By Sahira Memon

Second time participating in the Olympics for former Clan athlete Ruky Abdulai

Ruky Abdulai has won a record-breaking 17 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national championship titles, was the 2008 Canadian National Champion in the long jump and the 2011 Canadian Champion in the heptathlon, and has already represented Canada in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

She was also a Clan athlete.

Abdulai came to SFU as a student athlete in 2007, where she quickly became known as an athletic giant. She has already won in the Canadian trials for the Olympics, which have finalized her as a participant in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She will be a contestant in the heptathlon event, which consists of 100 meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, and 200 meter race on the first day, and a long jump, javelin throw, and 800 meter race on the second day.

Abdulai grew up in Ghana where, even from the age of 9, her prowess in track was recognized when she managed to outrun a top athlete at her elementary school without any formal training. She trained and competed in track for over a year in elementary school before she moved to the Netherlands, where she lived and competed before receiving a scholarship to come to SFU in 2007.

During her time at SFU, Abdulai quickly became an incredible asset to the school, delaying her ambition to participate in the heptathlon in favour of participating in and winning a record breaking 17 NAIA titles, all of which earn points for SFU in the association.

This is not Abdulai ‘s first time as an Olympian. She had already participated in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, representing Canada in the long jump. Despite the scale of the Olympics, Abdulai does not discriminate between events.

“I just take every competition seriously,” she told The Peak.

Abdulai has three goals: to go to the Olympics, represent Canada, and to win a gold medal. So far, she has completed two. To complete the third requires intense training, up to three times a day. A schedule that busy does not leave time for work, so supporting herself is becoming difficult. Abdulai receives some support from the community, including a fundraiser held at SFU earlier this month.

“It’s not just for myself. I want to do it for SFU and Canada as well,” said Abdulai.

Abdulai is not the only SFU athlete who will be competing in the 2012 Olympics. Jessica Smith, who just finished her senior year at SFU, will be attempting to qualify in track. SFU alum will be well represented in wrestling, as well. Arjan Bhullar and Carol Huyhn will be competing in wrestling, and Dave Mckay and Daniel Igali will be coaching the Canadian and Nigerian head coaches, respectively.

Ruky welcomes support from the community as she works towards her third goal. For more information, you can contact her at [email protected].