Rakieem "Mookie" Mustafa Allah Salaam (born April 5, 1990) is an American sprinter. Grew up in San Bernardino, California, Mookie started running track in the sixth grade, but was forced to quit by his stepfather. Salaam became a three-sport athlete at

Edmond North High School Edmond North High School is located in Edmond, Oklahoma. The school colors are silver, white and navy. The school's mascot is the Siberian Husky. As of the 2012–2013 school year, the school had an enrollment of 2,437 students and 127 classroom ...

Edmond, Oklahoma Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area in the central part of the state. The population was 94,428 according to the 2020 United States Census, making it the fifth largest cit ...

. He played wide receiver on the football varsity, but decided to focus on track after suffering a dislocated hip in his junior year. He turned down football scholarships to run track at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

. It was not until Salaam's junior year at the university that he made a name for himself nationality. On June 10, 2011, Salaam became the 79th person to break the

10-second barrier The 10-second barrier is the physical and psychological barrier of completing the 100 metres sprint in under ten seconds. The achievement is traditionally regarded as the hallmark of a world-class male sprinter. Its significance has become less i ...

when he ran the 100m in 9.97s at the NCAA Track and Field Championships, placing second. He also won the NCAA Indoor 200m that year, with a time of 20.41. Several of his times are school records. He decided to forgo his senior year and sign a professional contract with

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

,Mookie Salaam Joins Professional Ranks
to better prepare for the 2012 United States Olympic Trials. In 2013, Salaam was part of the USA team that placed second at the World Championships in Moscow Russia.

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* * * * 1990 births Living people Sportspeople from Edmond, Oklahoma American male sprinters University of Oklahoma alumni Track and field athletes from Oklahoma Oklahoma Sooners men's track and field athletes {{US-sprint-athletics-bio-stub