Mohammed Ahmed (runner)

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Mohammed Ahmed

| image = Mohammed Ahmed Rio 2016.jpg

| imagesize =

| caption = Ahmed at the 2016 Olympics

| nationality = Canadian

| nickname = Mospeed

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1991|1|5}}

| birth_place = Mogadishu, Somalia{{cite web|title=Mohammed Ahmed profile |url=http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/biographies/country=can/athcode=240623/index.html |website=IAAF |access-date=September 30, 2019}}

| hometown = St. Catharines, Ontario

| height = 182 cm{{cite web|title=Mohammed Ahmed|url=http://olympic.ca/team-canada/mohammed-ahmed/|website=olympic.ca|publisher=Canadian Olympic Committee|access-date=June 27, 2021}}

| weight = 54 kg

| country = {{CAN}}

| sport = Track and field

| event = Long-distance running

| collegeteam = University of Wisconsin–Madison

| club = Bowerman Track Club

| coach = Jerry Schumacher

| pb = {{ubl

|Outdoor{{cite web|url=http://www.all-athletics.com/node/176472|author=All-Athletics|title=Profile of Mohammed Ahmed}}

|1500 m: 3:34.89 (Portland 2020)

|Mile: 3:53.87 (Eugene 2021)

|3000 m: 7:31.96 {{AthAbbr|NR|Canadian}} (Chorzów 2024)

|2-Mile: 8:15.76 {{AthAbbr|NR|Canadian}} (Palo Alto 2019)

|5000 m: 12:47.20 AR (Portland 2020)

|10,000 m: 26:34.14 {{AthAbbr|NR|Canadian}} (San Juan Capistrano 2022)

|Indoor

|3000 m: 7:40.11 {{AthAbbr|i|indoors}} (New York 2016)

|2-Mile: 8:13.16 {{AthAbbr|i|indoors}} {{AthAbbr|NR|Canadian}} (New York 2017)

|5000 m: 12:56.87 {{AthAbbr|i|indoors}} {{AthAbbr|NR|Canadian}} (Boston 2022)

}}

| medaltemplates = {{Medal|Sport|Men's athletics}}

{{MedalCountry|{{CAN}}}}

}}

Mohammed Ahmed (born January 5, 1991){{cite web|title=Mohammed Ahmed|url=http://panam.cbc.ca/athletes/athlete/mohammed-ahmed/index.html|website=panam.cbc.ca|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date=July 24, 2015}} is a Canadian long-distance runner.{{Cite web|title=Tokyo:Orodyahan Axmed Maxamed Oo U Orda Kanada Balse Asal Ahaan Kasoo Jeeda Somaliland Oo Ku Guulaystay Kaalinta 2aad Orodka 5000 Mitir|url=http://www.haatufonline.com/somali-news/tokyoorodyahan-axmed-maxamed-oo-u-orda-kanada-balse-asal-ahaan-kasoo-jeeda-somaliland/|access-date=2021-08-11|language=en}} A three-time Olympian, he is his country's most successful athlete in long distance racing, being the first to medal in the 5000 metres at both the World Championships (bronze in 2019) and the Olympic Games (silver in 2021).

As well he is a two-time silver medallist at the Commonwealth Games in the 5000m and 10,000m events and was the 2015 Pan American champion in the 10,000 m. He holds the eleventh-fastest 5000m time in history and has set several national and area records.

Early life

Ahmed was born in Mogadishu, Somalia to Said Yusuf and Halimo Farah. Ahmed was raised in the town of El Afweyn in Somaliland, a town mainly inhabited by the Habr Je'lo clan of the Isaaq clan-family.{{Cite journal|date=February 2016|title=EASO Country of Origin Information Report Somalia - Security Situation|url=https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1158113/1226_1457606427_easo-somalia-security-feb-2016.pdf|journal=European Asylum Support Office|pages=72|quote=The Ceel Afweyn district is mainly inhabited by the Isaaq subclan Habar Jeelo.}} His family moved to Kenya, and Moh spent the first ten years of his life there. His family then moved to St. Catharines, Ontario in Canada when he was 11 years old.{{Cite web|url=https://olympic.ca/team-canada/mohammed-ahmed/|title = Mohammed Ahmed}} He began running track at the age of 13 after watching his brothers run track at school.{{cite web|last=Bergsma|first=Marlene|title=Family thrilled with Ahmed's Olympic experience|url=http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2012/08/06/family-thrilled-with-ahmeds-olympic-experience|date=August 6, 2012|access-date=February 9, 2018}}

Running career

=Youth=

Before college, Mohammed Ahmed was the Canadian junior 5000 m champion on four occasions and twice finished in the top ten at World Junior Championships (fourth in 2010, ninth in 2008), to go along with two Canadian senior titles in the event. Ahmed also won a Pan American Junior title.{{fact|date=November 2023}}

=Collegiate=

Ahmed attended St. Catharines Collegiate before going on to the University of Wisconsin–Madison, from which he graduated in 2014. During his time at college, he amassed eleven NCAA All-American awards in track and cross country and an Olympic berth in the 10,000 m at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, where he finished in eighteenth place.{{Cite web|title=Athletics {{!}} Athlete Profile: Mohammed AHMED - Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games|url=https://results.gc2018.com/en/athletics/athlete-profile-n6030190-mohammed-ahmed.htm|access-date=2020-07-18|website=results.gc2018.com}}

At the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, Mohammed clocked the best time over 10,000 m in Canadian history with his ninth-place finish, almost equaling his lifetime best in the process with a 27:35.76 result.[http://www.uwbadgers.com/sports/m-track/spec-rel/081013aac.html Top-10 finish for Mo: Ahmed shines on international stage]. University of Wisconsin-Madison Badgers (August 10, 2013)

Ahmed was named to Canada's team for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, where he competed in the 5000 and 10,000 m, finishing in fifth and sixth place respectively.

=Professional=

File:Barrios, Rono, Ahmed PanAm2015 (2).jpg.]]

Moving to the professional scene after his university career, Ahmed was part of the home team at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. He competed only in the 10,000 m, winning the gold medal.{{cite web|last=Cobbing |first=Candace |title=Pan Am roundup: Canada brings home 12 medals on Day 11|url=https://www.570news.com/2015/07/22/pan-am-roundup-canada-brings-home-12-medals-on-day-11/|website=570 News|date=July 22, 2015|access-date=August 19, 2021}} He went on to the 2015 World Championships, competing only in the 5000 m and finishing in twelfth place.

On May 28, 2016, Ahmed set a personal best and Canadian national record in the 5000 m at the Prefontaine Classic, finishing in a time of 13:01.74{{cite web|url=http://preclassic.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?event_id=120&do=news&news_id=422772|author=RunnerSpace|title=2016 Prefontaine Classic Results}} Competing as part of his second Canadian Olympic team, Ahmed placed thirty-second in the 10,000 m at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. After this very dispiriting outcome, Ahmed finished in fourth place in the 5000 m with a time of 13:05.94, 1.5 seconds short of the bronze medal. He later said this left him "shedding tears of agony and defeat."{{cite news|last=Barnes |first=Dan |title=Mo Ahmed's 5,000m silver medal at Tokyo Olympics erases pain of Rio|url=https://nationalpost.com/sports/olympics/mo-ahmeds-5000m-silver-medal-at-tokyo-olympics-erases-pain-of-rio|work=The National Post|date=August 6, 2021|access-date=August 19, 2021}}

Ahmed ran the eleventh-fastest indoor 5000 m in history in Boston in 2017, setting the Canadian national record in the process.{{Cite web|title=5000 Metres – men – senior – indoor {{!}} iaaf.org|url=https://www.iaaf.org/records/all-time-toplists/middle-long/5000-metres/indoor/men/senior?regionType=world&page=1&bestResultsOnly=true&oversizedTrack=regular&firstDay=1899-12-31&lastDay=2019-04-15|access-date=April 15, 2019|website=www.iaaf.org}} On August 4, 2017, Ahmed set a personal best and Canadian national record in the 10,000 m, placing eighth at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics with a time of 27:02.35{{cite web|url=https://www.iaaf.org/results/iaaf-world-championships-in-athletics/2017/iaaf-world-championships-london-2017-5151/men/10000-metres/final/result#resultheader|author=IAAF|title=2017 IAAF World Championships Results}} Ahmed was nominated for Sports Person of the Year at the International Somali Awards 2018.{{Cite web|url=https://internationalsomaliawards.com/|title=Home – International Somali Awards|website=International Somali Awards|language=en-US|access-date=January 26, 2018}} He also won two silver medals at the Commonwealth Games that year, in both the 5000 and 10000 m.{{Cite web|title=Athletics {{!}} Event Schedule Men's 5000m - Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games|url=https://results.gc2018.com/en/athletics/event-schedule-men-s-5000m.htm|access-date=2020-07-18|website=results.gc2018.com}}{{Cite web|title=Athletics {{!}} Event Schedule Men's 10,000m - Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games|url=https://results.gc2018.com/en/athletics/event-schedule-men-s-10000m.htm|access-date=2020-07-18|website=results.gc2018.com}}

Competing at the 2019 World Athletics Championships, Ahmed won the bronze medal in the 5000 m event, the first for a Canadian runner. Ahmed led late in the race, briefly dropping to fifth position in the final stretch before recovering to take third place. He was sixth in the 10,000 m at the same championships.{{cite web|title=Canada's Moh Ahmed wins bronze medal in men's 5,000 metres at track worlds|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/trackandfield/moh-ahmed-bronze-medal-track-field-worlds-1.5303101|website=panam.cbc.ca|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date=September 30, 2019}}

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic causing the cancellation of much of the 2020 international season and delaying the 2020 Summer Olympics by a year, Ahmed set a personal best and Canadian national record in the men's 5000 m with a time of 12:47.20 while competing at the Portland Intrasquad Meet II in Portland, Oregon on July 10, 2020.{{cite news|title=Ahmed and Houlihan smash North American 5000m records, Fraser-Pryce clocks 11.00|url=https://www.worldathletics.org/news/report/north-american-records-houlihan-ahmed-5000-po|publisher=World Athletics|author=Jon Mulkeen|date=12 July 2020|access-date=12 July 2020}}

File:Ahmed Fisher Oregon 2022.jpg]]

Ahmed was named to his third Olympic team in 2021. Competing first off in the 10,000 m event in Tokyo, Ahmed finished sixth after briefly leading late in the race and running a season's best in the process.{{Cite web|author=The Canadian Press|date=2021-07-30|title=Canada's Moh Ahmed finishes sixth 10,000 metres - TSN.ca|url=https://www.tsn.ca/canada-s-moh-ahmed-loses-lead-on-final-lap-finishes-sixth-in-10-000-metres-1.1675397|access-date=2021-07-30|website=TSN|language=en}} He next competed in the 5000 m event, where he had finished fourth in Rio five years before. Having already replicated his sixth-place disappointment in the 10,000 m at the prior World Championships, Ahmed had to rally himself mentally for the next race. He entered the final lap in sixth position before surging ahead into second position by the final 100 metres, winning the silver medal.{{cite news|last=Harrison |first=Doug |title=Moh Ahmed wins his 1st Olympic track medal, earning silver for Canada in men's 5,000m|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/trackandfield/track/olympics-track-and-field-roundup-aug-6-1.6131871|work=CBC Sports|date=August 6, 2021|access-date=August 19, 2021}} He was the first Canadian to medal at this distance in the Olympics and remarked: "every race that didn’t go to plan has got me here."

Disappointment awaited Ahmed in the 10,000 m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships, where he finished sixth once again. He remarked afterward that "I still haven't figured out the 10K. It's disappointing. I thought I prepared really well."{{cite news|last=Heroux |first=Devin |title=Redemption at stake for Canada's Moh Ahmed entering 5,000m at athletics worlds|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/trackandfield/moh-ahmed-5000-metre-race-preview-1.6527222|work=CBC Sports|date=July 21, 2022|access-date=July 22, 2022}} He then finished fifth in the 5000 m,

0.26 seconds behind bronze medalist Oscar Chelimo of Uganda. Ahmed commented on the strength of the field, saying, "only four guys in this field didn't break sub-13. That tells you the depth of this event. I've got to fix some things, but not a bad result; top-five in the world."{{cite news|last=Heroux |first=Devin |title=Canadian decathlete Pierce LePage wins silver at World Athletics Championships|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/trackandfield/world-athletics-championships-decathlon-july-24-day-2-1.6530543|work=CBC Sports|date=July 24, 2022|access-date=July 25, 2022}}

At the 2023 World Athletics Championships, Ahmed came sixth in the 10,000 m and then finished seventh in the 5000 m.{{cite news|last=Harrison |first=Doug |title=Moh Ahmed 7th in men's 5,000m, misses podium at worlds for 2nd straight year|url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/trackandfield/world-athletics-championships-budapest-day-9-marathon-1.6948980|work=CBC Sports|date=August 27, 2023|access-date=August 28, 2023}}

After fading over the final meters of the race, Ahmed finished fourth in the 10,000 m at the 2024 Paris Olympics.{{cite web|title=Men's 10,000 m Final Results|url=https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/results/athletics/men-s-10-000m/fnl-000100--|website=Olympics|access-date=August 2, 2024}}

Competition record

2012

| Olympic Games

|London, United Kingdom

| 18th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2813.91" |28:13.91

2013

World Championships

|Moscow, Russia

| 9th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2735.76" |27:35.76

rowspan="2"|2014

|rowspan="2"|Commonwealth Games

|rowspan="2"|Glasgow, United Kingdom

| 5th

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1318.88" |13:18.88

6th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2802.96" |28:02.96

rowspan="2"|2015

Pan American Games

|Toronto, Canada

|bgcolor=gold|1st

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2849.96" | 28:49.96

|World Championships

|Beijing, China

| 12th

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1400.38" | 14:00.38

rowspan="2"|2016

|rowspan="2"|Olympic Games

|rowspan="2"|Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

| 4th

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1305.94" |13:05.94

32nd

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2932.84" |29:32.84

rowspan="2"| 2017

|rowspan="2" |World Championships

|rowspan="2"| London, United Kingdom

| 6th

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1339.15" |13:39.15

8th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2702.35" |27:02.35

rowspan="3"|2018

|rowspan="2"|Commonwealth Games

|rowspan="2"|Gold Coast, Australia

|bgcolor=silver| 2nd

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1352.78" |13:52.78

bgcolor=silver| 2nd

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2720.56" |27:20.56

Continental Cup

|Ostrava, Czech Republic

|bgcolor=silver| 2nd

|3,000 m

| data-sort-value="757.99" |7:57.99

rowspan="2"| 2019

|rowspan="2" |World Championships

|rowspan="2"| Doha, Qatar

| style="background:#c96;"|3rd

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1301.11" |13:01.11

6th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2659.39" |26:59.35

rowspan="2"| 2021

|rowspan="2"| Olympic Games

|rowspan="2"| Tokyo, Japan

|bgcolor=silver| 2nd

|5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1258.61" |12:58.61

6th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2747.76" |27:47.76

rowspan="2"| 2022

|rowspan="2"| World Championships

|rowspan="2"| Eugene, United States

| 5th

| 5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1310.46" |13:10.46

6th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2730.27" |27:30.27

rowspan="2"| 2023

|rowspan="2"| World Championships

|rowspan="2"| Budapest, Hungary

| 7th

| 5,000 m

| data-sort-value="1312.92 " |13:12.92

6th

|10,000 m

| data-sort-value="2756.43" |27:56.43

rowspan=2|2024

|rowspan=2|Olympic Games

|rowspan=2|Paris, France

|16th (sf)

|5,000 m

|14:15.76

4th

|10,000 m

|26:44.79

References

External links

{{World Athletics}}
{{Athletics Canada|mohammed-ahmed}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20140116114602/http://www.athletics.ca/profile_new.asp?pID=6589 archive])
{{Team Canada}}
{{Olympics.com}}
{{Olympedia}}
[https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/athlete/mohammed-ahmed_1974040 Mohammed Ahmed] at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
{{2018 Commonwealth Games profile|athletics/athlete-profile-n6030190-mohammed-ahmed}}
{{2015 Pan American Games profile|athletics/athlete-profile-n10182167-ahmed-mohammed}}
{{CGF profile}}