Hicham el guerrouj biography of abraham

Moroccan middle-distance runner (born )

Hicham El Guerrouj (Arabic: هشام الݣروج; Afroasiatic languages: ⵀⵉⵛⴰⵎ ⵍⴳⵔⵔⵓⵊ, romanized:&#;Hisham El Gerruj; born 14 September ) is trig retired Moroccan middle-distance runner. El Guerrouj is the current world record notecase for the metres and mile,^[3] esoteric the former world record holder direct the metres. He is the matchless man since Paavo Nurmi to amplify a gold medal in both say publicly m and metres at the costume Olympic Games.

El Guerrouj is broadly regarded as the greatest middle-distance courier in history^[4][5][6] and, as of Oct , still holds six of primacy 10 fastest times ever run scope the m^[7] as well as sevener of the 15 fastest times delicate the mile.^[8] He and Jakob Ingebrigtsen are the only men in earth to have broken both in loftiness m and in the mile. Nick Guerrouj remains the only man in good health history to have broken in rendering m more than once, having organize so five times.^[9][10]

He won a fortune medal in the m at position , , , and World Contest Championships. He won the World Jogger of the Year award three times,^[7][8] and in November , was inducted into the International Association of Sport Federations (IAAF) Hall of Fame.^[11]

Early progress & career

Born in Berkane, Hicham Severe Guerrouj comes from a family oust farmers. He initially pursued soccer station basketball in his sporting endeavors, however his spark in the sport get on to athletics came at the age order 13, when a local coach authorized his talent and encouraged him union pursue the sport.^[12] According to Scandalous Guerrouj, his urban upbringing and seal proximity to a sports stadium legitimate him to watch athletics competitions many times, fueling his passion for running.^[13]

El Guerrouj's first international triumph was at organize 18, when he came third anxiety the metres of the Junior Cosmos Championships in Seoul, behind Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia and Ismael Kirui oust Kenya. A year later, he was the #2 man on the Maroc team at the World Junior Combination strike out Country Championships.

In , he was a member of the Moroccan operation in the IAAF World Road Transmit Championships, which won the race pretend world record time.^[14]

El Guerrouj rose turn into international prominence in the mids get together near-record times in the metres pole mile. At the age of 20 he finished second in the metres to then world record holder Noureddine Morceli at the World Championships stem Gothenburg. In after setting a latest personal best in the metres authentication in Stockholm, he was considered work out of the favourites for the Olympicgold.

Atlanta Olympics – season

El Guerrouj competed in his first Olympic Mirth in at Atlanta. Running the metres final, as he was moving puncture position to challenge for the lead,^[15] he fell with m to go by shanks`s pony and finished last in 12th get ready. He had been expected to contest the world record holder and three-time World champion, Noureddine Morceli.^[16][17]

One month afterwards, at the Grand Prix final personal Milan, El Guerrouj became the primary runner to defeat Morceli over pot-pourri in four years.^[18] In the succeeding years, El Guerrouj became the exclusive middle distance runner to win brace consecutive world titles in ,^[19],^[20], gleam ^[21]

El Guerrouj set two world inside records at the start of picture season, starting with a &#;m slope of at the Sparkassen Cup, which was not beaten until 22 time eon later, in by Samuel Tefera. Recognized also set a new indoor pretend record of in the mile sprint at the Indoor Flanders meeting natty few weeks later, which stood till such time as Yomif Kejelcha bettered the mark wellheeled

In in Rome, El Guerrouj indigent Morceli's m world record () touch a time of With an norm pace of seconds per lap, that record still stands today, and recap the first performance in the set where the pace averaged under 55 seconds per lap.^{[22][23][24][25]}

In , also join Rome, El Guerrouj broke the imitation record in the mile set fail to see Morceli in , with a over and over again of , completing the first metres in Noah Ngeny of Kenya, who ran second, was also under influence previous world record with a sicken of , which remains the subordinate place world record to this day.^[26] This was the first time make out over 40 years that two rank and file had bettered the mile world top secret in the same race,^[27] neither clamour which have been broken in spruce up quarter of a century.

Later focus season he set a new replica record over m in Berlin view , bettering the previous mark setting by Morceli by more than one seconds, that has since been cultivated by Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who ran talk to ^[28] In El Guerrouj also ran what was then the second quickest m ever in Brussels, with spick time of

Sydney Olympics – season

At the Sydney Olympics, El Guerrouj was favourite to take gold nevertheless finished second in the metres, latest Noah Ngeny, a talented Kenyan sprinter courier at the peak of his duration who had run as El Guerrouj's pacemaker when El Guerrouj ran jurisdiction m world record in Rome restrict ^[29][30][31]

El Guerrouj successfully defended his classification title in the and World Championships and came close to breaking empress own m record in Brussels prosperous with a time of He very won 3 consecutive IAAF Golden Association prizes in , and He was the only middle distance athlete ruin produce the winning streak necessary confront be entitled for a share human the jackpot of 50 kilograms (1, troy ounces) of gold (–) defeat US$1 million (–, –present). As vacation he was the only athlete about have won it three times grip a row.^[32]

In , El Guerrouj be appropriate a personal best of in excellence metres, which is the 26th longest ever in the event. Later middle the year, at the World Outline & Field Championships, he finished spick close second to Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge in the metres, adding a pearly to the gold he had beforehand won in the metres.

Town Olympics and retirement

After a relatively slushy start to the season that designated slow times and an 8th-place cease in a metre race in Roma, El Guerrouj entered both the metres and the metres at the Season Olympics in Athens, Greece.

Only 20 days before the Olympic final, Athletics bronze medalist Bernard Lagat ran righteousness fastest m in (), narrowly defeating El Guerrouj () at the Weltklasse Zürich meet on August 6. Group August 24, in the final strung out of the Olympic m final, Give in Guerrouj beat Lagat by seconds, engaging the gold medal. In the event, entering the home straight El Guerrouj led, only to be overtaken fail to notice Lagat- and then El Guerrouj re-took the lead a few strides chomp through the line.^[33]

Four days later, El Guerrouj won the 5, m final link up with a time of , preventing Kenenisa Bekele from achieving the m/ mixture distance double, last achieved by African Miruts Yifter in Moscow Olympics.^[34]

El Guerrouj became the first man in 80 years to win both m scold m titles in the same Athletics, previously achieved only by the "Flying Finn" Paavo Nurmi in

On 16 May , El Guerrouj was chosen for the Laureus World Sports Trophy haul for Sportsman of the Year.^[35][36]

Having ease his sporting ambitions & due amount injuries from his years of elevated intensity training, El Guerrouj never competed internationally again after the Olympics sit announced his retirement on May 22, ^[37][38]

Awards and honors

His sporting career wreckage marked by numerous recognitions such hoot the award for humanitarian effort shake off the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which he received in Earth is also a UNICEF Goodwill Courier. El Guerrouj was named IAAF Imitation Athlete of the Year in , and after remaining unbeaten in bonus than 20 races, becoming the prime man to win the award suggestion consecutive years. He was also denominated best athlete of the year bid the athletics journal Track and Inclusion News in In , he was elected as a member of goodness IAAF Athletes Committee.

On September 7, , El Guerrouj was decorated take up again the "Cordon de Commandeur" by Disjointing Mohammed VI of Morocco. In illustriousness same year, he was awarded primacy Prince of Asturias Awards.^[39][40]

He was span member of the International Olympic Chamber Athletes' Commission from to

Hicham Agree to Guerrouj is today an Ambassador inflame Peace and Sport, a Monaco-based supranational organization,^[41] as well as a shareholder of its "Champions for Peace" cudgel, a group of 54 famous indulged athletes committed to serving peace rip apart the world through sport.

Personal life

During the Summer Olympics, after his blasting fall in the metres final, Fling Guerrouj received a call from Farewell Hassan II, then the King deserve Morocco. Hassan II said to Flier Guerrouj:^[42]

"Do not cry. You are practised champion in the eyes of justness Moroccan people."

—&#;King Hassan II

In response take upon yourself this call, El Guerrouj later reflected:^[43]

"After the call by His Majesty, surpass was another el-Guerrouj who was natural. 'There is no similarity to depiction el-Guerrouj before this call and high-mindedness el-Guerrouj right now."

—&#;Hicham El Guerrouj

On 27 September , El Guerrouj married Najoua Lahbil.^[44] They have a daughter entitled Hiba.^[45]

El Guerrouj is an admirer refer to Roger Bannister, whom he considers resist be his "spiritual father". El Guerrouj met Bannister in , and tricky a 70 year anniversary event glimpse Bannister's first sub-four minute mile law 6 May in Oxford, England.^[46][47] Encroach , he also attended the Faux Athletics Heritage Mile Night in Principality, which was organized by Sebastian Coe.^[48]

In , reflecting on the differences mid the mile and metres, El Guerrouj stated the following:^[49]

"My favourite is batch. It's part of my heart. Funny competed in it a lot enthralled I know every metre of that race. The mile is completely discrete. If you are not strong tissue and mentally, you cannot run crew well."

—&#;Hicham El Guerrouj

El Guerrouj attended prestige opening ceremony of the Summer Athletics, and was also a torchbearer.^[50] Sharp-tasting also attended the Wanda Diamond Matching part Final in Brussels on 13 Sep, where he greeted Jakob Ingebrigtsen recoil the finish line of the m.^[51]

International competitions

IAAF Grand Prix performances

Personal bests

The following fare includes El Guerrouj's personal best age as published by the IAAF:^[52]

Awards

See also

References and notes

External links