Bella Nelson
Owasso High School
By Bryce McKinnis
Since moving to Owasso in December of 2022, Bella Nelson has won three individual state championships and one team title.
The Owasso High School senior won the individual cross country title last year while guiding the Rams to the team championship. She also earned the school record with a 5k time of 17:51.2.
“Not only was it an amazing feeling winning as an individual, but it was so fun to win state with my whole team,” Nelson said. “It kind of built up my whole team’s confidence!”
Nelson claimed 6A championships in the 800m and 1600m with times of 2:09.59 and 5:00.64, respectively. She committed to continue her running career at Oklahoma State University in April.
“I loved the small town, and the team and coaches are just a huge family,” Nelson said. “They have also had amazing success there!”
But not before Nelson gets her shots at No. 4, 5 and 6. This fall, Nelson will lead the Rams in pursuit of a repeat.
“[The offseason] has been great! I have been building a great base for this cross country season,” Nelson said. “We have a really strong team this year! I would say Taylor Snyder, Ava Cornelius and Julia Trost are all going to do some damage this year!”
One thing Nelson loves about living in Oklahoma: “I really appreciate that it is at sea level.”
“Before moving here, I lived in Colorado for pretty much my whole life,” Nelson said.
The oldest of three, Nelson grew up in Niwot, Colorado, where she helped the fastest team in state history to a Garmin RunningsLane national championship as a freshman, a second-place finish at Nike Cross Nationals as a sophomore and state championships both years.
Her father was a six-time NCAA All-American at Colorado and ran the steeplechase at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games before he traded in his spikes for a stopwatch.
“I grew up around the sport because my dad was the assistant coach at the university of Colorado for 13 years, so I just kind of fell in love with it at a young age,” Nelson said.
Nelson considers herself very close with her family. Her mother was also a talented high school soccer player.
“They’re my biggest support system,” Nelson said. “We play a lot of kickball, and we love having movie nights together.”
Nelson recalls admiring her dad’s runners in Boulder. They taught her “how to be competitive and how to be confident.” Now, Nelson is the one the younger athletes look up to.
“I am still close to a bunch of them to this day, such as Emma Coburn, Jenny Simpson, Kara Goucher and Elise Cranny! There are many more, too,” Nelson said. “It’s an honor. I love being that person to younger athletes.”
Her advice to the next generation of runners: “Have fun.”
“Running is a mental sport. Once you stop having fun with it, it is super hard to stay motivated,” Nelson said.
