“…After being seeded No. 1 by running a windy 11.50 in the 100 prelims, the Oregon-bound Shaheed had her worst start of the season in the finals, only able to get up for fifth place in 11.54 despite a huge 4.0 aiding breeze.

“That motivated me for the 200, I was driven,” said a disappointed Shaheed after her metric furlong. “In retrospect, I’m just happy to be healthy after my sophomore and junior years.”

Coached by her father, Haneef, Shaheed — the sister of NFL wide receiver Rasheed Shaheed — Amirah used the 100 loss and a rare setback the day before to get her ready for the 200 finals.

“I was disappointed with my 100 and in the prelims I lost my 200 heat by .01 seconds,” said Amirah, whose sister Aysha was the section’s dominant sprinter in 2021 and is currently at the Cal.

“This is a great finish for a career that has so many ups and downs. I made it a point to focus on the end of the race after easing up at the finish in the prelims.

“I came in hoping we’d sweep the 100 and 200 but in the 200 I became like a person with a dog chasing them. I remembered everything my dad taught me. I ran off the fuel of losing that 100. OK, I admit I was angry…”

Photo and article provided by the Union-Tribune. Read the full article here.
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