Friday, March 9
College Station, Texas
Colorado State
vs
NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships
Photo by: John Glaser
Rams’ Hassan repeats as NCAA indoor shot put champion, Fischer earns Second-Team All-America honors
3/9/2018 11:47:00 PM | Track & Field
Hassan becomes first male repeat NCAA champion in program history, first thrower in Mountain West history to repeat
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Mostafa Hassan of the Colorado State men's track & field team repeated as national champion in the shot put to highlight the first day of competition for the Rams at the 2018 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships from Gilliam Indoor Stadium.
Hassan's winning mark was a season-best 68-5.25 (20.86m), which came on his first attempt of the night. The native of Cairo, Egypt won the competition by nearly two feet (66-7/20.29m by Georgia's Daniel Comenentia), and had the three best marks by any athlete at the meet (68-5/20.85m and 68-4.25/20.84m). In addition to the individual title, Hassan's performance earned him his fifth career First-Team All-America honor.
The senior becomes the first athlete in Mountain West history – men's or women's indoor track & field – to repeat as an NCAA champion in a single indoor throwing event. Hassan is the second Ram to win multiple NCAA titles (Bryan Berryhill – 2001 indoor champion in mile, 2001 outdoor champion in 1,500 meters) and the third to win multiple national titles under any collegiate organization (Wendy Koenig-Knudson – 1975 and 1976 AIAW outdoor champion in 880 yards/800 meters, 1976 AIAW outdoor champion in 1,500 meters).
Grant Fischer was the second Ram to earn All-America honors on Friday, picking up second-team distinction with a 14th-place finish in the 5,000 meters. The Fort Collins, Colo., native finished with a time of 14:21.82 en route to his second straight All-America performance in the indoor 5,000 and the third overall of his career. The senior becomes one of two athletes in program history to earn multiple All-America honors in the indoor 5,000 meters (Jerrell Mock – 2015, 2017).
Rounding out performances by CSU athletes on Friday was that of Cole Rockhold, who advanced to Saturday's mile final with a second-place finish and time of 4:02.85 in the first heat of Friday's preliminaries. The junior will be one of 10 remaining runners (16 original qualifiers) in the mile on Saturday, as the top four times in each heat received automatic berths in Saturday's final along with the next two fastest times between the two heats.
IN THEIR WORDS
Colorado State head coach Brian Bedard
On Mostafa Hassan:
"I thought he looked like a veteran tonight. He had a really good opening throw and put the pressure on the other guys. His consistency was really good, and he was close to matching that mark a few times. He showed a lot of composure and put himself in the driver's seat with that throw."
On what has made Mostafa Hassan successful at the NCAA Indoor Championships:
"He's got experience for one thing. He's thrown at multiple world championships, for example, and a lot of the guys he's throwing against have not thrown in any. That obviously helps when you have that kind of experience. I think that's part of it, but his ability to keep his composure when the heat's on is also a big part of it."
On some of what is special about Mostafa Hassan:
"The other competitors and coaches respect him, and he's soft-spoken and respectful during competition in terms of the way he carries himself. He really represents Colorado State well. In my opinion, he's kind of a once-in-a-lifetime athlete for me. I've had athletes similar to him like Casey Malone, Shelly Borman and Loree Smith, but I don't expect to have another athlete like him come along in my career. He's really in a class of his own."
Colorado State distance coach Art Siemers
On Grant Fischer:
"Grant did everything he could – he ran a tactical race. He took the lead with a few laps to go, but he ended up getting kind of got boxed in and was unable to move. Everyone is within a few seconds of each other, so if you get in the wrong position toward the finish it can make a big difference. Grant had a great indoor season, and he's motivated to go have a great outdoor one."
NOTES
- Mostafa Hassan's five career All-America honors (three indoor, two outdoor) are the third-most by a single athlete in program history. Only Bryan Berryhill (10 – two cross country, four indoor, four outdoor) and Loree Smith (six – four indoor, two outdoor) have more.
- Grant Fischer's three career All-America honors (two indoor, one outdoor) is tied for the ninth-most for a single athlete in program history.
UP NEXT
Cole Rockhold of the Colorado State men's track & field team is set to compete in each of the mile and 3,000 meters finals on Saturday. The mile is slated for 3:10 p.m. MT (4:10 p.m. CT), while the 3,000 meters is schedule to start at 5:10 p.m. MT (6:10 p.m. CT).
Hassan's winning mark was a season-best 68-5.25 (20.86m), which came on his first attempt of the night. The native of Cairo, Egypt won the competition by nearly two feet (66-7/20.29m by Georgia's Daniel Comenentia), and had the three best marks by any athlete at the meet (68-5/20.85m and 68-4.25/20.84m). In addition to the individual title, Hassan's performance earned him his fifth career First-Team All-America honor.
The senior becomes the first athlete in Mountain West history – men's or women's indoor track & field – to repeat as an NCAA champion in a single indoor throwing event. Hassan is the second Ram to win multiple NCAA titles (Bryan Berryhill – 2001 indoor champion in mile, 2001 outdoor champion in 1,500 meters) and the third to win multiple national titles under any collegiate organization (Wendy Koenig-Knudson – 1975 and 1976 AIAW outdoor champion in 880 yards/800 meters, 1976 AIAW outdoor champion in 1,500 meters).
Grant Fischer was the second Ram to earn All-America honors on Friday, picking up second-team distinction with a 14th-place finish in the 5,000 meters. The Fort Collins, Colo., native finished with a time of 14:21.82 en route to his second straight All-America performance in the indoor 5,000 and the third overall of his career. The senior becomes one of two athletes in program history to earn multiple All-America honors in the indoor 5,000 meters (Jerrell Mock – 2015, 2017).
Rounding out performances by CSU athletes on Friday was that of Cole Rockhold, who advanced to Saturday's mile final with a second-place finish and time of 4:02.85 in the first heat of Friday's preliminaries. The junior will be one of 10 remaining runners (16 original qualifiers) in the mile on Saturday, as the top four times in each heat received automatic berths in Saturday's final along with the next two fastest times between the two heats.
IN THEIR WORDS
Colorado State head coach Brian Bedard
On Mostafa Hassan:
"I thought he looked like a veteran tonight. He had a really good opening throw and put the pressure on the other guys. His consistency was really good, and he was close to matching that mark a few times. He showed a lot of composure and put himself in the driver's seat with that throw."
On what has made Mostafa Hassan successful at the NCAA Indoor Championships:
"He's got experience for one thing. He's thrown at multiple world championships, for example, and a lot of the guys he's throwing against have not thrown in any. That obviously helps when you have that kind of experience. I think that's part of it, but his ability to keep his composure when the heat's on is also a big part of it."
On some of what is special about Mostafa Hassan:
"The other competitors and coaches respect him, and he's soft-spoken and respectful during competition in terms of the way he carries himself. He really represents Colorado State well. In my opinion, he's kind of a once-in-a-lifetime athlete for me. I've had athletes similar to him like Casey Malone, Shelly Borman and Loree Smith, but I don't expect to have another athlete like him come along in my career. He's really in a class of his own."
Colorado State distance coach Art Siemers
On Grant Fischer:
"Grant did everything he could – he ran a tactical race. He took the lead with a few laps to go, but he ended up getting kind of got boxed in and was unable to move. Everyone is within a few seconds of each other, so if you get in the wrong position toward the finish it can make a big difference. Grant had a great indoor season, and he's motivated to go have a great outdoor one."
NOTES
- Mostafa Hassan's five career All-America honors (three indoor, two outdoor) are the third-most by a single athlete in program history. Only Bryan Berryhill (10 – two cross country, four indoor, four outdoor) and Loree Smith (six – four indoor, two outdoor) have more.
- Grant Fischer's three career All-America honors (two indoor, one outdoor) is tied for the ninth-most for a single athlete in program history.
UP NEXT
Cole Rockhold of the Colorado State men's track & field team is set to compete in each of the mile and 3,000 meters finals on Saturday. The mile is slated for 3:10 p.m. MT (4:10 p.m. CT), while the 3,000 meters is schedule to start at 5:10 p.m. MT (6:10 p.m. CT).