Fatuma Roba ( am, ፋጡማ ሮባ; born 18 December 1973) is an Ethiopian

long-distance Long distance or Long-distance may refer to: *Long-distance calling * Long-distance operator * Long-distance relationship * Long-distance train *Long-distance anchor pylon, see dead-end tower Footpaths * Long-distance trail *European long-d ...

runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

, best known for being the first African woman to win a gold medal in the women's Olympic

marathon race The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , 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 are also wheelchair di ...

at the Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics and for winning three successive Boston Marathons.

Early life

Fatuma Roba was born on 18 December 1973 in

Bekoji Bekoji ( Oromo: Boqojjii, Amharic: በቆጂ) is a town in central Ethiopia. Located in the Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region, it has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 2810 m. It is the administrative centre of Limuna Bilbilo woreda ...

, Ethiopia. As Fatuma grew up, there were no female role models in long distance running within Ethiopia, only

Abebe Bikila ''Shambel'' Abebe Bikila ( am, ሻምበል አበበ ቢቂላ; August 7, 1932 – October 25, 1973) was an Ethiopian marathon runner who was a back-to-back Olympic marathon champion. He is the first Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist, winnin ...

. While Fatuma was at school, she was not encouraged to run but decided to continue regardless. She was coached by Sentayehu Eshetu, who had previously worked with athletes such as

Derartu Tulu Derartu Tulu NL COL ( om, Daraartuu Tulluu, Amharic: ደራርቱ ቱሉ; born 21 March 1972) is an Ethiopian former long-distance runner, who competed in track, cross country running, and road running up to the marathon distance. She won 10,0 ...

Running career

She made her first national team in 1988, in the

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...

. That year she was in the top ten in the world championships, by 1992 she had improved to sixth. After coming first in the juniors and seventh overall in the New York Mini Marathon, she decided to try a full length marathon. So in 1994, she took part in the

Paris Marathon The Paris Marathon (french: Marathon de Paris) is an annual marathon hosted by the city of Paris, France. It is the marathon with the second-most finishers in the world, behind the New York City Marathon. The marathon begins along the Champs ...

, finishing 19th, later saying "when I finished I said, ;Never again, never again will I do this distance, it is too long!' I drank too much water, had stomach troubles, and after 14km I was finished." She gave up the longer distance for the following year, but with 25 days to go until the 1995 World Championships in Athletics, it was suggested that she should compete since Ethiopia was not sending anyone else. So she competed, and ran well up until the mark, but then felt dizzy and collapsed several times. She finished 19th, with a time of 2:39:27, but her performance put her in hospital afterwards. But Fatuma decided to continue training at that distance. She won her first marathon at Marrakech in early 1996, before winning the

Rome Marathon The Rome Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of Rome, Italy. History The competition has also doubled as the Italian Marathon championships on two occasions; in 1983 and 1986. The race date was shifted from the ...

two months later. Between the two runs, she improved her personal best time by a minute. After the victory in Rome, she was selected for the

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

team 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, ...

, in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, United States, and intensified her training. She later said that by the point in the women's marathon at the Atlanta Games, she was certain she had won the race because her fellow runners were tiring although she was finding the pace comfortable. With her victory and the gold medal, Fatuma became the first woman from an African nation to win the women's marathon at an Olympic Games. Fatuma also won three straight Boston Marathons from 1997–1999. The three-time Boston champion narrowly missed a fourth straight title in 2000, coming in third in the closest finish in race history. She later said "Well, for me the greatest of all marathons is of course the Olympic Marathon, but second place is Boston."

Personal bests

10000m The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The ra ...

– 32:25 (2000) *

Half-marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...

– 1:09:01 (2001) * Marathon – 2:23:21 (1998)

Achievements

References

External links

Female Athletes: Fatuma Roba
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatuma Roba 1973 births Living people Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Ethiopian female long-distance runners Ethiopian female marathon runners Olympic athletes of Ethiopia Olympic gold medalists for Ethiopia Boston Marathon female winners Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) 20th-century Ethiopian women 21st-century Ethiopian women