Two-time NAIA cross country champion for Oklahoma City and indoor 5,000-meter winner Zouhair Talbi, a Moroccan Olympian, joins DyeStat editor Erik Boal to reflect on winning a pair of cross country titles in a span of 225 days and how proud he was to have teammate Shimales Abebe finish second in both races April 9 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Nov. 19 in Vancouver, Wash. Talbi explains the legacy established by Oklahoma City, with Mark Shaw capturing titles in 2017 and 2019, and how he became the first male athlete to repeat since Kennedy Kithuka of Wayland Baptist won in 2010-11, before transferring to Texas Tech. He also analyzes how significant it is to be the only student-athlete in NAIA history to win a pair of cross country championships in the same calendar year, a feat also achieved in NCAA Division 1 by Conner Mantz of Brigham Young. Talbi examines how he would have fared in the 10-kilometer race at the Division 1 national final at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Fla., and how much he would have enjoyed the challenge to compete against other elite college competitors. He revisits his victory Oct. 1 at the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival in Arkansas and how meaningful it was to race against several NCAA Division 1 national finalists and Division 2 All-Americans. Talbi recaps his experiences training and competing in Morocco over the summer and preparing for the Olympics. He also expresses disappointment over learning two days before he was scheduled to race that he would not be allowed to compete as a result of not enough time having elapsed in between the mandatory three out-of-competition drug tests he needed to complete in order to meet criteria established by the Athletics Integrity Unit. Talbi shares that he passed more than three tests and that the Moroccan Federation had told him he would likely be cleared by the AIU, only to travel to Japan and learn he was not able to compete. He also speaks about a meeting that took place with Moroccan Federation following the decision made by the AIU to ensure a repeat scenario doesn't jeopardize his opportunity to compete at the 2022 World Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. Talbi boasts personal-best efforts of 7:39.88 in the 3,000 meters, 13:26.34 in the 5,000 and 27:20.61, the latter being the second-fastest time ever produced by a collegiate athlete at any point of the year. He speaks about completing his academic requirements at Oklahoma City and participating in his final indoor season, with the goals of winning the 5,000 again and the distance medley relay, but not before training to race in the Houston Half Marathon in January, his first 13.1-mile race since 2018.