PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland State student-athletes will put the Vikings on a variety of national stages over the next 10 days. As Portland State track & field runner Emma Stolte competes athletically at the NCAA West First Round this weekend, teammate Mohamed Ahmed and Portland State softball player Sofia Peato will represent the Vikings off the competitive field at a pair of national conferences.
 
Ahmed will attend the NCAA Career in Sports Forum, May 27-30, in Indianapolis, Ind., while Peato will participate in the Native Student-Athlete Summit, June 2-4, in Lawrence, Kan.

Ahmed is the latest Viking to attend the NCAA Career in Sports Forum. The Vikings have sent a total of 12 athletes to the forum in the past between:

• 2019 (3) – Houston Barnes (Football), Krystal de Ramos (Women's Soccer), Kasey Isobe (Women's Soccer)
• 2020 (3) – Cody Jones (Cross Country/Track & Field), Kylie Jimenez (Women's Basketball), Taylor Elliott (Track & Field)
• 2021 (1) – Paige Donathan (Women's Soccer)
• 2022 (2) – Zack Mandera (Football), Zoe McBride (Volleyball)
• 2023 (3) – Andrea Brignacca (Men's Tennis), Mariana Garcia Rosette (Women's Golf), Jobi Malary (Football)

Content from the NCAA Career in Sports Forum is designed to:

• Educate learners on how personal strengths intersect with career opportunities
• Provide learners with tangible experiences that will support their aspirations for a career in sports
• Explore professional and career development strategies to help with the transition to a career in the sports industry
• Introduce the roles of intercollegiate coach, athletics administrator and national governing body staff member

Peato, meanwhile, is the Vikings' first-ever representative at the Native Student-Athlete Summit. This year's Summit is the second annual after the Indigenous Athletics Advancement Council (IAAC) started the Summit last year. The Summit brings together Native student-athletes, administrators and community members with the intention to address "critical issues facing Indigenous athletes in collegiate athletics while celebrating Native excellence in sport," according to the event website.
 
The Native Student-Athlete Summit will kick off with a keynote address from Billy Mills, an Oglala Lakota member who won the only Olympic gold medal by an American in the 10,000 meters at the 1964 Tokyo Games.