Shaheed named Athlete of the Week

Nolan Shaheed - Athlete of the Week

INDIANAPOLIS – Masters athlete and noted jazz musician Nolan Shaheed has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week after he broke his own world record in the M60 800 meter race in 2:08.56 Saturday in Los Angeles.

Running at the Tommie “Tiny” Lister Classic, Shaheed lined-up next to collegiate athletes young enough to be his sons or even grandsons. With 200m to go, announcer Bill Fitzpatrick noted that Shaheed needed a 33-second closing 200m to set the world record. With the crowd behind him, Shaheed crossed the line half a second faster than his efforts at the Mt. Sac Relays the previous week.

“The college kids were wonderful celebrating with me and coming up to shake my hand after the race,” Shaeed said. “Then I was named the athlete of the meet, and that was really heartwarming because there were hundreds of great college kids running at this meet, and for them to decide that mine was the greatest achievement of the meet was very touching for me.”

Shaheed was first introduced to track in high school, but did not compete seriously until his late 20’s. While he once clocked 1:46 for 800m, Shaheed has watched his times in the 800 and 1500m creep up by an average of one second each year as he gets older.

“I will be one of the 95-year-old guys running masters races,” Shaeed admits. “I never want to retire from track and field; it’s good for your body, and it’s good for your mind.

Now in its tenth year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on the USATF website. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.

Winners: January 5, Bill Tribou; January 12, Tyler Sorensen; January 20, Josh Cox; January 26,Ben Shorey; February 2, Ashton Eaton; February 9, Ashton Eaton; February 16, Bernard Lagat; February 23, Ryan Crouser; March 2, Jillian Camarena-Williams; March 10, Bill Collins; March 16, Miles Batty; March 23, Shalane Flanagan; March 30, John Nunn; April 6, Aries Merritt; April 13, Gunnar Nixon; April 20, Desiree Davila; April 27, Nolan Shaheed