Born in the Tigray Region, he took up running seriously in 2010. He came sixth in the 5000 metres at the 2011 Ethiopian National Championships and was selected to run the 3000 metres at that year's World Youth Championships, where he finished fifth with a time of 7:45.11 minutes. Hagos noted that his first national selection had helped him develop his running and he went on to win the junior title at the Ethiopian Club's Cross Country, competing for Mesfin Engineering.