The man who became a King

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The path of Edward Cheserek

In a somewhat serendipitous, circuitous series of events, I’ve managed a frontish row seat throughout the coronation of Edward Cheserek.

My first interaction with Cheserek happened when he took a recruiting trip to the University of Portland. Back then, I was a middle-of-the-pack harrier for the Pilots, and Cheserek was one of the most highly recruited distance athletes in recent history. I distinctly remember him and I assure you he does not distinctly remember me. Any sort of interaction we had during that trip was the type that I consciously filed under “Tell Your Grandkids About This Someday” while his subconscious swept it under “Unclassified Non-Consequential Interaction.”

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The reason why my grandkids will have to sit through my tales of Cheserek began during his days as a high schooler in New Jersey. Paul Snyder, a collegiate runner for Columbia University while Cheserek was just beginning to make a name for himself, recalls setting his 5,000-meter personal best with this tale:

I finished in 14:07. It was the most objectively impressive athletic feat of my life. And for about 24 hours it was unsullied. I rode the bus back to New York City elated. And then I looked at the results and saw that one of the men I'd lost to was a mere boy. A New Jersey high school student. He'd run 14:05. He probably wasn't old enough to drive. His name was Edward Cheserek. The shine was immediately rubbed off my PR apple. And it stayed that way for a while. Years, even.

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The first time I personally witnessed Cheserek’s ability to rub shine off an apple was during that aforementioned recruiting trip. Cheserek joined us for our weekly long run. He quickly turned it into his long run - leaving the rest of us to watch him gallop away from the group. The possibility of catching him was not even considered. Perhaps one day I will let a 17-year old publicly shame me, but it wasn’t going to be that day.

In the thousands of miles he has run since that day, I’m sure this specific run has joined thousands of other runs in the recesses of his mind; but for me, it was my first inkling into the possibility of his brilliance.

Cheserek left our team later that day with a smile and a promise he would be joining us next year. He then left Portland en route to Eugene for his recruiting visit at the University of Oregon.

History will forever show he lied to us. History also shows he made a fantastic decision.

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Whichever spring day in 2013 Cheserek officially decided to attend the University of Oregon should be chiseled on a stone so we have an exact date of the beginning of life AEC (After Edward Cheserek). Cheserek changed the game.

Before Ches, guys like Lawi (Lalang) and (Kennedy) Kithuka would just time trial races,” recalled Scott Fauble. “And it worked.”

Fauble was a multi-time All-American at the University of Portland during the reign of Cheserek. He raced Cheserek frequently, only rarely coming out victorious.

In the fall of 2013, Cheserek put the entire collegiate running world on watch with his victory at NCAA Cross Country Championships after kicking down heavy favorite Kennedy Kithuka in the closing kilometers.

I didn’t have a lot of pressure on me during that season,” Cheserek recently told me. “They just asked me to be the fifth man. That definitely helped my nerves, and helped me compete well that season.

If you’re looking for symbolism, that race was pretty much Cheserek flipping down his Aviators and tossing his Zippo lighter behind him to burn down the establishment.

He changed the way national titles were won after that race,” noted Fauble who placed 13th to Cheserek’s first. “After that, it was pretty much a matter of if he would tempo the race and win, or sit and kick.

Whatever the formula, the answer was more often than not a Cheserek national title. An unprecedented 17 NCAA national titles awaited Cheserek during his time as a Duck. His supreme reign would endow him with his current preferred moniker: King Cheserek.

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His greatness was so great because he accomplished so many things.

It wasn’t just one thing.

Scott Fauble

Ed was certainly the most talented guy I ever trained with, but in my opinion what separates him from the pack is his mental approach to the sport,” said Oregon all-time great and current professional runner Trevor Dunbar. “Ed was the first man to practice and the last to leave. An all-business king.”

Former teammate and All-American Samantha Nadel echoes Dunbar’s appreciation of Cheserek’s yeoman-like approach to his craft, saying:

His commitment to the sport and drive to be better than his competitors is what has propelled him to achieve everything that he has. You can have talent, but without internal motivation and drive, you won't get anywhere.

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Cheserek is now a professional runner for Skechers, living and training in Flagstaff, Arizona. I also live in Flagstaff, Arizona, and so my close observations of a young king continue.

I recently tagged along to watch Cheserek take on one of his final workouts before he competed in the two-mile at the Pre Classic. He was doing his workout alone. Which begged the question if he often works out alone.

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People are scared to work out with me sometimes.

But for me, I have to go hard in workouts so racing will feel easier.

Edward Cheserek

In the midst of a time when every run is measured and every workout is calculated, there is something strikingly à propos about his minimalist approach.

Watching Cheserek float around the 400-meter oval the other night brought back memories of the first time I saw him run: effortlessly, unintentionally pulling away from a pack of talented collegiate runners.

Like Ali throwing a hook, Jordan nailing a game winner, or Vonn carving a perfect turn, there is an incredible fluidity to his movement. As he clipped off 60-second laps for a 1200-meter repetition, and then increased the pace over short intervals, his mechanics never changed, his focus never wandered.

When Ed puts his mind to something, and believes he will win, he almost always does,” Dunbar told me. “He has a silent confidence and a killer instinct.”

All of this, coupled with the salient fact that he, only months ago, posted the second-fastest indoor mile of all-time at 3:49, in addition to a 7:39 3,000-meter the following day, leads me to point out the most obvious conclusion:

No shit people are afraid to work out with him.

Before he left for the Pre Classic, we had one more jog. He told me he was feeling good for the race, and expected to compete for the win in the competitive field.

So, Ed, you think winning these races just comes down to balls?” I asked.

He laughed as he usually does. “Oh man. Absolutely!

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In what would be the final Pre Classic held at Historic Hayward Field, it was a fitting atmosphere for the return of the King. A raucous crowd roared for Cheserek as he was announced on the starting line. Both arms shot up in gratitude for the years of support the fans of Tracktown had given him, and the fans cheered with appreciation for past and expectations for the future.

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There would be no fairytale ending to this race, though.

Cheserek, never much of a factor during the ordeal, faded to 15th place.

There is something about judging greatness from afar that lends itself to extreme evaluations of performance. When someone is excellening, it’s quite easy to deem them worthy of the crown. And, likewise, when someone performs poorly, an observer can calmly and confidently say “I told ya so.” Rarely are we willing to take a step back and consider an entire body of work before making judgements. However, if we do, more often than not, a clear picture emerges. In the case of Edward Cheserek, there has never been a more clear picture.

For some reason, my life path has remained close to Cheserek’s and it’s given me the chance to bear witness to the very reasons why he has been bestowed the royal title: his 53-second last lap at the 2014 NCAA 10,000-meter championship, his third consecutive NCAA Cross Country title, the unending praise from former coaches and teammates. But, when he walked off the track last Friday night after a disappointing performance, he did so with no fuss, no tantrum. Simply a look back at the scoreboard to confirm he still has much work to do, and a graceful exit from the track.

Long live the King.

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