Arcadia High School cross-country phenom landed in Sports Illustrated and The Los Angeles Times this week just before the nation’s top-ranked runner competes in the Southern Section preliminaries Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College, followed a week later by the section finals and then the state championships in Woodward Park in Fresno on Nov. 27. The national championship is in San Diego’s Mission Bay Park on Feb. 5. He was pictured in SI “Faces in the Crowd” section with the following mini-profile:
Ammar, a senior at Arcadia High, tied the course record (14:24) to win the three-mile Mt. SAC Invitational in Walnut, Calif. His effort helped the Apaches, ranked No. 1 in the nation, take the team title in a meet-record time of 75:16. Ammar also won the three-mile Woodbridge Cross Country Classic and the 5K Stanford and Clovis invitationals.
Arcadia High School top cross country runner in the nation, Ammar Moussa -- photo by Gina Ferazzi of The Los Angeles Times
Meanwhile, the Times ran a big four-column profile of the 5’7 125-pound Moussa in the sports section of last Sunday’s paper quoting Moussa and his AHS coach Jim O’Brien about how much Moussa has matured to become the consummate team player. Last year he won the Division I championship at the state finals in 14:59, the fastest time in any division. He then went on to finish fourth at the Nike Cross-Country Nationals finals.
— By Scott Hettrick