An athlete can run 9 kilometers in 1 hour. If the athlete runs at that same average speed for 30 minutes, how far will the athlete travel?

If an athlete can run 9 kilometers in 1 hour, then the athlete can run 9 kilometers / 60 minutes = <<9/60=0.15>>0.15 kilometers per minute.

Therefore, in 30 minutes, the athlete can run 0.15 kilometers/minute x 30 minutes = <<0.15*30=4.5>>4.5 kilometers. Answer: \boxed{4.5}.