Feature Story on UIC's Cross Country Senior Mikhail Davidion

Sept. 15, 2004

UIC cross country senior Mikhail Davidyan has not always lived in the United States. His family moved from Ukraine to the U.S. when Mikhail was eight-years-old, so he and his sister could have a better life. In Ukraine, the U.S. schools are highly thought of, and the U.S. has more career opportunities. "United States is also known for its excellence in the standard of living and in healthcare, which my parents wanted us to have access to," Mikhail said.

His parents believed in having more opportunities and they were right. He ran cross country at Niles North High School in Skokie, Ill., where he qualified for the state meet twice and was team captain for two years. Currently, Mikhail is UIC's top cross country runner and a finance major with a 3.8 GPA. In addition to cross country, he is also involved with the UIC Collegiate Financing Organization and is an intern for Bank of America Investments.

Mikhail never thought of being as successful in cross country as he is. He did not start running until his eighth grade year. In high school, he actually wanted to play soccer, but with the soccer and cross country seasons conflicting, he decided to run cross country.

"What originally started as a way to loose weight, turned into my passion. I started out being the slowest person on the team, to being the fastest. I did not even know what cross country was all about until the first high school meet," he said.

With that being said, he is even improving in college. He ran his best 8K this year at the Bradley Open on September 10 with a time of 25.47.

Although Mikhail excels at cross country, it is not the only sport he participates in at UIC. He also runs the 5K and 10K for the track and field team. Although, he holds the fastest time in the 10K at UIC, he does think he is better at cross country than track. "[That is] because in cross country you are running a course rather than running around in circles like in track," Mikhail said.

Although he is UIC's top runner, he does not consider himself as the most talented runner on the team.

"I do strive to push myself more and work harder than others. Coach Knoedel has done a great job helping me reach my potential as a runner, especially over the past two years," Mikhail said.

The UIC team has been a major part of Mikhail's life, and his teammates became his friends.

"It is rewarding to know that you belong to something special. Being a part of athletics is a great opportunity because I am able to represent UIC and compete against the best athletes in the country. Collegiate athletics is an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As I get closer to graduation, I am sad that my UIC athletics experience is coming to an end," he said.

Mikhail does have his goals set for his last year. His personal goals for cross country are to run close to a 25 flat and earn all-conference honors. A goal Mikhail has for the team is to help the team finish among the top three in conference. Upon graduating, he would like to be an Investment Portfolio Manager.