Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima (born 4 July 1969) is a Brazilian retired

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 in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

. He was born in Cruzeiro do Oeste, Paraná. While leading the marathon after 35 km at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, he was attacked on the course by

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

former

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

Cornelius "Neil" Horan. Following the incident, de Lima fell from first to third place, eventually winning the bronze medal. He was later awarded the

Pierre de Coubertin medal The Pierre de Coubertin medal is a special decoration awarded by the International Olympic Committee that "pays tribute to institutions with a pedagogical and educational role and to people who, through their research and the creation of intellect ...

for his sportsmanship shown in that race. De Lima won the Tokyo International Marathon in 1996 and the

Hamburg Marathon The Hamburg Marathon (german: Hamburg-Marathon) is an annual marathon race over the classic distance of held in Hamburg, Germany. In 2009, 13,938 participants were counted. The marathon is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athlet ...

in 2004. He won 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 1995, and the marathon at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...

consecutively in 1999 and 2003. He lit the Olympic cauldron and carried the Olympic flame during the opening ceremony of the

2016 Summer Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

Professional career

De Lima started out as a

cross country runner 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 earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...

, representing Brazil at the

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

and

1992 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 1992 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, at the Franklin Park on March 21, 1992. A report on the event was given in ''The New York Times''. Complete results for senior men, junior men, ...

. He won a bronze medal at the 1993

before going on to win the competition in 1995.Continental Cross Country Championships and Cups
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2010-03-02. De Lima won his first

marathon 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 div ...

in 1996, taking the Tokyo International Marathon title. He attended his first Summer Olympics that same year, running in the marathon at the

1996 Atlanta Games 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, ...

and finishing in 47th place. His first world appearance followed a year later at the

1997 World Championships in Athletics The 6th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Amateur Athletic Federation, were held at the Olympic Stadium, Athens, Greece between August 1 and August 10, 1997. In this event participated 1882 athletes from 19 ...

, where he finished 23rd. He set a personal best of 2:08:31 at the 1998 Tokyo Marathon, finishing second behind

Alberto Juzdado Alberto Juzdado López (born August 20, 1966) is a Spanish long-distance runner. He specialized in the marathon race. Juzdado won the Tokyo International Marathon race in 1998. Achievements Personal bests *3000 metres – 8:08.87 min (1998) ...

. De Lima was a two-time Pan American champion, running 2:17:20 at the 1999 Games and 2:19:08 for the second victory at the 2003 Games. He began the 2004 season with a win (2:09:39) at the

Attack at 2004 Summer Olympics

On 29 August 2004, at the

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

, de Lima was attempting to become the first Brazilian to win an Olympic gold medal in the marathon. Soon after the mark, holding a lead of around 25 seconds, de Lima was halted and grappled with by spectator

Neil Horan Cornelius "Neil" Horan, sometimes referred to as The Grand Prix Priest, The Dancing Priest or The Armageddon Priest (born 22 April 1947), is a laicised Irish Roman Catholic priest who is noted for his interference with the running of the 2003 ...

, an Irish priest who was later

defrocked Defrocking, unfrocking, degradation, or laicization of clergy is the removal of their rights to exercise the functions of the ordained ministry. It may be grounded on criminal convictions, disciplinary problems, or disagreements over doctrine or ...

.
The Irish Times online 20 January 2005. Retrieved 7 August 2016. Horan had previously disrupted the 2003

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor race organised in the United Kingdom by the Royal Automobile Club. First held in 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 and has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Cha ...

by running onto the

Silverstone Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and ...

track. Greek spectator Polyvios Kossivas helped free de Lima from Horan's grasp and help de Lima resume running. Horan said "I wasn’t doing it as a prank, I was doing it to spread the gospel and to prepare people for the second coming.” Reuter
De Lima to get sportsmanship medal following marathon attack
Athens, Greece: ''Reuters''. 30 August 2004. De Lima lost about 5–10 seconds in the incident, and he was passed by

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Stefano Baldini Stefano Baldini (born 25 May 1971 in Castelnovo di Sotto, Emilia-Romagna, Italy) is a retired Italian runner who specialized in the marathon. He was the Olympic champion in Athens and was twice European champion (1998 and 2006). Biography Baldin ...

(2:10.55) and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Meb Keflezighi Mebrahtom "Meb" Keflezighi (; Ge'ez: መብራህቶም ክፍልእዝጊ, ''Mebrāhtōm Kifl'izgī''; born May 5, 1975) is a retired Eritrean-born American long distance runner. He is the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the marathon and fin ...

(2:11.29) later at the mark. de Lima ultimately finished third with a time of 2:12.11, winning the bronze medal. The

Brazilian Athletics Confederation The Brazilian Athletics Confederation (CBAt; ''Confederação Brasileira de Atletismo'') is the governing body for the sport of athletics in Brazil. President for the period 2013-2016 is José Antonio Martins Fernandes. History CBAt w ...

launched an appeal on behalf of de Lima with president Roberto Gesta de Melo claiming that "someone took him out of the race and we are asking for a gold medal for our athlete... solutions like that have been done in the past for other events." The appeal was rejected. At the closing of the event, the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swis ...

awarded de Lima the

for the spirit of

sportsmanship Sportsmanship is an aspiration or ethos that a sport, or activity will be enjoyed for its own sake. This is with proper consideration for fairness, ethics, respect, and a sense of fellowship with one's competitors. A "sore loser" refers to o ...

. The medal was officially presented to de Lima on 7 December in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

, during a formal ceremony organized on a yearly basis by the

Brazilian Olympic Committee The Brazilian Olympic Committee or BOC ( pt, Comitê Olímpico do Brasil – COB) is the highest authority in Brazilian sport and the governing body of Brazilian Olympic sport. It was officially founded on June 8, 1914, but World War I cause ...

(COB) during the Prêmio Brasil Olímpico. De Lima was also named Brazilian Athlete of the Year in 2004, receiving the trophy presented by the COB at the same time as the Pierre de Coubertin medal. His award was the first occasion in which the winner was selected by online popular vote.

Post-Olympic career

Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima lights cauldron (28771915476)

De Lima ran at the world championships for a second time, but did not finish in the 2005 World marathon race. He took part in the 2005 Saint Silvester Road Race that same year but only managed to finish in 14th place. De Lima attempted to defend his title at the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games, were a major continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of 5,633 athletes from 42 National Olympic C ...

, but dropped out with muscular problems at the 37-kilometer mark. He retired as a marathoner after running 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 ...

in April 2009. De Lima's biography was written by Renata Adrião D'Angelo, ''Vanderlei de Lima - A Maratona de uma Vida (A Marathon of Life)'', printed in Brazil by Casa da Palavra, in 2007. De Lima took part in the 2016 Summer Olympics torch relay in

Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...

. In August 2016, he received the honor of

lighting Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylig ...

the

Olympic Flame The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olymp ...

at the

during the

Opening Ceremonies An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

References

External links

*
marathoninfo

The complete biography by Renata Adrião D´Angelo, before = Callum Airlie, Jordan Duckitt, Desiree Henry, Katie Kirk, Cameron MacRitchie, Aidan Reynolds, and

Adelle Tracey Adelle Tracey (born 27 May 1993) is an American-born middle-distance runner competing for Jamaica since 2022, having previously represented Great Britain, where she grew up. Tracey competes primarily in the 800 metres. She placed fourth in the ...

, after = ''TBA

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

''
Vanderlei de Lima - the story of a man that goes beyond one strange incident
- Article from IAAF * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lima, Vanderlei de 1969 births Living people Olympic athletes of Brazil Olympic bronze medalists for Brazil Brazilian male long-distance runners Recipients of the Pierre de Coubertin medal Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1999 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games Pan American Games athletes for Brazil Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic cauldron lighters Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Sportspeople from Paraná (state) 20th-century Brazilian people 21st-century Brazilian people