As her coaches at the time always said, it was just another day at the office.
Yet this would be an office shift like no other for Emma Coburn.
It has been 10 years since two of the most recognizable alums from a Colorado track program rich with Olympic history blazed an unforgettable trail at the Rio Games.
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Coburn and Jenny Simpson, while being coached by former CU track coaches Mark Wetmore and Heather Burroughs, made history in Rio de Janeiro. Both former Buffs became the first American women to win Olympic medals in their respective events, with Coburn winning the bronze medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Simpson did the same in the 1,500-meter run.
While Simpson continues to recover from a near-fatal cardiac incident in North Carolina in June — one that, as she announced Thursday, revealed a diagnosis that has ended her running career — Coburn recently reflected on the 10-year anniversary of her Olympic medal.
“The experience in Rio was an incredibly focused mission,” Coburn said. “Both Jenny Simpson and I came into that Olympic Games with a mission to medal. To actually execute the plan and execute the race and cross the line as a bronze medalist, it’s such a special feeling. Rio was special.”
A case can be made the bronze in 2016 wasn’t the greatest achievement of Coburn’s career. She won the world championship a year later in London, breaking her own American record. Coburn won the silver medal at the 2019 world championships and owns 10 U.S. Track and Field steeplechase championships, most recently winning in 2022. It wasn’t even Coburn’s first Olympic appearance, as she finished eighth in the 2012 London Games while still running for CU.
But an Olympic medal is different.
Coburn ran fourth for a sizeable portion of the race. She recalled thinking, at least for a fleeting moment, how finishing fourth at the Olympics wasn’t so bad. Then her training and inner gumption kicked into overdrive. It was Wetmore and Burroughs who always described race day as just another day at the office, and a stirring finish from Coburn landed her a spot on the office podium.
“I just remember crossing that line feeling joy, relief,” Coburn said. “Not shock, because I think I was ranked fourth going in. Getting a medal was a realistic goal. It was just immense pride and relief and satisfaction.
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“I think sometimes as a pro track and field athlete, people don’t always understand what our job is. They don’t quite understand the amount of pride every day that we put into this and how we structure our entire life. Every day of our week is calculated. Every week of our year is calculated. I remember winning that medal, the significance of it, to me, was all of the sudden thinking, ‘Wow, for my whole life I’ll always be an Olympian. For my whole life I’ll always be an Olympic medalist.’”
Coburn takes pride in the fact she believes she was the same person after winning an Olympic bronze in 2016 as she was after a fall disqualified her at the delayed 2020 games held in 2021. New Balance was a supportive sponsor before the Olympic medal and remained so afterward. Her willingness to work and compete remained unchanged. Coburn, who grew up in Crested Butte, kept Colorado as her home.
“You win an Olympic medal and someone might think your life changes significantly,” Coburn said. “I think for me, I was still Emma, and I was still trying to run better times and faster times and win more races and win more medals. I think to have a long career in this sport, you can’t have specific moments change you, whether for good or for bad. The following Olympics I was expected to win a medal, and I fell and I got DQ’ed. So that moment didn’t change me either. The Rio Olympics didn’t change me or my perception about my career, or my mindset.”
These days, Coburn is transitioning into a later stage of her career. She and her husband/coach, Joe Bosshard (also a former Buff), welcomed a baby daughter two years ago. Coburn struggled with hamstring and ankle injuries in 2023 through 2025, and didn’t compete at all in 2024 and 2025. She returned this year, though, finishing seventh at this summer’s U.S. Track and Field championships just a three months shy of her 36th birthday.
“I’ll keep doing this until my body or mind scream at me that they want to be done,” Coburn said. “I haven’t had those feelings yet.”
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