Throwback Thursday: Looking back at Olympian Mohammed Ahmed in high school
This story appeared in our first-ever issue in 2008. Back then, Mo Ahmed was a high school cross-country champion with a PB in the 5K of 14:56. He has since taken that down to 13:01.75 to set the Canadian record. He represents Canada in the 5,000m on the track on Saturday night.
By Michal Kapral
When your teammates give you the nickname “Mo Speed,” you know you’re a talented runner. Not that Mohammed Ahmed needs any reassurances; the 16-year-old St. Catharines Collegiate student ran a 14:56 5K in Grade 10 and is
the reigning Ontario high school cross-country champion.
Ahmed, who trains with the Niagara Olympic Club, secured a spot on the Junior National Cross-Country team with a fourth-place finish at the Nationals last December. He hopes to qualify for the World Juniors in the 5000m, and his long-term goal is to represent Canada at the World Championships and the 2012 Olympics in London.
RELATED: Chatting with Olympian Mo Ahmed
“I talk to myself during the race by saying ‘You’re almost done. You worked so hard for this. Come on, man.’”
His coaches say he has the winning combination of self-motivation, dedication and natural ability to achieve his goals. Coach Stuart Galloway says he can’t recall Ahmed missing a workout in the two years he has worked with him. His other coach, Sharon Stewart, calls Ahmed “a joy to coach,” and says his sense of humour often has the whole team laughing.
While he may be a joker off the track, Ahmed gets serious when he races, knowing that it can be a painful experience to compete against the best high-school runners in the country.
“I use that pain to motivate me,” he says. “I talk to myself during the race by saying ‘You’re almost done. You worked so hard for this. Come on, man.’”
While the races may hurt, the joy of running is Ahmed’s main motivator.
“I’m inspired to run by watching great runners like Kenenisa Bekele, Haile Gebrselassie and the Kenyans,” says Ahmed, “but mostly what inspires me to run is the fact that I get great pleasure in running, and I motivate myself by thinking about the races that I’m preparing for.”
Although he had some natural talent from the get-go, Ahmed says hard training, determination “and the help of my coaches, teammates and Allah” turned him into the runner that he is today.
Born in Somalia, Ahmed spent most of his childhood in Kenya and Ethiopia after his family fled the war. He played soccer in Africa, but didn’t start running until he came to Canada in 2001. He recently became a Canadian citizen.
Check out the latest buyer's guide:
