Bahrain's Rashid Ramzi won the Olympic men's 1500 metres gold medal today after surging clear on the final lap and holding off Kenya's Asbel Kiprop down the straight. The 28-year-old Ramzi, world champion in 2005, claimed victory in a time of 3:32.94 with Kiprop taking the silver in 3:33.11. New Zealand's Nicholas Willis earned a surprise bronze to win his country's first medal in the event since 1976 with a time of 3:34.16.
The field set off at a slow pace led by the two Kenyan runners and the athletes arrived at the bell bunched in a tight cluster before Morocco-born Ramzi made his move. * Reuters