Mariano Haro Cisneros (born 27 May 1940) is a former

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-dev ...

, competing in the long-distance events. He was born in Becerril de Campos. Haro ran almost compulsively using his gifted legs to run errands and handle odd jobs. He soon became prominently competitive in a sport he hardly chose. In the 1960s he won almost every 5,000 and 10,000 meter event held in Spain. His closest Spanish competitor was Javier Alvarez Salgado. Haro placed 4th in the 10,000-meter

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972 ...

final at

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

in an epic battle against

Lasse Virén Lasse Artturi Virén (born 22 July 1949) is a Finnish former long-distance runner, winner of four gold medals at the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics. Virén recaptured the image of the " Flying Finns" promoted by runners like Hannes Kolehmainen, ...

Emiel Puttemans Emiel Adrien "Miel" Puttemans (born 8 October 1947) is a retired middle- and long-distance runner, who set world records for 3000 metres (7 minutes 37.6 seconds) in 1972, for 2 miles (8 minutes 17.8 seconds) in 1971, and for 5000 metres (13 min ...

, Miruts Yifter, and

Frank Shorter Frank Charles Shorter (born October 31, 1947) is an American former long-distance runner who won the gold medal in the marathon at the 1972 Summer Olympics and the silver medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics. His Olympic success, along with the a ...

. He qualified for the 5,000-meter final in those Games, but defaulted at the eleventh hour. He also competed in the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

at the age of 36, placing 6th in the 10,000-meter event. Traditionally a cross-country runner, he was runner-up in the Cross World Championships in 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1975; a Spanish National Cross champion from 1971 through 1977; and two-time winner of the International Lasarte Cross Country race in 1974 and 1975. Haro held Spanish national records in all distances from 1,500 meters to 20 km. He also still holds the Spanish record in the hour race. After retiring from athletics following the Montreal Olympics, he joined a more financially prosperous career in politics.

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trackfield.brinkster
1940 births Living people Spanish male long-distance runners Spanish male steeplechase runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Spain Mediterranean Games bronze medalists for Spain Mediterranean Games medalists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1967 Mediterranean Games {{Spain-athletics-bio-stub