Colin Sahlman Podcast: “Don’t Put Limits on Yourself” – Olympic Trials, NCAAs on Tap for NAU Star

Colin Sahlman, the Northern Arizona University 1500m star, was the guest on this week’s LetsRun.com Track Talk Supporters Club podcast.

Sahlman’s ascent up the NCAA ranks this outdoor season has been swift. Sahlman was 6th in the mile at the NCAA indoor champs in March, but has been on fire outdoors. He ran 13:38.96 to win a 5000m at Stanford and then blitzed a 3:33.96, the #2 NCAA time ever, to win the Bryan Clay 1500m. He followed that up with a 1:45.63 800m last weekend at the Desert Heat Classic.

“Don’t Put Your Limits on Yourself”

Sahlman winning the Terrier Classic earlier this year (Kevin Morris photo)

“Don’t put limits on yourself,” is a mantra he learned from his high school coach, Sean Brosnan. Sahlman was the high school cross country national champion in 2021 at Newbury Park High School in California under Brosnan.

Sahlman has clearly taken Brosnan’s mantra to heart this outdoor season, and that has made him a contender not only for NCAAs, but also the Olympic Trials in the 1500.

“Before that 3:33 [win at Bryan Clay], I thought the Trials final was kind of like a big stretch. But, I think after that 3:33, after this 1:45, it’s definitely given me a lot of confidence knowing that I can compete with the best in the US,” Sahlman said.

Sahlman’s time is the second-fastest by an American during the 2024 outdoor season, behind Cooper Teare‘s 3:32.16.

Sahlman credits NAU coach Mike Smith for getting him to focus on competing and letting the fast times come as a result of the competition.

“I just went into [Bryan Clay], get [in the] top three, top four, put myself in position to win it because I was racing for the win,” he said. “As soon as a bell hit, I just tried to go with them and go all-out.”

The results were a big win and the #2 time ever by an NCAA athlete.

The NAU Culture

Sahlman’s credits the team environment at NAU for much of his success and that environment is something that drew him to NAU in the first place.

“I loved the coaches the best. I liked the way they talked, I liked the way they think. And, also the way that the culture kind of rubbed off on the, on the team. Everyone on the team is all-in and super serious about it. And I didn’t see that at any other places that I talked to or visited. Maybe to an extent, but not through the whole team,” Sahlman said of his decision to go to NAU.

Supporters Club members can listen to the full podcast in the player below, where Colin talks about his training and a lot more. Or they can listen on their favorite podcast player in their private feed.

Not a Supporters Club member? Join today and use code CLUB25. Not only do you get all the LetsRun content, you get savings on running shoes, and a super soft shirt if you join for a year.

We will release the Sahlman podcast on the regular free Track Talk podcast on Tuesday.

Podcast show notes (we also broke down Emma Coburn being out the Olympic Trials and the controversy surrounding the Kenyan Olympic marathon team).