Representing himself, his school and his country, Cyclone cross country and track runner Kiel Uhl took 36th overall at World Junior Cross Country Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, on Saturday.

The freshman from Prole qualified for the International Association of Athletics Federations World Junior Cross Country Championships race by winning the National Junior Cross Country Championships in New York on February 19. Uhl saw the importance of representing others in the championship.

“It was a pretty big deal for not only myself but for our team, too, so that we can get Iowa State’s team out more,” Uhl said.

“Not many people know about Iowa State running, so that was a big plus.”

ISU cross country and assistant track coach Corey Ihmels sad it was also very important that Uhl was able to represent his country.

“Being a U.S. Champion is a pretty prestigious title to have, to go and represent your country at the world cross country meet,” Ihmels said. “I think Kiel represented himself, Iowa State and the United States very well at the world meet.”

In the national championship in New York, Uhl said he knew there was no doubt that he was going to win.

“It wasn’t difficult. I had a lot of control in that race,” Uhl said. “I felt pretty confident throughout the whole thing. I never doubted anything.”

In the championships in Japan, Uhl stayed in nearly the same position the whole race, starting in 40th and working his way up to 36th at the end, the highest finish of the U.S. runners.

“It was one of those events where if you don’t get out in the top 25 at the first 2K, it’s really hard to make up ground,” Ihmels said. “He stayed in about the same position the whole race. But overall it was a good experience and he ended up placing pretty solid.”

Uhl said he felt the whole experience was one that really helped his running career at an early juncture.

“It was important for me have an opportunity to go compete internationally this early in my career,” Uhl said. “I just felt like it was such a big accomplishment, and I just knew it was all the hard work paying off.”

As for the near future, Ihmels was unsure if Uhl would run during the outdoor track season or not.

“He’s been at a pretty high level for a while now, first at cross country, then going into the U.S. and then the world championships,” Ihmels said. “There’s a possibility we may redshirt outdoors, we’ve just got to sit down and see how he responds off the travel and see how he gets back on his feet.”

Regardless of whether he redshirts, Uhl said he is prepared to keep working hard and be ready for cross country in the fall.

“Keep going through the college system – I’m going to bounce back, get a rest here and just keep running. Train hard over the summer, and come out better next year,” Uhl said.

Ihmels said he believes Uhl will be better than ever next year. “Looking ahead toward cross country, I think this experience is invaluable because I think he’ll be a different-level runner come fall,” Ihmels said. “I’m really looking forward to cross country, to see what he can do.”