University of Minnesota Athletics
On the Run with Hamza Ali
10/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) - Gophers newcomer Hamza Ali is one of seven true freshmen on the Minnesota men's cross country roster this year.
A native of Minneapolis, Minn., Ali is coming off a win at the TC5K earlier this month after a successful prep career at Minneapolis Washburn High School. A two-time all-state and 13-time all-conference honoree, Ali helped his school to back-to-back cross country state titles and four-straight track & field titles.
GopherSports.com caught up with one of the newest members of the Maroon & Gold as he kicks off his first year with the program.
Gophersports.com: Why did you decide to become a runner?
Hamza Ali: I started running in eighth grade, I originally was a wrestler. My friend asked me to do track with him in eighth grade and after some hesitation I decided to do it. Eighth grade was the first year I was on the track team, but I was not enthusiastic about being there. After that, my friend and I tried out for the soccer team together, but I didn't make the team because I had never played the sport before. So in high school, he asked me to do cross country with him. At that time, my mom also encouraged me to join the team, so I decided to try it. I've been running ever since. I was never a sports person. I liked to go home after school and relax.
GS: Is there a runner that you look up to or admire?
HA: Kipchoge Keino. I started admiring him after watching a podcast about him. He was a runner from Kenya and was on their National team in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. During the 5k, he collapsed from a gall bladder infection. Doctors told him if he continues and competes in the 500 meters, he could die. He decided to compete anyway because his philosophy was if he was going to die, it would be on the track. He ended up beating Jim Ryun who was the best American runner. Kipchoge is still alive today. I think that's really cool. I admire his perseverance.
GS: Where is your favorite place to run?
HA: My high school team in South Minneapolis would run around Lake Harriet and Lake Calhoun. The summer before my senior year, I went with Owen Hoeft and Hunter Staack to Wyoming. I liked that trip so much I went back last summer with my own team. I like the fact that you can lose yourself on the run. You're surrounded by trees and nature. You don't have to worry about crossing the street, watching for cars, or other runners or even people walk. The peace and quiet is what I really like.
GS: How do you pump up your teammates before a race?
HA: I like giving team speeches before races. I always enjoyed that. Charlie does that for us now as captain. I like trying to hype up my teammates. I try to give them confidence and let them know that they can do it. My person problem is that I never had confidence in myself when it comes to running but growing out of it has helped me thrive so I try to pass that along to my teammates who may be having the same thoughts that I had.
GS: Do you have any tips or tricks for Gopher fans who come watch you and your teammates race?
HA: I love hearing "Go Hamza". My name isn't very common so I know they're talking about me and that's cool. One thing for me, is knowing how to say the runners' names when cheering them on. There was someone at a previous race who called me "Hazma" and I've been called "Obsa" a few times. We joke that we're related but we're really not.
GS: What's your favorite joke to tell?
HA: My favorite joke to tell is "Hi, I'm Hamza, Obsa's brother".
GS: Can you talk about your experience winning TC5K earlier this month?
HA: We got to the course and it was about 30-plus degrees. I wore my jersey, three shirts, two long sleeves, my track jacket, and another jacket over it. I didn't wear a hat because it would've messed up my hair. I did wear gloves, and shorts, pants, and joggers. I made sure to layer up because it was cold. I was looking forward to it until I realized how cold it would be. I ran most of the race with Owen and Jack. There was a turn that you had to do that was really tight so I had to be cautious going at it. I didn't want to injure myself so I ended up losing my momentum on the turn so I wouldn't get hurt. After losing my momentum, I started from scratch and that's when it was just me and Owen from that point. I have a strong kick so on the last part which was a downhill slope, I took off. It's not a very competitive race so it wasn't as much pressure. It was fun though.
GS: How do you prep for a race?
HA: Before races I used to listen to music like rap. I used to listen to the same warmup playlist but it got old so I don't listen to it anymore. I like Kanye, Drake, and Future. I stopped listening to music though because I would use it to psych myself out of the confidence I was trying to build. Now I limit how much music I listen to but I more rap and sing to myself to not let the tension get to me. My favorite song to rap is Spaceship by Kanye.
GS: Do you have any special procedures to take care of your hair?
HA: I have really long hair when it's straight. If I wear a hat, it gets patted down and forms a dome shape which I don't like. But I use conditioner and that's about it.
GS: You're wearing red, white, and blue striped socks. Are you the type of person who likes funky socks?
HA: Not really. I do have these three different pairs of socks that I like. One pair has a picture of my relay team from my junior year of high school. Another pair, has a photo of me and my head track coach from high school, who's one of my favorite coaches. Finally, another pair has a photo of just my coach. He would give all the seniors a pair on the track team but I got my pair as a junior because a senior never showed up for them. Those are the only three pairs that I sometimes mix-and-match but otherwise I prefer wearing matching socks.
GS: What was it like growing up with eight siblings?
HA: I'm the third youngest. My oldest sibling is my sister, who's 30 right now and my youngest sibling is my eight-year old sister. We have a wide spectrum of age. I was lucky to have a lot of people to look up to. I'm really close with my two oldest sisters and with my immediate oldest brother, who's the fourth youngest. I talk to those three a lot. My oldest sister is a psychology grad student at the University of Minnesota, my second sister was in the Peace Corps for two years and lived in Madagascar but now she's in Philadelphia with her fiancé, and my brother goes to UW-Stout. I don't see many of them because they live far or we're so busy but I do talk to them a lot.
GS: Why do you want to study neuroscience?
HA: Before deciding on neuroscience, I wanted to be an astrophysicist. I thought that was really cool and I still really like it but it's not what I want to do career-wise anymore. I visited my brother at UW-Stout over spring break and made it into an official visit. I met with the department head of the science department and she was a cognitive neuroscientist so we talked for about an hour and I thought it was super cool. I looked into it more and decided that's more of what I wanted to do. I think the brain is really cool. A lot of stuff can happen with the brain and it can control so much. There's a condition called Synesthesia where people's senses don't work properly. They hear shapes, and taste sounds. I want to focus on things like that and figure out how the brain comprehends the senses in those situations.
GS: What's your favorite song to jam out to in the car with the windows rolled down?
HA: This summer, I was really vibing No Flocking by Kodak Black. Anything that's rap or R&B. I'd definitely be singing along.
