New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin and United States' Abbey D'Agostino, left, after competing in a women's 5000-meter heat during the athletics competitions of the 2016 Summer Olympics at the Olympic stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2016. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin and United States' Abbey D'Agostino, left, after competing in a women's 5000-meter heat during the athletics competitions of the 2016 Summer Olympics at the Olympic stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2016. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip) Credit: ap file — David J. Phillip

Rio de Janeiro — Former Dartmouth College running standout Abbey D’Agostino is coming back from the Olympics with something other than crutches after all.

D’Agostino and New Zealand runner Nikki Hamblin were both recognized for the sportsmanship shown during adversity in their women’s 5,000-meter race last week with Fair Play Awards from the International Fair Play Committee and the International Olympic Committee. The two received their awards on Saturday at a ceremony at the Olympic Club in Rio de Janeiro.

The two runners became inextricably linked by the developments in their heat race last Tuesday. Hamblin took a fall when she tripped over a competitor’s feet, and D’Agostino came crashing down right behind her. Rather than get up and continue, D’Agostino leaned over Hamblin and urged her to run. The New Zealander returned the favor later when D’Agostino collapsed to the track because of knee injuries she sustained in her fall.

Both runners were advanced to Friday’s 5,000 final after their collision was ruled accidental. D’Agostino didn’t compete, as her fall resulted in two torn knee ligaments that ended her competitive season.

“I think it’s very special for both Abbey and myself,” Hamblin said at the ceremony, according to an IOC news release. “I don’t think either of us woke up and thought that that was going to be our day or our race or our Olympic Games. Both of us are strong competitors, and we wanted to go out there and do our best on the track.

“I was on the ground for too long to get back up and catch on to the pack, so then it becomes about finishing the race and finishing the race well. I am so grateful to Abbey for picking me up, and I think many people would have returned the favor.”

D’Agostino, a seven-time track and cross country national champion at Dartmouth, was making her Olympic debut after running professionally for New Balance out of the Boston area the past two years.

Women’s Hockey Stacey Goes in CWHL Draft

Hanover — Former Dartmouth forward Laura Stacey is bound for the Brampton Thunder of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League after the club selected her with the third pick of the CWHL draft on Sunday.

A past member of the Canadian national women’s hockey program, Stacey landed on the Ivy League’s first team and academic all-league squad after last year’s senior season. She finished with a team-leading 23 points for the Big Green.

The CWHL consists of teams in Brampton, Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Boston.