Haile Gebrselassie

Who is Haile Gebrselassie?

Haile Gebrselassie, born on 18 April 1973 near Asella in Ethiopia's Arsi region, is widely regarded as one of the greatest distance runners of all time. He grew up on a farm and reportedly ran about ten kilometres to school each day carrying his books, an early routine often credited for both his endurance and the permanent crook in his left arm. He won the Olympic 10,000 metres gold medal at both the 1996 Atlanta Games and the 2000 Sydney Games, and captured four consecutive World Championship 10,000 m titles in 1993, 1995, 1997 and 1999. Over his career he set numerous world records across distances ranging from 2,000 metres to the marathon. Moving to road racing, he set the marathon world record in Berlin in 2007 with 2:04:26 and broke it again the following year with 2:03:59, becoming the first man to run under 2:04. He later became a prominent businessman and athletics administrator in Ethiopia and remains a celebrated national hero.

Sources: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Haile Gebrselassie' · Olympics.com official athlete profile, 'Haile Gebrselassie' · World Athletics athlete profile, 'Haile Gebrselassie'