University of Minnesota Athletics
Women's Track & Field
Kabia, Ibrahim
Ibrahim Kabia
- Title:
- Assistant Coach - Men's Sprints, Hurdles and Horizontal Jumps
- Email:
- kabi0013@umn.edu
The 2023-24 season marked the sixth season Ibrahim Kabia has been a part of the Gopher track and field program as an assistant coach. Kabia coaches the men's sprints, hurdles, long jump and triple jump while assisting Director of Track & Field Matt Bingle in coaching the same events on the women's side.
In his first six seasons coaching the Gophers, Kabia’s student-athletes have exponentially improved. Under Kabia's direction the 'U' has broken six school records in the events that he directly coaches. Those include: Charles Godfred - Outdoor Long Jump; Sammie "Trey" Houston - Indoor Triple Jump 16.18m; Devin Augustine - 100m 10.02; Devin Augustine - 200m 20.36; 4x100m Relay, 38.70; Michael Buchanan - 110m hurdles 13.66. In 2024 Kabia coached his first Olympian in Devin Augustine, who qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics for the 100m as a member of the nation of Trinidad & Tobago.
Kabia's crew has amassed six Big Ten titles, including two at both the 2023 and 2024 Big Ten Championships in Bloomington, Ind., and Ann Arbor, Mich. He's directly coached five individual All-Big Ten athletes to four honors as well as two All-Big Ten relay teams. Kabia directly recruited and coached the Big Ten's 2024 Track Athlete of the Championships, Devin Augustine. Augustine for the second straight season posted a Big Ten Championship record time, his wind-legal time of 10.05 in the 100m came in 2024 after he helped the 4x100m relay team of Carlon Hosten, Kion Benjamin and Finn Schirmer in 2023 set a new Big Ten Championship meet record in a time of 38.87. Kabia also coached the first-ever 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay NCAA qualifiers in Minnesota track and field history.
On top of Augustine's Big Ten success in 2024, Kabia's group during the 2023-24 campaign put down spectacular performances all year long. Along with Augustine's Big Ten title in the 100m, Kabia coached true freshman Charles Godfred to a conference championship in the long jump, the first true freshman to claim the outdoor long jump title since fellow Gopher Trevo Yedoni in 2014. Three outdoor records went down between Augustine and Godfred, with both reaching the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., as individuals. Godfred went on to finish as the nation's top freshman in the long jump, securing a spot on the podium with a sixth-place finish. At the NCAA regional level Kabia's group sent a total of eight student-athletes to Fayetteville, Ark., with six making their first career appearances at a NCAA regional. Kabia helped Minnesota's women's program claim yet another Big Ten Outdoor Championship with Diarra Sow and Brooke Moore both scoring in the women's triple jump to aid in Minnesota's 131 total team points. On the international stage, Kabia saw two of his student-athletes claim their home nation's championship. Godfred claimed the Nigerian long jump crown while Augustine captured his second straight Trinidad & Tobago 100m championship in June.
The 2022-23 campaign was unquestionably one of the best years of short sprints in Minnesota track and field history. Under Kabia the men’s short sprints helped lead the way to the program’s first No. 1 USTFCCCA team ranking. The group earned four NCAA Championship bids with Benjamin (100m), Hosten (200m), Michael Buchanan (110mH) and the 4x100m relay (Hosten, Benjamin, Schirmer and Augustine). They claimed four individual Big Ten medals at the conference championships along with a gold-medal performance in the 4x100m relay and a fourth-place finish in the 4x400m relay that qualified the program to the NCAA West Regional in a time of 3:06.93. The sprints group was a huge impact on the team’s conference finish, finishing second with 122 points, the highest team finish for the program in a decade. Throughout the season the group broke three different school records, including two different individuals breaking the 200m school record (Hosten and Augustine). Michael Buchanan’s first season with the Maroon and Gold was highly successful, qualifying for the NCAA Championships in the high hurdles as well as qualifying for the NCAA West Regional in the long jump and making the conference final in both the hurdles and the long jump. Lastly, Kabia’s group finished the season with the No. 10 ranked 100m group in the national USTFCCCA ‘Event Squad’ rankings with an average time of 10.26 by its top four performers.
During the 2021-22 season Kabia’s group produced a Big Ten finalist in all but one individual event, a meet that was hosted by the University of Minnesota. Under Kabia’s leadership the Maroon and Gold qualified seven student-athletes in six different events to the NCAA West Regional in Fayetteville, Ark., with Benjamin qualifying in the 100m and 200m. Freshman Floyd Whitaker qualified for the U20 USA Championships in the triple jump and went on to make the U20 World Championships where he finished fifth in the event. The 4x100m relay also reached the NCAA West Regional for the second straight season.
In a unique 2020-21 season the sprints group thrived. Kion Benjamin became just the second Gopher to win the 100m Big Ten title and was the first since Kabia won the same conference title back in 2008. Benjamin also claimed a bronze medal in the 200m at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships and was a finalist at the indoor conference championships in the 60m. Five different events under Kabia qualified for the NCAA West Regional that season along with both relays. Additionally, Ben Psichihulis was a bronze medalist in the outdoor 400m and led the way on Minnesota’s 4x400m relay that finished as silver medalists at the indoor conference championships.
In 2019-20 Kabia coached five Gophers to All-America nods as the 4x400-meter relay team of Elliott Davis, Jackson Wellenstein, Jonathan Webb, and Ben Psicihulis qualified for the 2020 NCAA Indoor Championships after they clocked a third-place time of 3:07.16 at the Big Ten indoor meet. The quartet joined Houston, an NCAA qualifier in men’s triple jump, in picking up All-America accolades in 2020 despite the indoor season ending and the outdoor season being canceled when the Big Ten Conference and NCAA announced they were ceasing competitions and championships because of COVID-19 public health concerns.
Kabia also coached Houston to the 2020 Big Ten Conference indoor men’s triple jump title and the Gophers’ indoor program record (16.18 meters, 53-01.00 ft.). Mason Roomes ended the 2020 season ranked second among all-time Gophers in men’s long jump, Davis climbed to seventh in program history in the men’s indoor 400 meters, and Kion Benjamin debuted on Minnesota’s all-time top-10 indoor list in both the 60 meters and 200 meters under Kabia's direction in 2020 as well.
A native of Sierra Leone, Kabia returned to the University of Minnesota for the 2018-19 season after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Northern Iowa. With the Panthers, Kabia coached the men's program to the 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship. He worked primarily with Northern Iowa's sprints, hurdles, horizontal jumps, and relays along with serving as the acting academic liaison for all track & field and cross country student athletes.
Kabia spent two seasons as a volunteer assistant coach for the Gophers from 2014-16, working with Minnesota's sprints, hurdles, jumps, relays, and multi-events, and he helped guide the women's team to a share of the 2016 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championship.
Before joining the Minnesota staff, Kabia spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Orono High School, working primarily with the sprints and relays. His duties included planning and coordinating daily practice sessions and competitions and developing training plans. He coached the Orono girls to the 2013 Wright County Conference title, the first in program history. Kabia also coached three individual conference champions and state meet qualifiers in each of the 2012, 2013, and 2014 seasons.
An alum of the Gopher track & field program, Kabia still holds Minnesota program records in the 60-meter dash (6.63 seconds). A two-year captain for the Maroon & Gold, Kabia was the 2008 Big Ten champion in the 100-meter dash and a First Team All-American in the 60-meter dash in 2007. Following his collegiate career, Kabia set the Sierra Leone national record in the 60-meter dash (6.65) as a finalist at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships. He continued competing in track & field until 2013.
Kabia earned his bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2009 before adding a Master’s of Education in sport management in 2016. He completed his USATF Level 1 Coaching Certification in 2015 and has also completed certifications for USTFCCCA Jumps Event Specialist (2019), USTFCCCA Strength and Conditioning (2020), and USTFCCCA Sports Science for Speed and Power Events (2020).
In his first six seasons coaching the Gophers, Kabia’s student-athletes have exponentially improved. Under Kabia's direction the 'U' has broken six school records in the events that he directly coaches. Those include: Charles Godfred - Outdoor Long Jump; Sammie "Trey" Houston - Indoor Triple Jump 16.18m; Devin Augustine - 100m 10.02; Devin Augustine - 200m 20.36; 4x100m Relay, 38.70; Michael Buchanan - 110m hurdles 13.66. In 2024 Kabia coached his first Olympian in Devin Augustine, who qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics for the 100m as a member of the nation of Trinidad & Tobago.
Kabia's crew has amassed six Big Ten titles, including two at both the 2023 and 2024 Big Ten Championships in Bloomington, Ind., and Ann Arbor, Mich. He's directly coached five individual All-Big Ten athletes to four honors as well as two All-Big Ten relay teams. Kabia directly recruited and coached the Big Ten's 2024 Track Athlete of the Championships, Devin Augustine. Augustine for the second straight season posted a Big Ten Championship record time, his wind-legal time of 10.05 in the 100m came in 2024 after he helped the 4x100m relay team of Carlon Hosten, Kion Benjamin and Finn Schirmer in 2023 set a new Big Ten Championship meet record in a time of 38.87. Kabia also coached the first-ever 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay NCAA qualifiers in Minnesota track and field history.
On top of Augustine's Big Ten success in 2024, Kabia's group during the 2023-24 campaign put down spectacular performances all year long. Along with Augustine's Big Ten title in the 100m, Kabia coached true freshman Charles Godfred to a conference championship in the long jump, the first true freshman to claim the outdoor long jump title since fellow Gopher Trevo Yedoni in 2014. Three outdoor records went down between Augustine and Godfred, with both reaching the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., as individuals. Godfred went on to finish as the nation's top freshman in the long jump, securing a spot on the podium with a sixth-place finish. At the NCAA regional level Kabia's group sent a total of eight student-athletes to Fayetteville, Ark., with six making their first career appearances at a NCAA regional. Kabia helped Minnesota's women's program claim yet another Big Ten Outdoor Championship with Diarra Sow and Brooke Moore both scoring in the women's triple jump to aid in Minnesota's 131 total team points. On the international stage, Kabia saw two of his student-athletes claim their home nation's championship. Godfred claimed the Nigerian long jump crown while Augustine captured his second straight Trinidad & Tobago 100m championship in June.
The 2022-23 campaign was unquestionably one of the best years of short sprints in Minnesota track and field history. Under Kabia the men’s short sprints helped lead the way to the program’s first No. 1 USTFCCCA team ranking. The group earned four NCAA Championship bids with Benjamin (100m), Hosten (200m), Michael Buchanan (110mH) and the 4x100m relay (Hosten, Benjamin, Schirmer and Augustine). They claimed four individual Big Ten medals at the conference championships along with a gold-medal performance in the 4x100m relay and a fourth-place finish in the 4x400m relay that qualified the program to the NCAA West Regional in a time of 3:06.93. The sprints group was a huge impact on the team’s conference finish, finishing second with 122 points, the highest team finish for the program in a decade. Throughout the season the group broke three different school records, including two different individuals breaking the 200m school record (Hosten and Augustine). Michael Buchanan’s first season with the Maroon and Gold was highly successful, qualifying for the NCAA Championships in the high hurdles as well as qualifying for the NCAA West Regional in the long jump and making the conference final in both the hurdles and the long jump. Lastly, Kabia’s group finished the season with the No. 10 ranked 100m group in the national USTFCCCA ‘Event Squad’ rankings with an average time of 10.26 by its top four performers.
During the 2021-22 season Kabia’s group produced a Big Ten finalist in all but one individual event, a meet that was hosted by the University of Minnesota. Under Kabia’s leadership the Maroon and Gold qualified seven student-athletes in six different events to the NCAA West Regional in Fayetteville, Ark., with Benjamin qualifying in the 100m and 200m. Freshman Floyd Whitaker qualified for the U20 USA Championships in the triple jump and went on to make the U20 World Championships where he finished fifth in the event. The 4x100m relay also reached the NCAA West Regional for the second straight season.
In a unique 2020-21 season the sprints group thrived. Kion Benjamin became just the second Gopher to win the 100m Big Ten title and was the first since Kabia won the same conference title back in 2008. Benjamin also claimed a bronze medal in the 200m at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships and was a finalist at the indoor conference championships in the 60m. Five different events under Kabia qualified for the NCAA West Regional that season along with both relays. Additionally, Ben Psichihulis was a bronze medalist in the outdoor 400m and led the way on Minnesota’s 4x400m relay that finished as silver medalists at the indoor conference championships.
In 2019-20 Kabia coached five Gophers to All-America nods as the 4x400-meter relay team of Elliott Davis, Jackson Wellenstein, Jonathan Webb, and Ben Psicihulis qualified for the 2020 NCAA Indoor Championships after they clocked a third-place time of 3:07.16 at the Big Ten indoor meet. The quartet joined Houston, an NCAA qualifier in men’s triple jump, in picking up All-America accolades in 2020 despite the indoor season ending and the outdoor season being canceled when the Big Ten Conference and NCAA announced they were ceasing competitions and championships because of COVID-19 public health concerns.
Kabia also coached Houston to the 2020 Big Ten Conference indoor men’s triple jump title and the Gophers’ indoor program record (16.18 meters, 53-01.00 ft.). Mason Roomes ended the 2020 season ranked second among all-time Gophers in men’s long jump, Davis climbed to seventh in program history in the men’s indoor 400 meters, and Kion Benjamin debuted on Minnesota’s all-time top-10 indoor list in both the 60 meters and 200 meters under Kabia's direction in 2020 as well.
A native of Sierra Leone, Kabia returned to the University of Minnesota for the 2018-19 season after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Northern Iowa. With the Panthers, Kabia coached the men's program to the 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship. He worked primarily with Northern Iowa's sprints, hurdles, horizontal jumps, and relays along with serving as the acting academic liaison for all track & field and cross country student athletes.
Kabia spent two seasons as a volunteer assistant coach for the Gophers from 2014-16, working with Minnesota's sprints, hurdles, jumps, relays, and multi-events, and he helped guide the women's team to a share of the 2016 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championship.
Before joining the Minnesota staff, Kabia spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Orono High School, working primarily with the sprints and relays. His duties included planning and coordinating daily practice sessions and competitions and developing training plans. He coached the Orono girls to the 2013 Wright County Conference title, the first in program history. Kabia also coached three individual conference champions and state meet qualifiers in each of the 2012, 2013, and 2014 seasons.
An alum of the Gopher track & field program, Kabia still holds Minnesota program records in the 60-meter dash (6.63 seconds). A two-year captain for the Maroon & Gold, Kabia was the 2008 Big Ten champion in the 100-meter dash and a First Team All-American in the 60-meter dash in 2007. Following his collegiate career, Kabia set the Sierra Leone national record in the 60-meter dash (6.65) as a finalist at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships. He continued competing in track & field until 2013.
Kabia earned his bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2009 before adding a Master’s of Education in sport management in 2016. He completed his USATF Level 1 Coaching Certification in 2015 and has also completed certifications for USTFCCCA Jumps Event Specialist (2019), USTFCCCA Strength and Conditioning (2020), and USTFCCCA Sports Science for Speed and Power Events (2020).
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