American steeplechase star Emma Coburn shared on Instagram that her “dream of Paris” is over after she broke her ankle at a meet in Shanghai last month.
The 2016 Olympic bronze medallist and 2017 world champion landed heavily during a jump in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Diamond League event in China last month, forcing her out of the race, and was diagnosed with a fracture in her right ankle.
This ends Coburn’s bid for a fourth Olympic Games. Coburn had been gearing up for the U.S. Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore., next month and was a favourite for the American team in Paris this summer.
“I don’t know what to say,” she wrote in her post, which shows her fall at the Shanghai race, initially believing the damage was just a sprain. “When I got home, images showed torn ligaments, damaged cartilage, and a fracture in my medial malleolus.”
The 33-year-old shared that she had surgery on Wednesday and hopes to return to “jogging” some time in the next six weeks.
Coburn’s post shares videos of her in a cast, beginning her rehab with strength exercises and riding the stationary bike. A well-loved figure on the U.S. track and field scene, her post garnered supportive messages from several fellow running stars, such as marathoner Kara Goucher and decorated track star Allyson Felix, who wished her well in her recovery and expressed support for her comeback.
“I love this sport and nothing heals a broken heart like working hard and getting back,” she says in her post. “See ya out there later this year.”
Coburn placed 14th in the steeplechase at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics before learning her result was disqualified when she stepped off the track after a last-lap stumble over the barrier. She finished 28th in the event at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest.
The women’s Olympic 3,000-metre steeplechase event is set to take place on August 4.
