By Eric DeSalvo, NAU Media Relations

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - As the youngest boy of 10 siblings, Ahmed Osman never dreamed of one day competing for a national championship in track and field. Instead, he followed his father to farm in the fields of Ethiopia from sunrise to sunset, beginning at age seven because his family had run out of money to send him to school.

"Life was tough there because my family didn't have enough money to provide for us," Osman said about life in Africa. "My parents were more middle class, so they sent my brothers to school, but they couldn't send me because they didn't have enough money."

This all changed when his family received a phone call from a relative who had escaped and made her way to the United States. Osman still remembers the day his family received the phone call, and recalls the shock on everyone's face having thought she was dead.

She called to tell the family that she was sponsoring them through the U.S. Embassy so that they could join her in America. Once their name was called, they moved to Nairobi, Kenya. The family, consisting of just his brother, Idirse, and his younger sister, stayed there eight months where they went through an interview process.

After everything was finalized, Osman couldn't help but feel excited for his big move.

"Once I heard we were going to go to America, I was a little bit shocked, but very happy," Osman said with a smile.

Starting School

With no previous schooling, Osman was placed in the fifth grade at age 11. The first day of school was one of the toughest situations he has ever had to deal with.

"I felt like I knew less then a kindergartner to be honest," Osman said. "My first day of school was the hardest day of my life."

Because English was his fifth language, getting accustomed to everything was that much harder for Osman, not to mention he wasn't able to practice the new language at home since his parents spoke in their native dialect.

"When I'd come home from school, I came home with nobody speaking English in my house," Osman said. "I couldn't practice. My parents knew nothing about school which was the toughest thing to deal with."

Osman then began to surround himself with the wrong crowd during the sixth grade. Because his school was located in a much diversified area of San Diego, Osman recalled the variety of ethnic groups forming gangs, with himself hanging around the Somalians.

Hanging out with the wrong crowd, Osman found himself getting into fights and eventually was expelled from his middle school. He spent the seventh grade in a correctional school, which made him realize he needed to turn things around in order to be successful.

"After going there, that is where I first started getting serious about education," Osman noted. "I said no more fighting because the reason my family brought me here was to learn and for me to be successful."

Finding a New Outlet

Through his trials and tribulations, Osman found a new way to express himself, and that was through sports.

His first love was the game of basketball, which he picked up in middle school. His freshman year at Hoover High School, he made the junior varsity team and thought that he had a real future with the sport.

After basketball practice one day, Osman and his friend decided to check out the track facilities.

"One day after practice my friends and I stopped by to see the track," Osman recalled. "We saw the athletes doing some workouts and I told them "Hey, I can do this! If they can do it, I can too.' So I went to the coach that same day and I told him I was interested."

Osman, with the help of his brother, bought some running shorts and shoes and headed out to practice the following day. Without time to properly stretch, Osman took off for an eight mile run with the team.

"My coach told me to go run eight miles with them," Osman said. "I was a little bit shocked, but just followed them without stretching or anything. I kept up with them all the way until 800 meters. I was surprised to do that well, and so was the coach. From there, the rest is history."

What became history was Osman's basketball career. Knowing that he wasn't ever going to have the size to be a true player, he realized that running suited him best. He raced three times his freshman year with no training, even finishing top 12 in the conference. For his strong efforts, he was named to the first-team as a freshman.

At that time, he did it just for fun.

It became serious for Osman when he was once again struggling with his studies, but that is when he turned a new chapter in his school and running career.

New School, New Opportunities

Heading into the summer before his sophomore year, Osman didn't know if he would ever be able to handle both school and running, but that all changed the day he met Eduardo Ramos.

Ramos, the cross country coach from San Diego High School, had coached Osman's brother to four all-state awards.

One summer day, Osman decided to join his brother for a practice around Balboa Park with the team.

"I remember doing this loop by Balboa Park," Osman said. "I was ahead of everybody and coach asked me if I took a short cut. He was shocked. He told my brother that he knew I'd be something special."

Not only did he think Osman would be something special on the track, he knew that with the right guidance he could be successful in the classroom as well.

"I'm always on every single kid making sure they are in the right class, and I did the same with him," Ramos said. "In turn he said was going to do the best he could at running."

After talking to his parents about their son receiving a better education, Ramos was able to help Osman enroll at San Diego, and was also able get him into summer school classes to improve his grades.

With the cross country season set to begin at the start of the school year, Osman received news that would set him back once again.

"I was changing in the locker room when coach said to me 'Sorry to tell you but you can't run cross country because Hoover won't allow you to compete right away,'" Osman said. "I broke down after I heard that because the other coach did nothing for me. Ramos was there every time for me."

Instead of feeling sorry for himself, Osman used the setback as more motivation to perform at a higher level once the track season started.

In his first race at San Diego, Osman "came out of nowhere" to win the invite at 3,200 meters. He remembers everyone saying "Who is this guy?"

Osman would go on to have a stellar high school career that included being named all-state and all-section first team his junior and senior seasons.

Upon leaving San Diego, Ramos told Osman, "Never give up and always strive to succeed. I told him to never be satisfied with what you have, because there is always room for improvement. Not only should you improve on your weaknesses, but also on your strengths so that you are stronger and faster."

A Higher Education

Northern Arizona came into the picture for Osman after his surprise sophomore campaign. Then distance coach, John Hayes, recruited Osman to the university. After taking a year off after high school, Osman enrolled at NAU to find that he would have to over come another set back due to being academically ineligible.

After improving his grades, Osman hit the track for the first time in spring 2009. He ended up winning the Big Sky 10,000-meter title on his way to the NCAA Outdoor Championships. He concluded the season with a ninth-place finish, and an All-American award to his name.

Because of his determination, Interim Director of Track and Field & Cross Country Eric Heins knew that anything was possible for Osman in his first season.

"His dedication to sport and athletics is second to none," Heins said. "For him to remain eligible and continue to keep his GPA says a lot about how important academics are to him. He loves running. He is always working on what will make him better on the track."

Heins also knows that Osman is the type of person who won't take success lightly since he will always be striving for more.

"With running there are so many variables where someone can come from virtual unknown to being a national champion by the time they are done," Heins said. "For Ahmed, he is the type of person who is going to continue to improve based on his work ethic. He won't be someone who levels off."

Heading to Eugene

Osman once again finds himself among the nation's best. He finished no worse then third place in all three 10Ks that he raced in this season, and has been working on various parts of his craft to make himself better.

At the NCAA West Preliminary Round, Osman showed off his speed on the final lap of the 10,000-meter race to finish second overall.

"This year I have been working on my kick and speed, so on the last lap I realized that in order to do damage I had to take off then," Osman said. "That last lap was the most comfortable I've been in closing out a race."

With his new sense of confidence, and improved skill, Osman knows that anything is possible for him at the outdoor championships.

"I'm excited about the championship race," Osman said. "You never know how it is going to play out. Last year was a learning experience for me. This year, I don't have anything to lose."