“I would have been shocked about six months ago,” quipped Coach Dathan Ritzenhein about Yared Nuguse, now the world’s top Indoor Miler. Nuguse’s foray into track was anything but planned. A freshman on the high school bowling team, he was roped into running by a P.E. class assignment—motivated by better grades and a McDonald’s lunch.

Treating the two-lap run on the University of Louisville campus as a competition, Nuguse clocked an astonishing 5:30 without any training. Impressed, the track coach quickly recruited him, and Nuguse never looked back.

After narrowly missing the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the 25-year-old has been training under Ritzenhein, a 41-year-old former Olympian who has always been dedicated to track and field. Their partnership is a blend of serious training and the occasional laugh at Nuguse’s unlikely beginnings.

Nuguse’s journey, from a bowling alley to the pinnacle of track, is a testament to how greatness can spring from the most unexpected places.

Meet Yared Nuguse’s coach, Dathan Ritzenhein

During his high school days with Rockford, he set multiple state and national high school records. A few of them were the 4:05.9 in 1600m,  8:41.10 in 3200m, and 13:44.70 in the 5000m. His form continued during his NCAA days, as he won the Cross Country Championship. During the 2004 Olympic trials, finishing only 22nd in the 10,000m, Dathan Ritzenhein made the team because he was one of only five athletes who had the Olympic “A” standard.

While he started in his first Olympic race, he was unable to finish it due to stress fracture injury troubles. “My first one was a miserable experience where I hobbled my way on.“After this, he decided to forgo his collegiate career and turned pro. His new season began in 2005 with a personal record in 5000m at 13:22.23 and a 7:43.95 in 3000m. He would later debut in a marathon race in 2006 and finished in 11th place with 2:14:01. Improved his timings for the Olympic Trials, he finished 2nd with 2:11:07.

The finish of his second Olympics was much better as he crossed the line overall in 9th position. But was the first American to finish the race ahead of his teammate Ryan Hall. For the 2012 Olympics, he missed out on the spot in the Marathon as he finished 4th in the trials, but qualified for the Olympics in the 10000m category. Finishing 13th in the 10,000 m finals with a time of 27:45:89.

The constant injury problems meant he wasn’t able to take part in the 2016 Olympic trials. After three surgeries and 40+ MRIs, Dathan Ritzenhein decided to quit his career in 2020. He became the coach at the Colorado-based On Athletics Club and has a formidable training group honing their skills under his leadership.

Dathan Ritzenhein didn’t expect Yared Nuguse to show tremendous growth in a short span

Since it was formed, the athletes under his tutelage have had several records and titles under their belts. Won two Diamond League races, clinched World Athletics Indoor Championships medals (Geordie Beamish & Yared Nuguse in 2024), and won three World Marathon Majors (Hellen Obiri).

Speaking about Yared Nuguse, he finished second-fastest and set the indoor 1500m record in 2023 at the 115th Millrose Games. Before the games this year, Coach Ritzenhein had other plans for Nuguse. “I think he’s already as fit or fitter than he was [in 2023]. We do want to push the envelope on the strength side of things for him but also give him an opportunity to keep his base up high.” Since he has just been competing as a professional for two years now, the coach is slowly upping the levels.

He set the 7:28.24 American record from last year which no other American was able to run faster than Yared Nuguse. He finished 2nd at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon in the men’s 1500m race with a time of 3:30:86. He was less than a second behind winner Cole Hocker.

Finishing fifth in his heat with a time of 3:36.56, which was 0.73 seconds behind the winner of the heat. Competing today in the second semifinal at 3.15 pm ET, Coach will be expecting a top 6 finish and a place in the Finals.