Eastern Michigan Athletics
Trio of Eagles Slated to Compete on the International Stage
7/6/2015 10:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Andresson, Bouchikhi and Ijah to compete in international competitions
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Three student-athletes from the Eastern Michigan University track and field team have been selected to compete for their respective countries on the international stage. Hlynur Andresson and Lahsene Bouchikhi will compete in the European Under 23 Championships, July 9-12, while Solomon Ijah will head to Berhausen, Germany to compete for the United States in the 2015 Thorpe Cup, Aug. 8-9.
Andressen, a transfer from Alderson Broaddus, will compete for Iceland at the European Under 23, where he will take part in the 5000m. In outdoor action, the Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland native posted a career-best 14:24.25 in the 5000m at the Jesse Owens Classic earlier this season, May 1. The redshirt-sophomore finished fifth in the 5000m at the 2015 Outdoor Mid-American Conference Championships, while he took fourth in the 3000m steeplechase and sixth in the 1500m. Andressen holds the 10th-fastest time in EMU history in the 10,000m after finishing 13th in 23:38.42 at the Raleigh Relays.
Bouchikhi, a redshirt-sophomore, who did not compete during the 2014-15 campaign, will represent Belgium in the same competition. The Antwerp, Belgium native will compete in the 10,000m in the Tallinn, Estonia-based championships. Bouchihki placed second at the 2014 MAC Cross Country Championships behind teammate Willy Fink before redshirting for the 2014-15 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. In 2013-14, he finished third in the 3000m and 5000m at the Indoor MAC Championships, before placing third in the 5000m Outdoor MAC Championships. His best time in the 10,000m while running for EMU is a 30:24.32, which came at the famed Penn Relays.
"Qualifying for the European Under 23 Championships was a goal we established in January for both Hlynur and Lahsene but their paths were very different," remarked Head Men's Cross Country and Track and Field Coach John Goodridge. "Bouchikhi came up with a strained back a few days before the NCAA Regional Cross Country Championships which lingered so I decided to redshirt him for track which gave us the opportunity not to rush his training and racing. He raced just once here getting his qualifying mark in the 10k before returning to Belgium for two races including a much improved 14:06 5000m time. On the other hand Andresson, who is quite new to the sport and year round training, raced throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons gaining a lot of experience, resulting in significant development over a wide range of events."
Fresh off of his appearance in the USATF Outdoor Adult National Championships appearance, Ijah will head to Germany for the Thorpe Cup where he will compete in the team decathlon. The Thorpe Cup is a matchup between the U.S. and Germany. The Murrieta, Calif. native was a First Team All-MAC award winner in the indoor season after breaking an EMU record with 5,444 points in the heptathlon at the MAC Indoor Championships. He continued his successful 2014-15 campaign in outdoor action when he was named All-MAC First Team and picked up honorable mention honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). At the Outdoor MAC Championships Ijah bested his own EMU record with 7,862 points, which also broke the MAC record by three points and bumped the redshirt-junior up to the second-best mark in the NCAA this year. He qualified for the NCAA Championships as the third-ranked decathlete, where he was forced to bow out after the high jump.
"Solomon has certainly had an outstanding year which continues with this wonderful selection and opportunity to compete for the U.S.A.," stated Goodridge. "He has proven to be a heartwarming, inspiring story as he has battled back from major knee surgery and just five months ago began learning to jump off his opposite leg while long jumping and high jumping. He will only get better and better with more experience."
Andressen, a transfer from Alderson Broaddus, will compete for Iceland at the European Under 23, where he will take part in the 5000m. In outdoor action, the Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland native posted a career-best 14:24.25 in the 5000m at the Jesse Owens Classic earlier this season, May 1. The redshirt-sophomore finished fifth in the 5000m at the 2015 Outdoor Mid-American Conference Championships, while he took fourth in the 3000m steeplechase and sixth in the 1500m. Andressen holds the 10th-fastest time in EMU history in the 10,000m after finishing 13th in 23:38.42 at the Raleigh Relays.
Bouchikhi, a redshirt-sophomore, who did not compete during the 2014-15 campaign, will represent Belgium in the same competition. The Antwerp, Belgium native will compete in the 10,000m in the Tallinn, Estonia-based championships. Bouchihki placed second at the 2014 MAC Cross Country Championships behind teammate Willy Fink before redshirting for the 2014-15 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. In 2013-14, he finished third in the 3000m and 5000m at the Indoor MAC Championships, before placing third in the 5000m Outdoor MAC Championships. His best time in the 10,000m while running for EMU is a 30:24.32, which came at the famed Penn Relays.
"Qualifying for the European Under 23 Championships was a goal we established in January for both Hlynur and Lahsene but their paths were very different," remarked Head Men's Cross Country and Track and Field Coach John Goodridge. "Bouchikhi came up with a strained back a few days before the NCAA Regional Cross Country Championships which lingered so I decided to redshirt him for track which gave us the opportunity not to rush his training and racing. He raced just once here getting his qualifying mark in the 10k before returning to Belgium for two races including a much improved 14:06 5000m time. On the other hand Andresson, who is quite new to the sport and year round training, raced throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons gaining a lot of experience, resulting in significant development over a wide range of events."
Fresh off of his appearance in the USATF Outdoor Adult National Championships appearance, Ijah will head to Germany for the Thorpe Cup where he will compete in the team decathlon. The Thorpe Cup is a matchup between the U.S. and Germany. The Murrieta, Calif. native was a First Team All-MAC award winner in the indoor season after breaking an EMU record with 5,444 points in the heptathlon at the MAC Indoor Championships. He continued his successful 2014-15 campaign in outdoor action when he was named All-MAC First Team and picked up honorable mention honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). At the Outdoor MAC Championships Ijah bested his own EMU record with 7,862 points, which also broke the MAC record by three points and bumped the redshirt-junior up to the second-best mark in the NCAA this year. He qualified for the NCAA Championships as the third-ranked decathlete, where he was forced to bow out after the high jump.
"Solomon has certainly had an outstanding year which continues with this wonderful selection and opportunity to compete for the U.S.A.," stated Goodridge. "He has proven to be a heartwarming, inspiring story as he has battled back from major knee surgery and just five months ago began learning to jump off his opposite leg while long jumping and high jumping. He will only get better and better with more experience."
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