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- Cameron Levins Southern Utah University
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Cameron Levins’s form is coming around just in time for him to compete in the 2012 Canadian Cross Country Championships. Levins’s form was off as he suffered from an illness around the time of the Olympics, which may have been caused by a combination of a heavy training and frequent high-level racing. However, his famous big mileage training program, which included running volumes of up to 240-kms-per-week, paid great dividends.
In his final year representing NCAA Division 1 Southern Utah University, he earned his fourth All-American citation as well as both NCAA 5,000 and 10,000m championships. He displayed great range at the Summit League Meet by winning the 800m, 1,500m, 5,000m, and 10,000m races to give SUU an incredible 40 points, single-handedly.
His 10,000m personal best of 27:27.96 is the second fastest Canadian time and fastest NCAA time in history. He also represented Canada at the 2012 London Olympic Games competing in both the 5000m and 10,000m distances. “It took me quite a while to get over my illness,” said the 23-year-old from Black Creek, British Columbia, “but I think my body was finally so run down that it needed the time to rest. However, despite some minor setbacks, I have been steadily building mileage since, and I really feel my strength coming back.”
Cross Country
Levins is also a cross-country phenom. He owns two Canadian Cross Country Championship titles as well as a fourth place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships from 2011. Levins sees the value of cross-country running in his overall training plan. “Besides building the endurance and strength needed to run well in cross-country, I think it is just a lot of fun to do various challenging and unique courses and terrain. I have always found that a strong cross-country season carries over into track, and so I don't want to give that up,” he said.
Levins is up against many contenders at the 2012 Canadian Championships, as the race appears to be one of the deepest national championships in years. One of those contenders is fellow London Olympian Mo Ahmed, who is fresh off a victory at the NCAA Division I Great Lakes Regional Meet that took place on November 9th. At this meet he ran the 10k cross-country course in 30:37 besting Maverick Darling by 10 seconds. Ahmed led the Wisconsin Badgers to their 11th consecutive Regional Championships title. He may be tough to beat.
On Turning Pro and New Coach Dave Scott-Thomas
Levins is looking forward to competing as a professional starting in 2013. He recently signed on with Nike and is in talks with Speed River Track and Field head coach Dave Scott-Thomas. Asked if he plans on competing in the NACAC and IAAF World Cross Country Championships as well as the IAAF World Track and Field Championships he said, “Ideally I would like to do all of them. I am really looking forward to next year, and really stepping onto the professional scene. I have begun talks with Dave Scott-Thomas. I have known him for years, I really trust him, and I am looking forward to his tutelage."
No one is doubting that Cameron Levins's transition to the professional ranks will go very well, but for now, he is up against serious competition November 24th as he seeks his third consecutive Canadian Cross Country Championships title.
