Mohammed Ahmed just narrowly missed out on a medal for Canada in the 10,000m track final at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The 33-year-old was in the hunt all race long, even leading for brief stints. He found himself in second place going into the final 50m, but wound up being passed by Ethiopia’s Berihu Aregawi and USA’s Grant Fisher in the dying seconds to finish in fourth.
Athlétisme 👟 : Mohammed Ahmed 🇨🇦 termine 4e au 10 000 m avec un temps de 26 min 43 s 79/100!@Moh_Speed @athleticscanada #Paris2024 #jeuxolympiques #rcsports #athletisme pic.twitter.com/36n0a3L1O2
— Radio-Canada Sports (@RC_Sports) August 2, 2024
“I was in a position with 50m [to go], you know what I’m saying?” Ahmed said to CBC reporter Devin Heroux.
“These are the hardest Olympics, in the history of the Olympics. On the all-time list of the top 14, there must have been like eight dudes on that field.”
Ahmed finished with an astounding time of 26:43.79, just 0.33 seconds behind Fisher, (26:43.46) and 0.35 seconds behind Aregawi (26:43.44). Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei picked up gold with a time of 26:43.14.
Despite the heartbreak, it was a valiant effort from Ahmed. His fourth-place finish is the best ever by a Canadian in the 10,000m event.
“Honestly, I have no regrets,” Ahmed said . “I think I ran that really, really f*cking well.”
While these Olympians do a great job of making their events look effortless, Ahmed was quick to admit just how exhausted he was moments after his race had been completed.
“My legs are really, really dead,” Ahmed remarked. “I did everything I could. The cues, I wasn’t really worried about it. Fourth person blew by me and I was like, ‘Go through your gears, go through your gears.’ I ran an incredible race, I can’t really be disappointed.”
“I think I ran that really, really f–king well”
Moh Ahmed had a memorable post-race interview with @devin_heroux after his fourth place finish in the 10,000m at #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/YgyoFvXfDw
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) August 2, 2024
Despite just falling short in this event, Canada still boasts 11 medals to this point in the Olympics, three of which are gold. Summer McIntosh, a 17-year-old swimmer, is responsible for two of those golds, finishing first in the 200m butterfly final, as well as first in the 400m individual medley.
The Olympic Games, by all accounts, have been a giant success so far for Canada, and we still have a long way to go. With things not set to wrap up until Sunday, August 11, there will be plenty more opportunities for Canada to add to its already impressive medal count.
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