21-year-old Yasmin Abez has been growing rapidly as a student in the United States for the past four years. Precisely on his ‘home’ track in Nijmegen, Mooks raced to a European Championship finish in the 1500m. “I feel at home here.”
For a moment everything looks like Saturday night’s failure. After nearly 1500 meters of running, Yasmin Abes slows down as she comes into view. The lights on the side of the track, indicating how fast she must run to reach the limit for the Under-23 European Championships, seem to swallow her up.
Then the Nijmegen public fury, organized by the next generation athletic organization Amina Maatoug fast rabbit, gives extra gas and the lights are checked. Abes collapsed to the ground from the attempt, but then couldn’t suppress a wide smile. Maatoug gets a big hug.
His time in the 1500m (4.17.98) was good enough to qualify. He will soon hear from the athletics association if he will be represented in Espoo in Finland next month. ,, This time means a lot to me”, Abes says after a while. “I didn’t make the progress I wanted to make last season. I faced many injuries. Running a private record has not been an option for a long time.
She occasionally throws out an English word and apologizes in good American fashion. Only after four years of studying sports and (psychology) at Florida State University in Tallahassee do English words have meaning. At the age of seventeen, the 21-year-old talent left his hometown of Muck to join the Nijmegen athletics track (Running Team Simba). Tracks In America. “An amazing adventure and a completely different culture than the Netherlands. There’s a lot going on around the game. I have traveled all over the country for competitions,” he said.
I have talked to a lot of people. Friends and family have supported me through thick and thin here. It feels like coming home.
Yasmin Abess
Abes was accepted as a student-athlete based on her athletic prowess. As a result, he not only studied at Florida, but was also part of a prestigious university team. She was placed on a pedestal, but it was a step. ,,Sleep, practice, study, then competitions again. If it is an away game, we will fly to the game venue three days in advance. We took the course online and our tests were postponed.
And with success, because with his university’s relay team he reached the top eight in the country at large. ,, The level is very high, athletes from all over the world come to study at various universities, and then there are good Americans. That’s where I learned what great sports are.
Her adventure continues. She has enjoyed life as a student-athlete so much that she is going to pursue a master’s degree in sports management in the US in San Francisco. Transfer to a new university. But first get ready for the European Championships on the track in Nijmegen. “I talked to a lot of people. Friends and family have supported me through thick and thin here. It’s like coming home.
Nillessen rushes to the best time for the home crowd
Groesbeek runner Stefan Nillessen (20) is likely to make it to the European Under-23 Championships. Under the watchful eye of a veritable fan club in Nijmegen, joined by his father Leon, he ran the 1500m on Saturday evening in 3.39.34 during the next generation of athletics.
Most notably, he defeated rivals Rick Van Riel and Jesse Folkenrud in a head-to-head fight. He had to rustle up these runners as only three Dutchmen are allowed to go to the European Championships in Finland. ,, It made this race extra exciting”, said Nillessen. ,, It brought extra pressure and nerves, but I stayed calm. Having so many acquaintances cheering me on here gave me extra motivation. I really wanted to show what I could do and I won. .
NGA had a strong field of participants in the 400m race with top national and international runners. Isaiah Boyers won the race in 46.05 minutes. This put him one second above the World Cup limit. The same goes for his teammate Terence Acord, who took a second too long to finish the race. Many athletes raced the limits for the European Under-23 Championships and European Under-20 Championships in Jerusalem later this summer.
