ABEBE BIKILA

ABEBE BIKILA (ETH, ATHLETICS) - 1932-1973

The revenge of Ethiopia

In the Rome Olympic Games in 1960, the route of the marathon ran past several of the city’s monuments. It was in this historic showcase that one of the greatest marathon runners in history, Abebe Bikila, was to come to prominence.

On the starting line, one detail did draw the eye: he was not wearing shoes, not because he couldn’t afford them but because that was how he had always trained.

Less than two kilometres from the finish line, he made his bid for the lead while passing the Obelisk of Axum, taken as war booty by Mussolini during the occupation of Ethiopia by Italian forces in 1935. To general surprise, he broke the world record and became the first athlete from black Africa to win an Olympic gold medal.

For Ethiopians, the symbolism could not have been greater and Bikila was transformed into a hero of the Ethiopian nation and honoured on his return as the one who had subjugated Italy, the former colonial power.

When he died in 1973, more than 65,000 people attended his funeral, including the last emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie.

Tokyo 1964
This time he ran with shoes, retaining his title

Mexico 1968
Injured, his dream of the triple ended at kilometre 17

After his car accident, he was a contender for a place in the Paralympic Games