Cole DQ'd

I have been saying all season that Hocker's tactics are garbage. He constantly gets himself trapped in lane 1 for the kick... and often after pointlessly leading the race early on.

Hocker was just being a selfish jerk. He goes around acting like a goody goody church boy, but he just showed his true colors... absolute disregard for his fellow competitors. Even Paul Chelimo would be ashamed of that move.

No longer a Hocker fan. Hopefully he gets embarrassed in the 5k. And hopefully the other athletes bully him for the rest of his career like they did with Solinsky.

Hocker being playing with fire in most races -in a few races he managed to squeeze thru - this time had to barge way to get into qualifying position. Don't understand his race tactics - hug the kerb and hope someone lets him thru - this time closed him down. Maybe learn to race a bit different. Maybe not!!!!!

Actually, it does work that way sometimes. When Mo Farah cut off Hassan Mead in Rio, causing him to fall, it was a clear and more egregious violation than Hocker's. But there was no DQ for Farah, the biggest star in distance running.

Last year Kipyegon was DQ'd (wrongly, in my opinion) then reinstated for her little dust up with Tsegay. The problem is lack of consistency with these incidents.

Not only is this a terrible call, it's bad for the sport. My gf finally started getting into track and field this past year and watching with me. The people she knows and roots for: Jakob, Yared, Cole, Hobbs. We don't like Kerr, and Laros is too new for her to know anything about him. She's completely uninterested in the final now.

But more practically, rubbing is racing. Bad tactics don't mean you DQ someone for defending their position when they are being boxed in on all sides. There was no pulling or pushing, just a little bit of jostling. Nillessen, Gourley, and Farken were all cornering him into a small space, and he found a way to not fall down. There should be no DQ here. What a farce.

It's also bad for the sport because now, if Laros wins against no Jakob, no Yared, and no Hocker - does it really say that much? No Habz or P. Koech? So what if he outkicks an aging Kerr. Laros should feel robbed of the opportunity to really test himself against the best.

This will be a very disappointing end to the 1500 in a post Olympic year.

Cole Hocker fanboys go home devastated.

Read the rules

The Rule
Obstruction – Rule 17.1
If an athlete is jostled or obstructed during an event so as to impede their progress, then:
17.1.2. If another athlete is found by the Referee to be responsible for the jostling or obstruction, such athlete (or their team) shall be liable to disqualification from that event. The Referee may, if they are of the opinion that an athlete (or their team) was seriously affected, in accordance with Rule 18.7 of the Competition Rules or Rule 8.4 of the Technical Rules, order that the race (for one, some or all of the athletes) be re-held excluding any disqualified athlete (or team) or allow any affected athlete (or team) (other than any disqualified athlete or team) to compete in a subsequent round of the event.
Interpretation (via World Athletics rule book)
Jostling should be understood as physical contact on one or more occasions with another athlete or athletes that results in an unfair advantage or causes injury or harm to them or, consequently, to another athlete or athletes.

Does anyone know how they go about the appeals process? It seems like a pretty textbook rule break to me. I guess USA Athletics is going to argue that it didn’t give Hocker an unfair advantage, as his contact didn’t result in injury or harm to Farker.

The clearest sign of this is Farken saying immediately after the race that it didn't affect the outcome. I don't know how anybody else can argue against the athlete that was supposedly impeded if they don't think they were impeded.

I'm enjoying this white on white cope and accusations, more of it please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The appeal process is over:

theguardian.com

USA’s Olympic 1500m champion Cole Hocker disqualified from world championships for ‘jostling’

https://www.theguardian.com/profile/guardian-sport

Cole Hocker was disqualified from his semi-final at the world championships on Monday after he barged his way through a crowd on the home straight

Link:www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/sep/15/...

This is such a funny take lmao, you make it sound like it wasn't his own fault for getting boxed there.

Trying to rely on a kick and then getting stuck on the inside behind slower guys fading is a classic 1500m mistake.

And we all saw it unfolding in slow motion around the bend, I think the announcers even said he needs to be careful. Nope, no worries from him because he just forced his way through.

Even though Farken said didn't affect the outcome, he only know this in hindsight. They weren't yet at the finish line and he probably wouldn't be top six but someone could rig up, pull a Molly and he could of been top six.

The worse thing Cole did was not the DQ per se,

HE HAS FOREVER CHANGED THE SPACE TIME CONTINUUM!

Of course he wouldn't have been disqualified if he were an African as he wouldn't be (a)arrogantly dumb enough to attempt such a move, (b) get himself caught in an unfavourable position thus needing to brute force his way to the front, your lilly-white, american hype has proven to be a dumb and tactically poor runner who simply got lucky last year and you're simply coping. I for one enjoy seeing it and can't wait for him to crash out in the 5000m.

Probably right to be DQ'd but you can't really blame him for trying to get through a gap that just wasn't there.

He'd put himself in a terrible position and if he didn't try and squeeze through, he was going out anyway.

Watched it several times. If a Kenyan or Ethiopian had done what Cole did, nothing would have happened, certainly no DQ.

There's no such thing as "re-ran" in the context you mean

No worries from him? He is looking to his right early on in the bend realizing he is boxed.