After graduating from the University of Washington in Seattle, runner Meron Simon wanted a change of scenery.
That desire took him on a 2,800-mile journey to NC State, where he’ll compete this year for the Wolfpack cross country team as a redshirt senior and study youth development and leadership as a graduate student.
“I’m originally from Seattle,” Simon said. “Washington was one of the main schools I looked at growing up. I’m a huge Huskies fan, and I just graduated from there, so that’s awesome. Coming down to my fifth year, I decided the best thing to do was get out of my home state, go out explore and see what else the country has to offer.”
Last spring, Simon spent much time researching different programs across the country but settled on NC State after communicating with the coaches at the school and making friends with some of the members of the Wolfpack team at a cross country camp in Boulder, Colorado back in summer 2013.
“I talked to schools all over and got a feel of what other programs and coaches were like,” Simon said. “I talked to coach Geiger and coach Seaton a few times. Honestly, I thought those two coaches were such great people, and they welcomed me in so easily.”
Already one of the top runners in the Pac-12 and a competitor at the NCAA Division-I Championships in spring 2015, Simon has thrived since running with the Pack. Although he was predicted to be the team’s third runner this season, the Seattle native was the first Wolfpack men’s cross country runner to break the plane at the highly contested Notre Dame Invitational Oct. 2.
However, despite recent success on the cross country course, Simon’s primary focus is on the track, where he competes in the 3,000-meter Steeplechase, a long distance race that requires competitors to traverse barriers, such as water jumps and large hurdles.
With that being the case, the cross country season primarily serves to condition him for track in the spring.
“Right now, I’m running as much as I can, trying to stay healthy, [moving] into different racing cycles and getting mileage in for the outdoor season,” Simon said.
Simon has already gained Internet notoriety for his exploits on the track. Last spring, a video of him overtaking an Oregon runner who prematurely celebrated victory in the Steeplechase went viral, garnering plenty of hits on YouTube and taking the top spot on SportsCenter’s “Not Top 10” countdown.
Internet fame belies the former Husky’s relative newness to Steeplechase, however.
“I’m brand new to the [Steeplechase],” Simon said. “I did it a few times my freshman year but didn’t know too much about it. I had a pretty bad fall and kind of quit the event altogether because I didn’t enjoy it very much.”
It wasn’t until last year that Simon gave the event another try.
“It took me a few years to get back,” Simon said. “This last year, 2015 outdoor season, my coach at the University of Washington [encouraged me] to go back to the Steeplechase. That was my best bet of making it to outdoor nationals.”
Last spring, he placed fifth at the Pac-12 conference championships and successfully qualified to compete at the NCAA Division-I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
With a greater focus on the Steeplechase, Simon is poised to improve upon previous success in the event.
“I still don’t know how to hurdle,” Simon said. “Coach Geiger will be able to teach me how to hurdle a little more efficiently and just be able to get better at the event all together. Once [the event] clicks, you can go so far.”
