PARIS – BYU track alumna Whittni Orton-Morgan qualified for the 5,000-meter finals Friday as she finished sixth in her heat with a new season-best time of 15:02.14 at Stade de France.
As the race began, Orton-Morgan started closer to the back of the pack, sitting in 13th after the first 1,000 meters. During the 2,000 meters, she fell to 15th but quickly regained her spot in 13th through the 4,000 meters.
In the final 1,000 meters, Orton-Morgan ran her fastest split of two minutes and 48 seconds to finish sixth in her heat.
The former Cougar was ranked 66th in the world ranking coming into the race, outperforming expectations by qualifying for the final.
Orton-Morgan will compete in the finals on Monday at 1:15 p.m. MDT, which will be broadcast on Peacock or NBC.