41.12. 

Poland's Marcin Lewandowski, the world bronze medalist, who was clipped and fell with about 300m to go, in the second heat, but picked himself up to finish the race in last place was reinstated to the semifinal. He now has a chance to improve on his sixth-place finish at the Rio Games. 

Athletics Kenya (AK) national trials winner, Simotwo, racing in the third and final heat had an anxious wait after crossing the line in tenth place in a fast heat in 3:37. 26. Having clearly missed the automatic qualification slots, he made through to the semis by the skin of his teeth as the sixth fastest non-automatic qualifier. Great Britain's Jake Heyward won the heat in 3:36.14. 

Cheruiyot's time (3:36.01) was the fastest of the three Kenyans while Kipsang's, despite being first in his heat, was the slowest, even slower than Simotwo's tenth place finish.