“When people go to a track meet, they’re looking for something, a world record, something that hasn’t been done before. You get all this magnetic energy, people focusing on one thing at the same time. I really get excited about it. It makes me want to compete even more. It makes it all worthwhile, all the hours of hard work.” — Steve Prefontaine

Elite track and field runners can, somehow, earn a clear space in the front of our minds when they jump to the top of the sport. When they bring you into their realm of athletic greatness for the whole world to see.

Especially at Olympic time. We know them, usually, by a single name.

Usain. Michael. Jackie. FloJo. Carl. Pre. And, way back to an Ohio State legend named Jesse.

Rarely, as Nebraskans, do we see an athlete from here do well enough to advance to the ultimate Olympic stage. A 2016 list from the Omaha World-Herald shows very few track and field athletes from Nebraska who have made a splash at the Olympics. Most recently, Elkhorn grad Alice Schmidt and Fillmore Central grad Maggie Malone have garnered attention.

But, beginning tonight, many Nebraskans will have a keen eye on a new hope. Fremont’s Wes Ferguson. And, just maybe, by Sunday night we’ll simply call him Wes.

“Something I Did”

How does one get to the biggest stage of United States Track and Field? Who knows, but Wes Ferguson was on the Fremont High School golf team in his sophomore year of high school.

“Running was just something I did,” Ferguson admitted in a Monday night chat before leaving for Eugene, Oregon on Tuesday morning. “I was always one of the faster kids in flag football growing up, but I was scrawny. And, I didn’t really enjoy running all the time.”

He competed in cross country and track during middle school and was on the “C-Team” for basketball. But his real love was golf. A growth spurt during his sophomore and junior year completely changed his trajectory.

“Growing and getting stronger, really propelled my running,” he said of the back half of his high school career. “Every time I would run, I would be setting a new personal best. And, after that I really took off.”

He won the Class A 800 as a junior while Fremont finished third at state as a team. And, during his senior year he won four golds at the 2019 NSAA State Track Meet in the 400 (49.07), 800 (1:52.85) and on winning 1,600- and 3,200-meter relay teams. The Tigers were Class A state champions as well.

Ferguson noted the culture at Fremont under coaches Sean and Beth McMahon fostered his love for running.

“I think when a lot of people think about Fremont, they think about our track and cross country teams,” Wes said. “Our coaches created a culture that you wanted to be a part of, and they wanted to get to know you on a personal level.

“My high school track friends are still some of my best friends in the world.”

Wes Heads West

Ferguson was still as far away as possible from competing in USATF national events when he committed to Nebraska-Kearney during his senior season. But under the guidance of track and cross country coach Brady Bonsall, Ferguson began to fly.

“I couldn’t have comprehended anything that has happened to me in my college career when I was beginning at UNK,” he said. “I just wanted to keep running.”

The accolades take a little while to fully appreciate.

He holds Loper records at five distances between indoor and outdoor track. He’s the NCAA Division II record holder in the 1,000 meters (indoors) and won the past two NCAA championships in the 800. He was a five-time national champion and nine-time All-American.

“What Coach Bonsall has done for me, I truly can’t put into words,” Ferguson said. “As you get older, you still see him as a coach but now he’s a mentor and, truly, a best friend. We text with each other just about every day.”

Last summer, Bonsall accompanied Ferguson to USATF Nationals at Hayward Field. It was a week that changed them for the better, despite the heartbreak. He’ll be by his side again this week.

Full Circle

“The best pace is a suicide pace. And, today seems like a good day to die.” — Steve Prefontaine

July 7, 2023. The USATF National Championships. A Friday. I had been in Eugene since Wednesday with my daughter, Olivia and my mom. A once in a lifetime adventure.

Ferguson had advanced to that night’s semifinals and — standing as close as we could to the track in turn three — we watched as Wes kicked, from nowhere, down the home stretch. It’s become his signature move. He had won his semifinal heat; a trip to the world championships was now a real possibility.

A few minutes later, as Wes tells me on Monday, “in a concrete room with just a monitor” USATF officials show Ferguson stepping on the line on the inside curve twice in the first 100 meters before you can cut in.

In a hectic, 800 meters the two steps made no difference. But, in track it’s a hard and fast rule. Ferguson saw it. He knew he’d be disqualified.

“They have cameras everywhere,” he said.

Now, nearly a year later Ferguson readies himself for another run at the country’s best in the 800 meters.

He’s fresh off a trip to New York City where he ran a personal best 1:45.06 to finish second in the NYC Grand Prix. He defeated Olympic team favorites Clayton Murphy, Isaiah Jewett and Josh Hoey — his 53 second final lap the best in the field by nearly a second.

In Eugene, where Steve Prefontaine wowed crowds in the early 1970s, Wes Ferguson’s second chance begins this afternoon in the opening round of the 800 meters. He’ll spend the day away from the track, maybe in a local coffee shop he said, to keep his nerves down.

“Being at the stadium gets me too amped up,” he admitted.

The next three days might change Wes Ferguson’s life. But you get the sense that he’s grounded enough that he’ll still be texting his buddies back home no matter how things go in Eugene.

But, there is also a firm resolution in his voice. A quiet confidence.

“I feel like my training has been going really well,” he says. “I am getting stronger each week. And, right now, I know I am good enough.”

By Sunday night, who knows. Maybe we’ll just call him Wes.