By
Ryan Finley
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Abdirahman sets American record in 10,000m
The Olympic dreams of two close friends ended yesterday, as former UA distance runner Abdi Abdirahman and current Wildcats middle-distance runner Patrick Nduwimana were eliminated in their respective events.
Three seasons ago, Abdirahman, an admittedly-raw transfer from nearby Pima Community College, was offered a full scholarship by UA head coach David Murray, rare for such an unpolished runner.
Yesterday, the native of Mogadishu, Somalia finished an impressive 10th place in the 10,000 meter run in Sydney, Australia. An American citizen since the summer of 1997, Abdirahman set an American record with a time of 27 minutes and 46 seconds.
"I am surprised," UA track and field coach Dave Murray said of Abdirahman's success.
"If you would have told me three years ago that Abdi - out of Pima - would finish sixth, I would have told you that you were crazy."
Abdirahman - still considered a novice because of his lack of experience - had seemingly put it all together in Sydney, making it to the Olympic finals.
"He was somewhat disappointed because he wasn't that far off (of the lead)," Murray said. "He ran what I thought he'd run."
Murray lauded the 23-year old Abdirahman - once infamous for making mistakes on the track - for his perseverance.
"When he came to UA, he did a lot of stupid things in his races," Murray said. "But he's followed my coaching right to a 't'."
UA sprint coach Fred Harvey was equally impressed with the success of the distance runner.
"Anyone that says that he knew that Abdi would do this well isn't being honest with themselves," Harvey said. "He's obviously a great talent. He grasped each race, from the trials on."
Nduwimana, considered a favorite to medal in the 800m dash, failed to make it out of the semifinals, finishing sixth in his heat with an uncharacterstically-slow time of 1:46:98.
According to UA coaches, a rivalry with South Africa's Werner Botha caused Nduwimana to start faster than usual, possibly leading to a burnout in the race's waning moments.
"I had a feeling that he went out racing this guy and both of them ended up falling off the pace," Harvey said. "He didn't run a sound race."
Murray said that Nduwimana's early dash may have clouded the results of his race.
"Abdi said that he went out too fast," Murray said. "There was no question that Patrick was ready to make the final."
Nduwimana, who will return to UA in December to finish his degree and run in the indoor track season, will head to his native Burundi following the Olympics.
"Track is huge there, especially for the middle distances," Harvey said. "He's their young pride."
