Abebe Bikila was a legendary marathon runner from Ethiopia.
He was the first athlete to win a marathon in two consecutive Olympic Games, in 1960 and 1964. He was also the first black African to win a gold medal at the Olympics.
He was born in 1932 and was the son of a poor shepherd. He went on foot to the capital of his country to enlist in the army so that he could support his large family.
He was discovered by a Swedish coach and offered to become a runner.
He was selected for his country’s team for the Rome Olympics in 1960, when another marathoner retired due to injury. Adidas did not have shoes to suit him and so he preferred to race barefoot, which he did in training.
In 1961 he won marathons in Greece, Japan and Czechoslovakia.
He then withdrew from the race for two years.
He took part in a failed coup in Ethiopia and was sentenced to death. But in the end he was pardoned and not executed.
In 1963 he started running again.
In 1969 he had a very bad car accident that left him paralyzed. He eventually died four years later from a cerebral hemorrhage, a complication of the accident.
[Source: http://www.sansimera.gr]
