Colorado's Olympic track and field stars, include a defending gold medalist

A half-dozen Coloradans are participating in this year's Olympic track and field events, including one athlete whose specialty has a legacy of local stars.

The big picture: Two women, Valerie Constien and Elise Cranny, are competing in track events, while Valarie Allman (discus) and Anna Hall (heptathlon) will participate in largely field sports.

• Cranny, of Boulder, is competing in her second games in the 5,000-meter event after finishing second at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in June.
• Hall, of Greenwood Village, is making her Olympic debut after winning the heptathlon at the same event.
• Allman, of Longmont, will try to defend her gold medal from Tokyo in Paris. She graduated from Silver Creek High School and threw for 68.98 meters in her opening throw in Tokyo, securing a top finish.

The intrigue: Constien, of Edwards, is the fourth former University of Colorado athlete to represent Team USA in the women's 3000-meter steeplechase.

• She joins luminaries including Emma Coburn, Shalaya Kipp and Jennifer Simpson.
• Constien will make her second consecutive Olympics appearance after qualifying for Paris by setting a trials record in the steeplechase final in June — a year after multiple serious injuries.
• "I'm so lucky and so blessed," Constien said after the June final.

Meanwhile, Woody Kincaid, of Littleton, and Leonard Korir, of Colorado Springs, are both long-distance runners.

• Kincaid will look to improve from his 15th-place finish in 2021 in the 10,000-meter race, while Kincaid, a marathon runner, is participating in his second Olympics after making an appearance in 2016.

What's next: Track and field events take place through Aug. 11.