Abebe Bikila (Part 1)

Born to a shepherd in a town 25 kilometres outside Mendida, Ethiopia, Abebe Bikila’s family was one of modest means. As he did not grow up with much, Bikila decided to help his family out with finances, and the strong young boy joined the Imperial Guard of Ethiopia, working as a private security officer and bodyguard for the members of the Royal family of Ethiopia.

Living far away from civilization and with few means, Bikila walked a staggering 20 kilometres to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia for that job.

Former athlete Onni Niskanen of Finland was recruited in the 1950s by the government of Ethiopia to spot athletic talent in the country, and it was he who spotted Bikila’s prodigious talent. 

The Ethiopian team had been selected to participate in the 1960 Summer Olympic Games in Rome, Italy, and despite his immense skill, Bikila was not even selected, and would likely not even have been part of Ethiopia’s Olympic squad that year had national running champion Wami Biratu not taken ill at the last moment. Biratu, who had taken seriously ill, was left unable to compete, and Bikila was called in so much at the last moment that the plane to Rome had been ready to leave when he was intimated of his selection.

As a result of this, Bikila had not been fitted for shoes, gear, or anything else runners at the Olympics might need ahead of the game. Adidas, who had designed and sponsored shoes for the team, had only a few pairs of shoes left – none of which were either the right size for Bikila or fit his feet comfortably.

The athlete went on to take a pair of shoes despite this but did not use them whilst training, choosing instead to do so barefoot at the track in Italy. Asked why he had simply said he was “used to” training that way.

1960 Summer Olympic Games, Rome – first Olympic win

At the Summer Olympics in Rome, coach Niskanen took Bikila aside, telling him he would need to look out for Moroccan runner Rhadi Ben Abdesselam, who had shown an extremely quick pace ahead of the Olympics.

The Finn told his pupil to “look out for Number 26” (Abdesselam’s bib number at the marathon) and that the Moroccan athlete would be Bikila’s biggest competition, advice the Ethiopian took to heart.