RICHMOND, Ky. – Former Eastern Kentucky University distance standouts Soufiane Bouchikhi and Thijs Nijhuis recently competed at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea.
 
Bouchikhi, representing his native Belgium, recorded a pair of top-five finishes at the meet, taking fourth in the men's half marathon with a time of 1:06:04 and fifth in the men's 10,000 meters with a mark of 29:24.21. Igor Maximov of Russia won the 10,000 meters with a time of 29:15.30, while Yusuke Ogura of Japan won the half marathon in 1:04:41.
 
Nijhuis, representing his native Denmark, also delivered a top-five performance, placing fourth in the men's 5,000 meters with a 14:12.83. Hayle Ibrahimov of Azerbaijan won with a time of 13:44.28.
 
Bouchikhi and Nijhuis were up against world-class competition at the meet. The World University Games, or Universiade, is an international sporting event hosted every two years by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). It features some 20,000 participants from 170 countries, making it second only to the Olympics in size and importance.
 
Bouchikhi and Nijhuis were instrumental figures in raising the EKU men's cross country program to national prominence over the last few years. They were both members of three Colonel teams that advanced to the NCAA Championships, including the 2013 squad that was ranked as high as No. 11 in the country and finished 15^th in Terre Haute.
 
Bouchikhi was a six-time All-American (twice cross country, four times track and field), 12-time OVC track champion and the OVC Male Cross Country Runner of the Year all four years he competed at EKU.
 
Nijhuis was a two-time NCAA All-Southeast Region competitor in cross country. In 2013, he finished 21^st in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. He ran a 29:42.01 in the 10,000 meters that season, which is the fourth-fastest time in school history.
 
Bouchikhi and Nijhuis are two of many former Colonel cross country and track and field athletes still making noise on the national and international stage post-graduation. Lydia Kosgei, a two-time All-American at EKU from 2009-12 and a current graduate assistant in the program, won the won the women's title in the Bluegrass 10,000 meters for the second consecutive year on July 4, notching a time of 34:39.