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TOKYO — Two Hoosiers helped Team USA advance into the finals of their respective track and field events at the Tokyo Olympics Thursday morning.

Pike High School-graduate Lynna Irby ran the anchor leg of the women’s 4×400 meter relay team in the semi-finals of the event at Olympic Stadium. She held a lead built by her teammates during the first three legs.

The team’s time of 3:20.86 is the fastest semi-final heat in Olympic history for the women’s 4×400 relay. Irby is not expected to run on the team in the finals but will receive a medal should the final team land on the podium.

Irby is from Indianapolis and is the only track and field athlete in state history to win state championships in the 100, 200, and 400 all four years of her high school career. At 12 individual state championships, she holds the record for most all-time in the history of IHSAA track and field.

On the men’s side, Cathedral-graduate Cole Hocker took second place in his semi-final heat of the men’s 1,500-meter run. His time of 3:33.87 was just over two seconds slower than the Olympic record, which was subsequently lowered to 3:31.65 by Kenya’s Abel Kipsang in the semi-final heat immediately following Hocker’s.

2016 Olympic gold medalist Matthew Centrowitz was eliminated in the semi-finals.

Hocker won IHSAA state championships in the boys 800-meter run and 1,600-meter run in 2019 for Cathedral.

The women’s 4×400 meter relay final will be run at 8:30 a.m. EDT on Saturday, Aug. 7. The final of the men’s 1,500 will be run the same day at 7:40 a.m. EDT.

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