Mohamed Katir |Spanish Moroccan athlete of national record origin holding 1,500, 3,000 and 5,000 meters outside, He stressed that he sees himself as “becoming an athletics legend” and have the confidence to make “your best year”.
Katir (Alcazarquivir, Morocco, 1998), in an interview with Efe, acknowledged that seeks to continue breaking records and that he looks “strong” after facing his first Olympic Games last summer in Tokyo.
More than a year ago, few knew his name, but training hard in the shadows resulted in a historic 2021 for Mohamed Katir: broke the national record of 1,500, 3,000 and 5,000 meters in just 33 days before reaching the final in Tokyo 2020, where he achieved a well-deserved eighth place.
The athlete, who is in Malaga as one of the names of his main sports sponsor (ASICS) at the launch of a shoe line, said it was a “faster and lighter” model that he would fly this year.
“I have a month of training and I still have a little to go. If it comes out, good and if not, keep working”, He pointed out before the 5-kilometer race organized by the brand in this Andalusian city, where he made a time of 13:20 and less than two seconds to break the European record of 5 kilometers on the road held by the Frenchman Jimmy Gresier with 13:18 and one from Spain owned by Ouassim Oumaiz (13:19).
After his great explosion last season, Katir has “confidence to make a better year than 2021”.
“I have very good feelings and I hope my injuries respect me,” he said in relation to this season, in which he set his two main priorities, the 1,500 World Championship in Eugene (United States) and the 5,000 European Championship in Munich ( Germany).
“It is very difficult to make a record, more than winning a medal. You have to practice a lot. There’s a month of loading, another month of half loading and half fast months, and a third month of series and super fast shooting. To run a lot you have to train a lot ”, he explained about his elite routine.
insatiable humility
“I see myself as a legend of athletics. Doing 3:28 is insane. If in just one year in the elite I had made these marks, I think I could have improved a lot.. What I have to do is train well, take care of myself and the rest will come on its own ”, he highlights.
Katir has been training since she was 12 years old, but she hasn’t had a chance to run with good people and “on big dates”, so she can’t show it. “People were shocked and they wondered where I came from”, He claims, remembering that until he obtained Spanish nationality he had no good opportunities.
Of the records to his credit, the most special “is the 1,500 meters”, but at 3,000 “I also made a very good mark and at 5,000, although I think 1,500 gives more respect”, he emphasizes he laughs in between, and remarks that now his rivals have “little respect” for him.
In view of time, he reflects on his experience in Tokyo 2020: “I didn’t like that in my first Games people asked me for a medal. I don’t even know what the Games are, my only dream is to go and run there. I never thought I would be in one last fight with the best in the world ”.
“Eighth place is insane and that Olympic diploma is a source of pride for me and gives me more confidence for the future.”, He assured, in an experience where he also had to face expectations.
“I had to remove social media for a week. The pressure was very strong, but I understood because I made very good marks and people had confidence in me, but I was like a rookie at the Olympics”, he admits.
sad poet
On the track it’s a competitive machine, but on the outside it’s “a normal man, always stomped on the ground”. Katir has lived with her family in the Murcian town of Mula since she was 5 years old, where she likes to be “alone” with her grandparents in the countryside.
“I prefer training, eating and sleeping than going out there from one place to another“, He added. Before becoming a world ‘top’ in athletics, he applied for a firefighter and one of his passions is poetry:”I usually write a lot of poetry about nature and one day I will publish it, for sure”, He promised.
Source: La Verdad
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
