One of the greatest years for any athlete in New Mexico’s history came to a fitting close Friday night.
After unleashing a dramatic final kick, UNM’s Habtom Samuel finished the NCAA men’s 5,000-meter final in 13 minutes and 38.93 seconds to claim his second national title of the week Friday at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field and Championships.
Racing at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, the junior from Keren, Eritrea has now won an NCAA individual cross country national championship, an indoor 5K title, the outdoor 5K and the 10K title, completing a rare distance-double to close the most successful year of any athlete in program history.
Samuel was largely considered the favorite for Friday’s 5K final after setting a new NCAA record (13:03.47) in the event earlier this year. He also ran the world-leading time (12:57.27) in the 5K at the Sound Running L.A. Track Festival in May, setting a new Eritrean record in the process.
Unlike Wednesday’s 10K final, Samuel didn’t lead for the majority of the 5K final. He started at the rear before surging towards the front four minutes into the race. He later fell back after he was bumped by another runner.
Eventually, he made his move to the front — one Villanova’s Marco Langan matched, moving up to lead the pack with nearly a lap to go. Samuel made an early move and took the lead with 250 meters left, withstanding a late run from Wake Forest’s Rocky Hansen to win the title.
Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.
NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships
Saturday
Women’s 5K final (7:55 p.m.): Pamela Kosgei, Marion Jepngetich
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