by Jeff Benjamin
They are the Triumvirate!
Accumulating Olympic Medals, American and World Records, Yared Nuguse, Grant Fisher & Cole Hocker have led America into a new “Golden Age” of American distance running, from as short as the 800 meters, right up to the 10,000.
Their versatility has been seen in display this year in Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam Meets, as the trio have raced in events not usually in their specialty, adding not only to their versatility but also to fan arguments over who’s the best out of them!
Yet, like all runners of all abilities, they each had to get their start somewhere.
In these short anecdotes, one hopes to find out that their beginnings of commitment to the Sport may be similar stories like that of thousands of young, eager runners out there.
You’re all not alone!
Yared Nuguse.
“When I was 14 and a high school freshman i hadn’t really done a lot in Sports…One day in PD class I ran the Mile in a time around 5:30 to 5:40…I didn’t know what to make of it but the teacher went down to the track coach and the next thing I was on the high school team!
Cole Hocker
“I started running with my best friend in 4th grade…My Dad ran in high school and I pretty quickly noticed that I had a natural gift…It was pretty rewarding and while my Dad gave me all the tools and insights he never pushed me into it.”
Grant Fisher“I played a lot of soccer as a kid which my older sister played and when I got into middle school I found that in order to get in better shape for soccer I’d have to run Cross-Country… Eventually my heart just went into running where I felt the accountability of running relied upon myself!”
As seen here, there are many ways to the top!
Yared Nuguse, Cole Hocker and Grant Fisher will be toeing the line once again next week at the Grand Slam Meet In Philadelphia’s Franklin Field.
To purchase tickets for Grand Slam Track Philly, coming this weekend, click here!
