University of Connecticut Athletics
Mia Nahom is a Perfect Representative for UConn at Nationals
11/20/2019 11:04:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
With a fourth-place finish in a field of 266 runners in the Northeast Regional race last Friday, Mia Nahom qualified for the NCAA Women's Cross Country National Championship this weekend in Terre Haute, Indiana.
However, Nahom had to delay her initial celebration until the official results were released.
"I was very confident I crossed in fourth, but I wasn't positive," Nahom said. "So at first, I told my teammate who was after me, 'I think I was fourth but I don't know. Don't say anything until we get the results.'"
Once the results came out, Nahom could rejoice with her team as the first UConn National Championship qualifier since Lauren Sara in 2014.
"I was very excited," Nahom said. "Everyone was hugging me. It was definitely a big moment."
Nahom is a junior from New Milford, Connecticut. In addition to cross country, Nahom also participates on the indoor and outdoor track teams, meaning she is incredibly busy all year.
"I think it's really difficult, and I always say that for the cross country distance runners, people don't understand how tiring that can be," Nahom said. "It's tiring especially come outdoor [track in the spring]. If the year's been tough, it's easy to build momentum but it's also easy to get in a rut."
Even though her favorite events are the mile and 1,500 meter races in track, Nahom has found her greatest success as a runner in cross country this year. First-year head coach Lindsay Crevoiserat said she wasn't sure what to expect from Nahom this season since she was coming back from hip tendonitis that forced her to miss the outdoor track season last year.
"She was kind of just a talent that you knew she had a lot in her but it hadn't come out yet," Crevoiserat said. "It took her a couple of weeks to really get back in shape and every week you just saw her getting better and better. Each race, she got more confident."
In her first race of the season at the Minuteman Invitational, Nahom placed sixth out of 72 runners to lead the Huskies to a second-place finish out of five teams. In the next race, she took a bit of a step back with a 36th-place finish at the Paul Short Run, but she came back with an unbelievable run at the Princeton Invitational. In that race, she finished second overall in a field of 212 runners.
Then, at the American Athletic Conference Championship, Nahom led UConn to fourth place out of 10 with a fourth-place overall finish. She was named to the All-AAC Team for the third straight season. She then followed that up with another fourth-place finish in the regionals that secured her well-deserved spot in the National Championship race.
"It was validating I think," Nahom said about her qualification. "I've been pushing to train at a high level and put myself in races and it was nice for it to finally come together."
Nahom credits the new training under Crevoiserat for her improvement this season.
"My long runs are longer and my easier days are easier," Nahom said. "I think I'm just able to work out at a higher level and my body has finally adjusted so I'm recovering more. Her training is really working."
Crevoiserat is no stranger to the National Championship herself, as she qualified when she ran cross country at UConn. She said it was cool to see Nahom accomplish the same feat from a coach's perspective.
"It's definitely cool to see it come full circle," Crevoiserat said. "I'm back and now one of my athletes has made it to nationals. It's just a big thing to do and it's not easy. It's probably one of the hardest sports to make it to nationals in."
For Nahom, this will be a completely new experience. She has never raced with such a large and talented group before. She said she doesn't know exactly what to expect but she is really looking forward to the opportunity to represent her team on cross country's biggest stage. She has confidence in herself that she can run a good race.
Crevoiserat said she knows this weekend will be a great learning experience for Nahom, regardless of how well she does. She said just getting there is an incredible accomplishment in itself.
"It's a big thing for the program, it's a big thing for me as a coach and for her," Crevoiserat said. "Watching her grow as an athlete, she always wants to be the best, so that's cool to see that she is one of the best."
Players Mentioned
