Colorado State University Athletics
Wednesday, June 6
Eugene, Ore.
Colorado State
vs
NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships
Photo by: Nate Barrett
Rams’ Hassan earns First-Team All-America honors, Fischer a Second-Team All-American on day one of NCAAs
6/6/2018 10:58:00 PM | Track & Field
Rams’ Mostafa Hassan earns sixth First-Team All-America honor; Grant Fischer an All-America performer for the fourth time
EUGENE, Ore. – Senior Mostafa Hassan earned First-Team All-America honors in the shot put, while senior Grant Fischer took Second-Team All-America distinction in the 10,000 meters as the Colorado State track & field team opened competition at the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Wednesday at Hayward Field.
Hassan placed third overall in the shot put with a mark of 67-0.75 (20.44m). The Cairo, Egypt native registered that mark on his second attempt of the competition, and led the field on Wednesday until the fifth of six rounds. The senior unloaded an aggressive throw on his sixth and final attempt, but was unable to stay in the ring and improve upon his third-place position. With his finish, Hassan earns the sixth First-Team All-America honor of his career.
To reach the NCAA Championships, Hassan had to journey back from an injury in time for the Mountain West Championships. The two-time NCAA indoor champion won the conference title with a throw of 61-5 (18.72m), ensuring his qualification for the NCAA West Preliminary. He then improved upon that mark by over three feet (64-6.5/19.76m) on his third and final attempt of the regional meet to clinch his spot at nationals. His best throw on Wednesday was over a two-and-a-half-foot further improvement upon that, and was less than a foot shy of the winning mark (67-7.5/20.61m by Georgia's Denzel Comenentia).
On the track, Fischer finished 11th of the 24-runner 10,000 meters field with a time of 29:20.73. Once the pack began to string out, the senior ran the majority of the race in that position, climbing as high as within the top eight around the midpoint of the race.
The Fort Collins, Colo., native earns his fourth career All-America honor overall, including distinction in the 10,000 meters for the second consecutive season. Fischer also earned All-America recognition twice in the indoor 5,000 meters.
IN THEIR WORDS
Colorado State head coach Brian Bedard
On Mostafa Hassan:
"Considering that he had a major injury two weeks after indoor nationals, the fact that he was here and in contention to win a championship is almost a miracle. Between our training room staff – Anne and Dray – and Coach Longo in the weight room, they did everything they could from a support staff standpoint to get him back. They deserve a lot of credit, and this is a big tribute to them, but also a big tribute to Mostafa. He didn't lose faith and was consistent with his rehab. For him to go through that and be in a position to win a national title really speaks to what kind of competitor and man he is."
On the legacy Mostafa Hassan leaves:
"In all my years of coaching, I don't know if I've had an athlete as composed and disciplined as he is, and I've had some great ones that I don't want to discount. Mostafa's a special person. He's a dominant performer, but more than that, he represents everything that you look for in a student-athlete. He's serious about his academics, respected his teammates and bought into what we're trying to do at CSU. He was a leader, and the ultimate student-athlete for us."
Colorado State distance coach Art Siemers
On Grant Fischer:
"We thought there could be a chance that the three from Alabama could set the pace really hard, so the plan going in was that Grant was just going to stick his nose out there and try to finish among the top guys. He knew it'd take the race of his life to get on the podium, but he did everything in his power to try. He ran really gutsy, never quit and clawed back to give himself a shot. I'm really proud of him. Coming in as a walk-on, he put a good stamp on our program. He worked really hard, and finished as one of the best runners in the country."
NOTES
- Mostafa Hassan's six All-America honors are the most for any male thrower in program history and are tied for the most by any male or female in school history. Loree Smith also finished with six.
- The only distance athletes in program history with more All-America honors (of any distinction) than Grant Fischer's four are Bryan Berryhill (10) and current Colorado State junior Cole Rockhold (five).
UP NEXT
Junior Kelcey Bedard of the Colorado State track & field team will compete in the women's hammer at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Thursday. Competition in the event begins at 2 p.m. MT/1 p.m. PT. Junior Cole Rockhold will compete for the Rams in the 5,000 meters on Friday.
Hassan placed third overall in the shot put with a mark of 67-0.75 (20.44m). The Cairo, Egypt native registered that mark on his second attempt of the competition, and led the field on Wednesday until the fifth of six rounds. The senior unloaded an aggressive throw on his sixth and final attempt, but was unable to stay in the ring and improve upon his third-place position. With his finish, Hassan earns the sixth First-Team All-America honor of his career.
To reach the NCAA Championships, Hassan had to journey back from an injury in time for the Mountain West Championships. The two-time NCAA indoor champion won the conference title with a throw of 61-5 (18.72m), ensuring his qualification for the NCAA West Preliminary. He then improved upon that mark by over three feet (64-6.5/19.76m) on his third and final attempt of the regional meet to clinch his spot at nationals. His best throw on Wednesday was over a two-and-a-half-foot further improvement upon that, and was less than a foot shy of the winning mark (67-7.5/20.61m by Georgia's Denzel Comenentia).
On the track, Fischer finished 11th of the 24-runner 10,000 meters field with a time of 29:20.73. Once the pack began to string out, the senior ran the majority of the race in that position, climbing as high as within the top eight around the midpoint of the race.
The Fort Collins, Colo., native earns his fourth career All-America honor overall, including distinction in the 10,000 meters for the second consecutive season. Fischer also earned All-America recognition twice in the indoor 5,000 meters.
IN THEIR WORDS
Colorado State head coach Brian Bedard
On Mostafa Hassan:
"Considering that he had a major injury two weeks after indoor nationals, the fact that he was here and in contention to win a championship is almost a miracle. Between our training room staff – Anne and Dray – and Coach Longo in the weight room, they did everything they could from a support staff standpoint to get him back. They deserve a lot of credit, and this is a big tribute to them, but also a big tribute to Mostafa. He didn't lose faith and was consistent with his rehab. For him to go through that and be in a position to win a national title really speaks to what kind of competitor and man he is."
On the legacy Mostafa Hassan leaves:
"In all my years of coaching, I don't know if I've had an athlete as composed and disciplined as he is, and I've had some great ones that I don't want to discount. Mostafa's a special person. He's a dominant performer, but more than that, he represents everything that you look for in a student-athlete. He's serious about his academics, respected his teammates and bought into what we're trying to do at CSU. He was a leader, and the ultimate student-athlete for us."
Colorado State distance coach Art Siemers
On Grant Fischer:
"We thought there could be a chance that the three from Alabama could set the pace really hard, so the plan going in was that Grant was just going to stick his nose out there and try to finish among the top guys. He knew it'd take the race of his life to get on the podium, but he did everything in his power to try. He ran really gutsy, never quit and clawed back to give himself a shot. I'm really proud of him. Coming in as a walk-on, he put a good stamp on our program. He worked really hard, and finished as one of the best runners in the country."
NOTES
- Mostafa Hassan's six All-America honors are the most for any male thrower in program history and are tied for the most by any male or female in school history. Loree Smith also finished with six.
- The only distance athletes in program history with more All-America honors (of any distinction) than Grant Fischer's four are Bryan Berryhill (10) and current Colorado State junior Cole Rockhold (five).
UP NEXT
Junior Kelcey Bedard of the Colorado State track & field team will compete in the women's hammer at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Thursday. Competition in the event begins at 2 p.m. MT/1 p.m. PT. Junior Cole Rockhold will compete for the Rams in the 5,000 meters on Friday.
Players Mentioned
Throws
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Distance
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Distance
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