Back and Next - Back and NextSports profile: Abebe Bikila, Africa’s greatest athlete
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Ethiopian track and field athlete, Abebe Bikila (1932-1973), was the first black African to win an Olympic medal, and the first man ever to win two Olympic marathons. Known for his grace and stamina, he was considered the most perfect example of a naturally talented distance runner.
Abebe Bikila, the son of a shepherd, did not begin running until he was 24 years old. Bikila was born in the mountains of Ethiopia. When he was old enough, Bikila became a private in the army and bodyguard of Haile Selassie, the emperor of Ethiopia. As part of his training, he was sent to a camp that the government had set up after World War II. At the camp, Swedish coach, Onni Niskanen recognized that Bikila had exceptional talent in running. In the 6,000-foot high mountains, he led Bikila and the others through grueling workouts. Runs of up to twenty miles and repeated sprints of 1,500 meters were common.
Often, Bikila and the other recruits ran barefoot over the tough, rocky soil.
Bikila won his first marathon in Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa in July 1960. Because Ethiopia was an isolated country and kept its borders closed to the rest of the world, people outside did not take much notice of Bikila. In addition, his winning time was 2 hours, 21 minutes, and 23 seconds, not particularly impressive compared to other runners. In August, Bikila ran a second marathon in Addis Ababa. His improved winning time was dramatic, as was the fact that both marathons were run at a high altitude and he had won them only a month apart, with little rest in between. Niskanen was convinced that Bikila could win the Olympic marathon, which would be held that same year, in Rome.
Conquered Rome
The marathon route was planned to show the world as much as possible of Rome's architecture, splendor, and history. For the first time ever, the race would not start or end in the Olympic Stadium, and for the first time, it would be run at night. The runners began at 5:30 p.m. in the Campidoglio, a square designed by Michelangelo, on Capitoline Hill, and wound through Rome.
The later section of the race would be run in the dark, with the route lit by Roman soldiers holding torches. The last few miles would be run on the Appian Way, a road built by the ancient Romans, where Roman troops had marched thousands of years ago.
The group of runners assembled for the race was impressive, and Bikila was not expected to win. He would probably not have been noticed at all were it not for the fact that he chose to wear no running shoes. Used to running barefoot in Ethiopia, Bikila would run the entire 26.2 miles in bare feet. He had tried to run a few practice miles on the Roman streets with shoes, but found that they pinched his feet.
As the race began, four runners moved to the front of the pack: Keily of Great Britain, Vandendriessche of Belgium, Rhadi of Morocco, and Bikila. At six miles, two more runners caught up, but Sergie Popov of the Soviet Union (who held the world record and was expected to win) was still behind. By 16 miles, Bikila and Rhadi were in front. Previously, Bikila had decided that he would not take the lead until after the 12-mile mark, and now he was there.
Previously, Bikila had decided that he would not take the lead until after the 12-mile mark, and now he was there. At 18 miles, he was still battling Rhadi for the lead. Unlike everyone else, Bikila and his coach had assumed that he would be in the lead at the end of the race. In the last few miles, Bikila looked for a place where he could decisively overtake Rhadi.
A little more than a mile from the finish, Bikila saw a statue known as the Obelisk of Axum, which had originally come from Ethiopia, and which had been stolen by invading Italian troops during World War II. For Bikila, it was symbolic. As he and Rhadi passed the obelisk, he surged forward so strongly that Rhadi could no longer keep up. Dodging a motor scooter whose driver had mistakenly driven onto the course, he beat Rhadi by 25 seconds, with a finishing time of 2:15:16.2. With this time, he won the gold medal, beat Popov's previous world record by eight tenths of a second, and beat the Olympic record for the marathon by almost 8 seconds. Newspapers the next day commented that it had taken an entire Italian army to conquer Ethiopia, but only one Ethiopian soldier to conquer Rome.
Bikila's gold medal was the first Olympic medal won by a black African. This achievement, with Rhadi's silver medal, marked the beginning of a new era in international competition, in which African athletes would come to dominate distance running. Bikila achieved instant fame around the world. He was known as the Ethiopian who had conquered Rome.
In 1961, Bikila won marathon races in Greece, Japan, and Czechoslovakia. Still holding the world record, he returned to Ethiopia in October and did not take part in international competition for two more years.
In 1963, he ran in the Boston Marathon, and lost for the first time in his career, finishing fifth. After this race he went back to his army job in Ethiopia, disappearing from international view once again. Rumors circulated that he was running and competing in Ethiopia. Others claimed that he had been posted to the Somali border with Ethiopia because of tensions between the two countries. In 1964, he won a marathon in Addis Ababa, with a time of 2:23:14. Observers speculated that the relatively slow time was a result of the high altitude of the race.
Accident
In 1969, Bikila was in a tragic car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down for the remainder of his life. Bikila continued to be a national hero in Ethiopia, where many people made pilgrimages to visit him before his death in 1973.
Awards
Considered the greatest marathon runner of all time.
First African to win an Olympics medal.
First ever to win the gold medal in two Olympic marathons.
Olympic runner, he set a new world record in the 1960 Olympics at 2:16:2 and then, in 1964 in Tokyo, he broke his own record by more than four minutes at 2:12:11, though still recovering from an appendix operation.
In the famous 1960 Olympics, Bikila ran barefoot over the cobblestones of the Appian Way in Rome, Italy, to break Czechoslovakian runner Emil Zátopek's 1952 marathon record by nearly eight minutes.
Abebe Bikila, the son of a shepherd, did not begin running until he was 24 years old. Bikila was born in the mountains of Ethiopia. When he was old enough, Bikila became a private in the army and bodyguard of Haile Selassie, the emperor of Ethiopia. As part of his training, he was sent to a camp that the government had set up after World War II. At the camp, Swedish coach, Onni Niskanen recognized that Bikila had exceptional talent in running. In the 6,000-foot high mountains, he led Bikila and the others through grueling workouts. Runs of up to twenty miles and repeated sprints of 1,500 meters were common.
Often, Bikila and the other recruits ran barefoot over the tough, rocky soil.
Bikila won his first marathon in Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa in July 1960. Because Ethiopia was an isolated country and kept its borders closed to the rest of the world, people outside did not take much notice of Bikila. In addition, his winning time was 2 hours, 21 minutes, and 23 seconds, not particularly impressive compared to other runners. In August, Bikila ran a second marathon in Addis Ababa. His improved winning time was dramatic, as was the fact that both marathons were run at a high altitude and he had won them only a month apart, with little rest in between. Niskanen was convinced that Bikila could win the Olympic marathon, which would be held that same year, in Rome.
Conquered Rome
The marathon route was planned to show the world as much as possible of Rome's architecture, splendor, and history. For the first time ever, the race would not start or end in the Olympic Stadium, and for the first time, it would be run at night. The runners began at 5:30 p.m. in the Campidoglio, a square designed by Michelangelo, on Capitoline Hill, and wound through Rome.
The later section of the race would be run in the dark, with the route lit by Roman soldiers holding torches. The last few miles would be run on the Appian Way, a road built by the ancient Romans, where Roman troops had marched thousands of years ago.
The group of runners assembled for the race was impressive, and Bikila was not expected to win. He would probably not have been noticed at all were it not for the fact that he chose to wear no running shoes. Used to running barefoot in Ethiopia, Bikila would run the entire 26.2 miles in bare feet. He had tried to run a few practice miles on the Roman streets with shoes, but found that they pinched his feet.
As the race began, four runners moved to the front of the pack: Keily of Great Britain, Vandendriessche of Belgium, Rhadi of Morocco, and Bikila. At six miles, two more runners caught up, but Sergie Popov of the Soviet Union (who held the world record and was expected to win) was still behind. By 16 miles, Bikila and Rhadi were in front. Previously, Bikila had decided that he would not take the lead until after the 12-mile mark, and now he was there.
Previously, Bikila had decided that he would not take the lead until after the 12-mile mark, and now he was there. At 18 miles, he was still battling Rhadi for the lead. Unlike everyone else, Bikila and his coach had assumed that he would be in the lead at the end of the race. In the last few miles, Bikila looked for a place where he could decisively overtake Rhadi.
A little more than a mile from the finish, Bikila saw a statue known as the Obelisk of Axum, which had originally come from Ethiopia, and which had been stolen by invading Italian troops during World War II. For Bikila, it was symbolic. As he and Rhadi passed the obelisk, he surged forward so strongly that Rhadi could no longer keep up. Dodging a motor scooter whose driver had mistakenly driven onto the course, he beat Rhadi by 25 seconds, with a finishing time of 2:15:16.2. With this time, he won the gold medal, beat Popov's previous world record by eight tenths of a second, and beat the Olympic record for the marathon by almost 8 seconds. Newspapers the next day commented that it had taken an entire Italian army to conquer Ethiopia, but only one Ethiopian soldier to conquer Rome.
Bikila's gold medal was the first Olympic medal won by a black African. This achievement, with Rhadi's silver medal, marked the beginning of a new era in international competition, in which African athletes would come to dominate distance running. Bikila achieved instant fame around the world. He was known as the Ethiopian who had conquered Rome.
In 1961, Bikila won marathon races in Greece, Japan, and Czechoslovakia. Still holding the world record, he returned to Ethiopia in October and did not take part in international competition for two more years.
In 1963, he ran in the Boston Marathon, and lost for the first time in his career, finishing fifth. After this race he went back to his army job in Ethiopia, disappearing from international view once again. Rumors circulated that he was running and competing in Ethiopia. Others claimed that he had been posted to the Somali border with Ethiopia because of tensions between the two countries. In 1964, he won a marathon in Addis Ababa, with a time of 2:23:14. Observers speculated that the relatively slow time was a result of the high altitude of the race.
Accident
In 1969, Bikila was in a tragic car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down for the remainder of his life. Bikila continued to be a national hero in Ethiopia, where many people made pilgrimages to visit him before his death in 1973.
Awards
Considered the greatest marathon runner of all time.
First African to win an Olympics medal.
First ever to win the gold medal in two Olympic marathons.
Olympic runner, he set a new world record in the 1960 Olympics at 2:16:2 and then, in 1964 in Tokyo, he broke his own record by more than four minutes at 2:12:11, though still recovering from an appendix operation.
In the famous 1960 Olympics, Bikila ran barefoot over the cobblestones of the Appian Way in Rome, Italy, to break Czechoslovakian runner Emil Zátopek's 1952 marathon record by nearly eight minutes.
Author: DO
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