By John Connolly
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Though his hopes of stepping on the Boston Marathon starting line were dashed by injury a year ago, four-time U.S. Olympian Abdihakem Abdirahman never wavered in his dream of one day competing in the traditional Hopkinton to Boston trek.
In the aftermath of last year’s bombings, the Somalia native entered this year even more determined of being in the field for the 118th edition of the fabled footrace.
“My thoughts about last year was that it was such a tragic event,” Abdirahman said. “Because we are all one country. We run together as one nation, one city, as one. Runners always come together. It was real tragic to see that happen last year, especially because this sport of running has no religion or politics. It just makes us stronger. It was real sad when I watched it on television.
“I love Boston,” the 37-year-old added. “It has always been a dream of mine to run the Boston Marathon.”
Abdirahman was gearing up to run Boston last year when a balky hamstring put the brakes on those plans.
“This year, I’ve been healthy most of the time. My preparation has been going real well and I’ve done what I need to do,” said Abdirahman, whose best marathon time of 2:08:56 came in Chicago in 2006. “I’m healthy. I’m feeling good. My fitness has improved because there are a lot of good runners in my training group. Now, the biggest thing is getting to the starting line. Cross my fingers.”
Abdirahman, who attended Tucson High and the University of Arizona, became an American citizen in 2000. Nicknamed the Black Cactus because of his lanky 5-foot-11, 130-pound frame, Abdirahman has competed in the 10,000 meters as well as the marathon in the Olympics.
Abdirahman has been based in Tucson for his pre-marathon buildup, with a few brief excursions to higher altitude outside the city. His training mileage total is slightly more than in college but the real secret behind running fast times has been the elite caliber of training partners, including fellow U.S. Olympian Bernard Lagat and Kenyan Stephen Sambu.
Abdirahman attributes his long-term success to maintaining the same ground-roots formula. He still runs under the guidance of longtime Arizona coach Dave Murray and his agent remains Ray Flynn, a two-time Olympian from Ireland.
“If you keep changing your training programs and coaches, it’s tough. It takes you about a year to get used to the new one,” said Abidirahman, who laughed when told his agent was once identified as Boston Mayor Ray Flynn by a radio newscaster during the now-defunct Braintree Hospital 10K. “I’m here working under one program at one place with the same people. Like they say, if it’s not broke, don’t change.”
Monday’s Boston Marathon will feature a deep and talented men’s elite field, but observers shouldn’t discount the chances of the American contingent despite the advancing years of stars like Abdirahman.
“I will have a little more emotion because of what happened last year, but so, too, will every athlete have that emotion. So, you can’t use that to your advantage,” Abdirahman said. “It will be a heartfelt race for all of us. We all train for these races the same. Also, I always tell myself, ‘Don’t count yourself out.’ So I think I will be running with the (lead) guys. It doesn’t matter if it’s up-or-down or if it’s Heartbreak Hill. We are all here to win it. That’s the challenge.’’