Grete Waitz was a Norwegian marathon runner and former world record holder. In 1979, she became the first woman in history to run the marathon in under two and a half hours. She won nine New York City Marathons, women's division, between 1978 and 1988, more than any other runner in history. She won a silver medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and a gold medal at the 1983 World Championships in Helsinki. Her other marathon victories included winning the London Marathon in 1983 and 1986. She was also a five-time winner of the World Cross Country Championships.
Rosa Maria Correia dos Santos Mota, GCIH, GCM is a Portuguese former marathon runner, one of her country's foremost athletes, being the first sportswoman from Portugal to win Olympic gold. Mota was the first woman to win multiple Olympic marathon medals as well as being the only woman to be the reigning European, World, and Olympic champion at the same time. On the 30th Anniversary Gala of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) she was distinguished as the greatest female marathon runner of all time.
Ingrid Kristiansen is a Norwegian former athlete. She was one of the best female long distance runners during the 1980s. She is a former world record holder in the 5000 metres, 10,000 metres and the marathon. Kristiansen was a World Champion on the track, roads and cross-country. She was the first athlete to win World titles on all three surfaces. At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, she finished fourth in the first women's Olympic marathon. At the 1988 Seoul Olympics, she dropped out of the 10,000 metres final while leading. Early in her career, she was also an elite cross country skier, winning several Norwegian titles and a European junior championship.
Luxembourg competed at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
The men's marathon at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea was held on Sunday October 2, 1988. The race started at 14:30h local time. A total of 98 athletes completed the race, with Polin Belisle from Belize finishing in last position in 3'14:02. There were 118 competitors from 60 countries. Twenty of them did not finish. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Gelindo Bordin of Italy, the nation's first victory in the Olympic men's marathon and first medal in the event since 1924. Kenya and Djibouti each won their first Olympic men's marathon medal.
The women's 400 metres event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 48 competitors. The final was run on Monday September 26, 1988, in the Seoul Olympic Stadium.
The Women's 100 metres Hurdles at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 37 competitors, with five qualifying heats, three second-rounds (24) and two semifinals (16) before the final (8) took place on Friday September 30, 1988.
The Women's High Jump Competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 24 competitors, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Friday September 30, 1988.
The Women's Marathon at the 1991 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan was held on Sunday August 25, 1991. The race started on 19.00h local time.
These are the official results of the Women's marathon event at the 1990 European Championships in Split, Yugoslavia. The race was held on 27 August 1990.
The Women's Discus Throw event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 22 competitors, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Thursday September 29, 1988.
The women's shot put event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 26 competitors, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Saturday October 1, 1988.
Zoya Ivanova is a retired long-distance runner from Kazakhstan, who represented the Soviet Union in the women's marathon at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
These are the official results of the Women's marathon at the 1986 European Championships in Stuttgart, West Germany. The race was held on 30 August 1986.
These are the official results of the Women's marathon at the 1982 European Championships in Athens, Greece. The race was held on 12 September 1982.
Josie Cichockyj was a British wheelchair athlete. Born in Huddersfield, she competed in the London Marathon women's wheelchair race for a number of years, finishing as runner-up to Kay McShane and Karen Davidson, before winning the 1989 race. Josie won further Marathons including the Leeds, Gloucester, Ottawa and Brussels Marathons. Plus several half Marathons including Great North Run and Reading.
Cathy Schiro O'Brien is a retired female long-distance runner from the United States. She was an Olympian, and she holds the US women's high school record in the marathon. O'Brien set her personal best (2:29:38) in the women's marathon when she won the women's Los Angeles Marathon in 1991.
For the 1988 Summer Olympics, a total of thirty-one sports venues were used. South Korea hosted its first World Championships in 1978 in shooting sports. Three years later, Seoul was awarded the 1988 Summer Olympics. Many of the venues constructed for the 1988 Games were completed two years earlier in time for the Asian Games. The 1986 Asian Games served as test events for the 1988 Summer Olympics. The men's marathon course was lined by 36,000 policemen. Steffi Graf won a gold medal in women's singles to complete the "Golden Slam". None of the football venues used for these games were used for the 2002 FIFA World Cup that Korea co-hosted with Japan.
The Asian Marathon Championships is a biennial international competition in marathon road running for Asian athletes. Organised by the Asian Athletics Association, its creation in 1988 followed decision to drop the 42.195-kilometre race from the programme of events at the Asian Athletics Championships. In that competition, championship marathons were held for men in 1973 and 1975, then finally for both men and women at the 1985.
Cornelia Marina "Lia" Melis is a long-distance runner who competed for Aruba at the 1988 Summer Olympics and the 1992 Summer Olympics, and at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics and 1991 World Championships in Athletics.
