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NJ Runner Athing Mu the First American to Win Olympic Gold in 800-Meter Race in 53 Years

Emma Lee
/
WHYY
Athing Mu is cheered to victory in the 800 meters at the Tokyo Olympics by her high school coaches (from left) Nigiel Boone and Al Jennings, who watched the race at the Trenton YMCA.

New Jersey native Athing Mu is the first American to win the 800-meter race since the 1968 Olympics. While Mu took to the track in Tokyo Tuesday, WHYY’s Kenneth Burns was in Trenton with about two dozen of her excited hometown fans.

(Original air-date: 8/4/21)