Cole Hocker

Cole Hocker (born June 6, 2001) is an American middle- and long-distance runner. In the 1500 meters, he won the gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, setting an Olympic record and an area record of 3:27.65. In 2025, he ran the second-fastest indoor 3000 meter time in history with 7:23.14. In the 5000 meters, he won a world title at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

Hocker holds multiple national titles in annual competitions organized by USA Track & Field, including four titles in the 1500 m, one title in the 3000 meters, and one title in the 5000 m. In March 2024, he won a silver medal in the 1500 m at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. Hocker also placed sixth in the 1500 m at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and seventh at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

In high school, Hocker won several high-level competitions including the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in 2018. Beginning in 2019, he competed for the University of Oregon, where he won four NCAA titles. Hocker announced in 2021 that he would forgo his remaining NCAA eligibility to run professionally, signing with Nike.

In September 2024, it was announced that Hocker signed with Michael Johnson's Grand Slam Track league for the 2025 season, in the short distance (800 m/1500 m) category.

Hocker was born on June 6, 2001, in Indianapolis, Indiana to Janet (née Davis), a lawyer, and Kyle Hocker, a teacher. He began running competitively at a young age, recording a time of 4:36 for the mile as an eighth grader. He attended Cathedral High School, where he won multiple state- and national-level races. He was second in the 2017 IHSAA Cross Country State Finals and won in '18. He finished second at the 2018 Nike Cross Nationals, and he won the 2018 Foot Locker Cross Country Championships. For college, he chose the University of Oregon over offers from many other schools including Northern Arizona University and Indiana University.

Hocker ran for the Oregon Ducks from 2019 to 2021. At the 2021 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, he won the mile in 3:53.71 and the 3000 meters in 7:46.15. Earlier that year, he ran a personal best of 3:50.55 in the mile on February 12, 2021, finishing in a close second to teammate Cooper Teare at a meet at the Randal Tyson Track Center. The two set the seventh and eighth all-time fastest performances for the indoor mile.

At the 2021 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Hocker won the 1500 meters in a time of 3:35.35, outkicking NCAA record holder Yared Nuguse. He also finished 4th in the 5000 meters in a time of 13:18.95. At the 2020 United States Olympic Trials, Hocker won the 1500 m final ahead of Matthew Centrowitz and Yared Nuguse. Hocker did not have the Olympic qualifying time; however, he qualified for the Games based on his world ranking position.

At the 2020 Olympic Games, Hocker placed 6th in the 1500 m with a time of 3:31.40, setting a new personal best. His time was under the Olympic Record set 2 days prior in the semifinals by Abel Kipsang of Kenya. Hocker qualified for the semifinals by running 3:36.16 for 4th in his heat. He then ran 3:33.87, then a personal best placing 2nd in his semifinal to qualify for the final.