Frezer Legesse became the Oklahoma City University head men’s and women’s cross country and track & field coach.
Legesse arrived at Oklahoma City after successful stints as a professional runner, head men’s and women’s cross country coach at Oklahoma Baptist and previously as an assistant coach with the Stars.
Legesse represented Under Armour as a pro runner, assisting with the making of apparel. He guided Oklahoma Baptist to the 2021 Great American Conference women’s cross country title to earn league coach of the year and a second-place finish in the men’s conference meet.
As Oklahoma Baptist head coach, Legesse mentored Great American Conference individual women’s cross country champion and runner of the year Emma Downing among five all-conference performers. Among the men, Legesse had seven all-conference runners, including league freshman of the year Christian Arenivar.
With OCU, Legesse contributed to the Stars’ 2018 and 2019 national men’s cross country championship teams as well as two Sooner Athletic Conference men’s titles and two SAC women’s crowns as an assistant coach.
At OCU, Legesse aided five men’s cross country all-Americans, including national champion Mark Shaw, and two women’s all-Americans. In track & field, Legesse guided 12 men’s all-Americans, including 3,000-meter steeplechase individual champion Oscar Kipkoros, and nine women’s all-Americans, including the distance medley relay indoor championship team and Aminat Olowora, who took two national titles (5,000 meters and 10,000 meters).
Prior to Oklahoma City, Legesse helped Oklahoma Christian University win its first Heartland Conference cross country title as an assistant coach. In his two years as head cross country and track and field coach at Mount Saint Mary High School, his team collected a cross country team state championship title, state runner-up and four individual track state championship titles. Legesse took Class 3A boys coach of the year and Oklahoman all-city coach of the year while guiding the Oklahoma Gatorade cross country athlete of the year.
Legesse graduated from the University of Oklahoma where he was an NCAA Division I all-American, Big 12 champion and eight-time first-team all-Big 12. Legesse was a part of a distance medley relay team that set the school record. During his college career, he also competed in the Sooner Athletic Conference, contributing to one cross country conference championship team at Oklahoma Christian. Legesse earned two NAIA track & field all-American honors with the Eagles. Legesse earned a bachelor of arts degree in multidisciplinary studies and health & exercise science from the University of Oklahoma.
He was the 370th American to break the four-minute mile barrier, running 3 minutes, 58.95 seconds, and continued to lower his personal best to 3:54.8 as a professional runner. He competed in the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials in 2016.
Legesse has two children, Soliana and Ellana.
