Haile Gebrselassie
Gebrselassie at the Vienna City Marathon 2011
Haile Gebrselassie ( Amharic ኃይሌ ገብረ ሥላሴ, born 18 April 1973 in Assela, Oromia Region ) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He made a total of 26 world records, dominated as multiple Olympic and world champion for a decade, the distances from 3000 meters to 10,000 meters and was from 2007 to 2011 holders of the world record in the marathon. He is a four-time winner of the Berlin Marathon and three -time winner of the highly doped Dubai Marathon.
Career
Age of 13, Gebrselassie won a race in the school break against teachers of his school. When he still won a school competition and other competitions, he wanted to be like Miruts Yifter runners are. He went in 1990 to Addis Ababa to train with the best runners of his country. In the same year he was fifth in the Ethiopian Cross Country Championships.
In 1992 he won silver at the junior race of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships and became World Junior Champion over 5000 and 10,000 meters. At the World Athletics Championships in Stuttgart in 1993, he won the silver medal over 5000 meters and became world champion in the 10,000 meters.
World record runner on the track
From 1993 to 1996 he was. At the World Cross Country Championships always in the top seven, with a bronze medal in 1994 as the best placement
Even more successful he was on the track where he set numerous world records. His first he succeeded on June 4, 1994 in Hengelo, when he scored a time of 12:56,96 min over 5000 meters. He improved with this time the almost seven -year-old world record of the Moroccan Saïd Aouita, who until then had remained as the only runners under 13 minutes. An outstanding tactician competition Gebrselassie distanced often due to its high basic speed with a final sprint in the final round competitors.
In the international title fights he was not to defeat the rest of the 1990s: In the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg, 1997 in Athens and 1999 he won gold in the 10,000 meters as well as in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and 2000 in Sydney.
Another four gold medals he won at IAAF World Indoor Championships: 1997 in Paris, he won over 3000 meters, 1999 in Maebashi over 1500 meters and 3000 meters and 2003 in Birmingham over 3000 meters. He set 15 world records. About 5000 meters from 1994 to 2004 he was owner of the world record over 10,000 m from 1995 to 2004 (with interruptions). His most successful year was 1998, when he set up his valid to 2004 world records over 5000 and 10,000 meters. Gebrselassie also 2002 improved the world record in the 10 - km road race in 27:02 min.
His first defeat in the 10,000 meters after eight years experienced Gebrselassie at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton. Here he reached only the third place behind Charles Waweru Kamathi and Assefa Mezgebu. Two years later came at the World Championships in Paris / Saint- Denis, the " changing of the guard ". Gebrselassie was beaten by his young compatriot Kenenisa Bekele, who was to dominate from now on on the web.
At this time, Gebrselassie had already turned to longer distances. In the World Half Marathon Championships in 2001, he won on his debut over this distance the title in 1:00:03 h 2002 he was third in the London Marathon in 2:06:35 hours - his first serious start the full distance (as teenager, he was already a marathon in Addis Ababa run ).
At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, he was fifth in the 10,000 meters and limped injured across the finish line. Gold went as the year before in Paris on Kenenisa Bekele, who had broken even Gebrselassie's world records over 5000 and 10,000 meters.
At the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008 he was sixth in the 10,000 meters after he had decided not to participate in the marathon.
World record Runners on the street
In addition to his running career on the track Gebrselassie set new records on the road running.
In 2005 he won the Great Manchester Run, ran at the Tilburg Ten Miles with 44:24 minutes, the current world record for over ten miles ( this distance is not one of those who are out for the official world records ) and put the Amsterdam Marathon with 2:06: 20 hours on the Weltjahresbestzeit.
On 15 January 2006, Gebrselassie in a separate race on the second half of the marathon course improved at the Rock 'n ' Roll Arizona Marathon world record in the half marathon by 21 seconds, 58:55 min. His 20 -kilometer interval of 55:48 minutes set a world record dar. On March 12, he remained in a separate race in the 20 van Alphen also the World Record over 25 kilometers. This time, however, was not recognized him for the unlawful aid by runners who went into the race later as a world record. The elapsed time of 1:11:37 h was therefore regarded only as a world record. At the London Marathon on the other hand he had problems with the wet road and was only ninth in 2:09:05 h hunt for the marathon world record he set in two races in the fall continued: When the Berlin Marathon, he presented 2:05: 56 h on the Weltjahresbestzeit, and the Fukuoka Marathon he won in 2:06:52 h
In 2007 he started again the London Marathon, but had to retire because he had difficulty breathing due to a pollen allergy. At the Grand Prix Athletics Meeting in Ostrava on June 27, Gebrselassie set two more world records in one race. In hours, he put in 60 minutes back 21 285 meters, surpassing the 16 years old record of Mexican Arturo Barrios. In the same run, he improved the world record over 20,000 meters.
The world record for the 42,195 -km distance, he finally broke out on September 30, 2007 at the Berlin Marathon. With 2:04:26 h, it remained 29 seconds under the 2:04:55 h, which had achieved his Kenyan friend Paul Tergat at the same place four years earlier. In the interview with the winner, he presented himself in typical fashion for him. Not ( "Ask me how proud I am ... I have - " it did not happen, what can I do ... Do not ask me how proud I am ... I promised to run 2:03 ': With a smile, he explained promised to run 2:03 - I did not make it, what should I do ... ").
Dubai Marathon 2008, he attempted to break this record, for which a record premium of $ 1,000,000 was announced. After a horrendous rapid onset ( 10 km in 28:39 minutes) he reached the half way mark in 1:01:27 h However, after his last Pacemakers got out at kilometer 30, he slowed down, and so melted his lead over the intervals of Berlin, at kilometers 35 or 25 seconds was, then. The end time of 2:04:53 h earned him a $ 250,000 win bonus.
In spring 2008, he said because of his asthma suffering and severe air pollution in Beijing from participating in the marathon of the 2008 Olympic Games. Instead, he started again on the 10,000 -meter distance. Until the last lap he was in the top group, but had to let the final spurt his younger competitors and came to sixth place, five and a half seconds behind Kenenisa Bekele, who repeated his victory of Athens. In retrospect, Gebrselassie Marathon regretted his refusal, as the air conditions in Beijing were much better during games than during his first visit.
At the 35th Berlin Marathon 2008, he dropped out after a tactically astute and much more uniform than in Dubai overflowed race with 2:03:59 h his own world record, he just held almost to the day one year. Beaming with joy, he reached the goal and had thus managed to complete his promise from the previous year ( Berlin Marathon 2007) come true. Asked if he someday might even run faster, he said shortly after the race: " Sure, maybe 2:03:30 hours. But I have a strong competitor, and that's my age. "
2009 failed in his attempt at the Dubai Marathon in January to improve the marathon world record again. However, his winning time of 2:05:29 h at that time was still the eighth fastest time in history. After the race he said: "I have come to run world record, but through the rain and the wind, this was not possible today. " In addition, he will want to do without a start at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin announced to instead, at the Berlin Marathon again attack the world record.
In March, he tried to reconquer the half marathon world record he had in the meantime lost to Samuel Kamau Wanjiru. When CPC Loop Den Haag but he could jeopardize the record ( 58:35 min) at any time and reached the finish in 59:47 min due to adverse weather conditions. In the final sprint, he had even the Kenyans Sammy Kirop Kitwara let them go, who won four seconds ahead. In May, Gebrselassie won the Great Manchester Run for the second time after 2005.
On September 20, 2009, he won the Berlin Marathon for the fourth time in a row. With its interval of 1:27:49 h after 30 kilometers he beat the world record over this distance by 11 seconds. Later, however, he had his high initial pace to pay tribute and clearly failed in the intended 2:06:08 world record in the marathon.
Dubai Marathon on 22 January 2010 revealed that shortly before encountered back problems did not allow a renewed world record. Nevertheless, he managed to prevail with a time of 2:06:09 h against his strong running compatriots Chala Dechase and Eshetu Wendimu and to achieve the third consecutive victory in this race. In May, he managed to defend the title at the Great Manchester Run, and in September he won in his first participation to the Great North Run in 59:33 minutes.
After failing the New York Marathon 2010 can finish he explained firstly at the subsequent press conference, surprising his playing career ended. A week later he revised this decision and announced that it would continue to deny competitions after the healing of the knee injury. His manager Jos Hermens told Gebrselassie will compete as planned at the Tokyo Marathon 2011 but this start did not materialize due to injury. Instead, he entered the Vienna City Marathon, where he scored the fastest time on Austrian soil over the half marathon distance with 1:00:18 hours, and at the Great Manchester Run, where he triumphed for the fourth time. At the Berlin Marathon Haile got by 27 kilometers problems when Patrick Makau Musyoki intensified the pace, and soon had to give up on it while Musyoki improved in 2:03:38 h the world record. In October Haile won the Great Birmingham Run, in November he won for the third time when Zevenheuvelenloop.
In 2012, he was fourth at the Tokyo Marathon in 2:08:17 hours, a time that had recently been undercut Dubai Marathon of not less than eleven of his countrymen. He withdrew its another attempt to qualify for the Olympic Games in London. At the Vienna City Marathon, he won a pursuit race on the half- marathon distance against Paula Radcliffe; both athletes received the day before by President Heinz Fischer. In May, he drove a his fifth victory at the Great Manchester Run. In the FBK -Games he tried to qualify for the 10,000 m Olympic Games, but was with a time of 27:20,39 min only seventh.
Bests
- (current world records in bold, as of March 23, 2012 )
Personal
Haile Gebrselassie is 1,64 m tall. He is the eighth of ten siblings and ran in his youth daily ten kilometers to school and ten kilometers back, with his books under his arm, which is, according to still read the peculiar attitude of the left arm while running. He is married, has four children and is a successful businessman. 1996 his life and his career was processed in a film that was released in 1999. The film was started in Atlanta during the Olympics and finished filming in December 1996 in Ethiopia. Performers are the real members of the family; the young Gebrselassie was portrayed by a relative.
Gebrselassie athlete ambassador of development organization Right to Play. In 1998 he was elected world athletes of the year. He is the United Nations Honorary Ambassador for a program for development of Ethiopia ( ONUD ) and winner of the Olympic Order.
Opened in 2009, Haile Gebrselassie Haile Resort also be in the city of Awassa and presented at the same time be also newly founded joint venture called Marathon Motors Engineering. He announced that he would want to get into the automotive industry to create jobs in his home country.
In 2011 he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award in the sports category.
Since 2013 Haile Gebrselassie is active as an ambassador for the NGO Light for the World.