Luíz Antônio dos Santos (6 September 1964 – 6 November 2021) was a Brazilian

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who specialized in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

. Born in

Volta Redonda Volta Redonda () is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro state of Brazil with an area of 182.81 km2, located from 350m to 707m above the sea level (22°31'23" S, 44°06'15" W) and with a pop ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, he was a

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

bronze medalist and a 1996 Olympian. He twice won the

Chicago Marathon The Chicago Marathon is a road marathon held in October in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the seven World Marathon Majors. Thus, it is also a World Athletics Label Road Race. The Chicago Marathon is one of the largest races by number of fini ...

and also won the

Fukuoka Marathon The is an IAAF Gold Label international men's marathon race held in Fukuoka, Japan. It was previously known as the Fukuoka International Open Marathon Championship between 1947 and 2021, when it was announced the race would be discontinued on i ...

Career

Santos's first international appearances came in

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...

. He was part of the Brazilian team at the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the In ...

in 1991 and 1993, as well as being in the top eight at the

South American Cross Country Championships The South American Cross Country Championships is an annual continental cross country running competition for athletes from South America or, more specifically, member countries of CONSUDATLE. It was first held in 1986, making it the oldest of ...

in 1992, 1993 and 1994, sharing in the team gold at the latter two editions. He ran four times at the

IAAF World Half Marathon Championships The World Athletics Road Running Championships is a biennial international road running competition organised by World Athletics. The competition was launched as the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in 1992 and held annually until 2010. It wa ...

(1993, 1994, 1999, 2001) with his best finish being 22nd in 1994.Luiz-Antonio dosSantos

Association of Road Racing Statisticians The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent, non-profit organization that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics regarding road running races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road record ...

. Retrieved 21 February 2018. He made his marathon debut in

Blumenau Blumenau () is a city in Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina (Brazil), Santa Catarina state, in the South Region, Brazil, South Region of Brazil, from the state capital Florianópolis. The city was founded by the German chemist and pharmacist H ...

in 1993, winning the race in a time of 2:12:15. Later that year he won the

with a time of 2:13:14. This made him the third Brazilian man to win that race, following on from victories by

Joseildo Rocha Joseildo Rocha da Silva (born 20 February 1965) is a Brazilian long-distance runner. He won the 1991 Chicago Marathon, the marathon event at the 1991 South American Championships in Athletics, and the 1993 Los Angeles Marathon. Da Silva compet ...

and José Cesar de Souza in the two years previous. He performed less well on his next outing in 1994, failing to finish in

Gyeongju Gyeongju (, ), historically known as Seorabeol (, ), is a coastal city in the far southeastern corner of North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It is the second largest city by area in the province after Andong, covering with a population of ...

, but set a personal best at the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

with a time of 2:10:39 hours for thirteenth place. He repeated as winner at the Chicago Marathon, claiming the title again in 2:11:16 hours. The 1995 season proved to be a career high. He was third at the 1995 Boston Marathon, recording a time of 2:11:02 hours, then took the bronze medal at the 1995 World Championships – his international debut at that distance. He ended his successful year with wins at the

São Paulo Marathon SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Serb Autonomous Regions (''Srpska autonomna oblast'', SAO), during the breakup of Yu ...

and the high level

, where his clocking 2:09:30 was a new personal best. Despite being eleventh at the 1996 Boston Marathon, he represented his native country in the men's marathon at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

, finishing in tenth place. He attempted a title defence in Fukuoka, but came third overall. He began the 1997 season with sixth place at the

Rotterdam Marathon The Rotterdam Marathon, currently branded NN Rotterdam Marathon, is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April every year since the third edition in 1984 and attracts many top athletes. ...

in a lifetime best time of 2:08:55 hours. He placed fifth at the

1997 World Championships in Athletics The 6th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the World Athletics, International Amateur Athletic Federation, were held at the Olympic Stadium (Athens), Olympic Stadium, Athens, Greece between 1 and 10 August 1997. In this event ...

, which led the Brazilian men to the team bronze medal in the 1997 World Marathon Cup.IAAF World Marathon Cup
GBR Athletics. Retrieved 21 February 2018. Santos was runner-up at the Rio de Janeiro Marathon in 1998 and came eleventh in Chicago later that year. He made three marathon appearances in 1999: fourth at the

Tokyo International Marathon The Tokyo International Marathon was a marathon for male elite runners held in Tokyo, Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the wes ...

, eighth in São Paulo and fifth in

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

. His performances declined thereafter, though he made two more international appearances for Brazil in the South American Marathon Cup.

International competitions

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dos Santos, Luiz Antonio 1964 births 2021 deaths Sportspeople from Volta Redonda Athletes from Rio de Janeiro (state) Brazilian male long-distance runners Brazilian male marathon runners Brazilian male cross country runners Olympic athletes for Brazil Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships athletes for Brazil World Athletics Championships medalists Chicago Marathon male winners 20th-century Brazilian sportsmen 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen

Career

International competitions

See also

References

External links