Colorado State University Athletics
CSU adds 2 to track & field roster
11/15/2014 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
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FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The Colorado State track & field team announced the addition of two new athletes, Mostafa Amr Ahmed and Linnéa Jönsson, to its roster for the 2016 season. Head Coach Brian Bedard announced the new athletes Saturday.
Hailing from Cairo, Egypt, Mostafa Amr Ahmed will join the Rams to begin his sophomore season. A premier shot put thrower, Ahmed was ranked No. 2 in the 2014 world junior rankings, and is No. 5 in the all-time junior rankings. He was the Under-20 Arab champion in the shot put and the Arab men’s champion.
An eight-time national champion, Ahmed is the Egyptian, Arab and African junior record holder in the shot put. He recently placed eighth at the 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships in Eugene, Ore., with throw of 63-0.
“Mostafa has the ability to come in, win an MW title and be an All-American in the shot at the national meet in his first season,” said Bedard. “His coaches in Egypt have done a great job with his strength training and technique foundation, and we will continue to build on that while he competes at CSU. He has the talent to compete internationally and I will keep that in mind when we train him. Some of our goals will be to break the Egyptian national record in the shot put and qualify for the Olympics in 2016. Big goals for a young athlete but he’s that type of athlete. He’s special.”
Linnéa Jönsson brings to Colorado State a lengthy list of accomplishments in all four throwing events. A native of Uppsala, Sweden, she was the Swedish junior champion in the weight throw this year, finishing fifth at the Swedish Indoor Championships. She also placed third in the hammer and seventh in the indoor shot put at juniors. In 2013, her first year at the junior level, Jönsson earned four top 10 finishes, highlighted by a fifth-place finish at the indoor championships in the weight throw.
In 2011 and 2012 Jönsson competed at the youth level, capturing a fourth-place finish in both the hammer and the weight throw at the Swedish Youth Championships in 2012. Her personal records rank among the best of the best at Colorado State, nearing 200 feet in the hammer and 60 feet in the weight throw.
“Linnéa has the talent to compete at the highest levels in the MW in the hammer throw in her first season with the Rams,” commented Bedard. “Her current PR would put her in a position to be an all-conference performer and an NCAA First Round qualifier. Linnéa's club coach in Sweden has done a great job with her strength training and technique work to this point. I will have conversations with her coach to continue work on what they've already started to make a smooth transition for her. The coaching staff and teammates are very excited to have Linnéa join the Rams and look forward to her immediate impact on the team.”