Meraf Bahta

Last updated
Meraf Bahta
Podium 5000m women Zurich 2014.jpg
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden
European Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2014 Zürich 5000 m
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2016 Amsterdam 5000 m
European Cross Country Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2017 Šamorín Senior race
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2014 Samokov Senior race

Meraf Bahta Ogbagaber (born 24 June 1989) is an Eritrean middle-distance runner. She represents Sweden in international competitions and specializes in the 1500 metres and 3000 metres.

Contents

Biography

She was born in Dekishahay, Eritrea (at the time still part of Ethiopia). As a junior, she competed in the junior races at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, finishing twelfth in 2006 and sixth in 2007. Together with her teammates she won the silver medal in the team event at the 2007 championships. She finished fifth in the 1500 metres at the 2006 World Junior Championships. [1] At the 2007 All-Africa Games she finished seventh in the 5000 metres. [2] She competed in her first senior cross-country race at the 2008 World Cross Country Championships, but only finished 43rd.

Her personal best times are 4:05.11 minutes in the 1500 metres, achieved in July 2013 in Heusden-Zolder; and 14:59.49 minutes in the 5000 metres, achieved in July 2014 in Palo Alto, USA. [1] The 5000 personal best also marked a Swedish record (former was from 1995 held by Sara Wedlund). With the sub-15 race Meraf made her big international breakthrough and immediately became one of the best long distance runners on European soil and a medal contender for future European Championships.

She moved from Eritrea to Sweden in 2008. In Sweden she has continued her running career, getting support from Ulf Friberg, the trainer of Mustafa Mohamed. Bahta got her permanent residency permit in 2012 and has applied for Swedish citizenship. [3] In December she got her citizenship and since 2014 she has been eligible to compete for Sweden in international championships. [4] She represented Sweden at the 2016 Summer Olympics finishing 6th in the 1500 m.

In 2014, she also won Tjejmilen. [5]

She finished 9th in the 1500m at the 2017 World Athletics Championships. [6]

Doping suspension

On 26 July 2018, Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported that she was suspected of doping violations. [7] On 24 June 2019, it was announced that she had been suspended for doping. The suspension period is partly retroactive, lasting from 1 September 2018 to 1 September 2019. [8]

Achievements

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing Flag of Eritrea.svg  Eritrea
2005 World Cross Country Championships Saint-Galmier, France 32nd Junior race 22:43
2006 World Junior Championships Beijing, China 5th1500 m4:16.01
World Cross Country Championships Fukuoka, Japan 12th Junior race 20:22
2007 World Cross Country Championships Mombasa, Kenya 6th Junior race 21:24
All-Africa Games Algiers, Algeria 9th 1500 m 4:15.12
7th 5000 m 15:56.30
2008 World Cross Country Championships Edinburgh, Great Britain 43rd Senior race 27:31
Representing Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden
2014 European Championships Zürich, Switzerland 1st 5000 m 15:31.39
European Cross Country Championships Samokov, Bulgaria 3rdSenior race28:52
2016 European Championships Amsterdam, Netherlands 2nd 5000 m 15:20.54
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 6th 1500 m 4:12.59
2017 European Indoor Championships Belgrade, Serbia 4th 1500 m 4:07.90
World Championships London, United Kingdom 9th 1500 m 4:04.76
European Cross Country Championships Šamorín, Slovakia 2ndSenior race27:03
2018 World Indoor Championship Birmingham, United Kingdom 10th 1500 m 4:23.05
12th 3000 m 9:05.94
European Championships Berlin, Germany DSQ 10,000 m 32:19.34
2021 European Indoor Championships Toruń, Poland 4th 3000 m 8:48.78
Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 18th 10,000 m 32:10.49
2022 World Indoor Championships Belgrade, Serbia 17th 3000 m 8:58.68

Personal bests

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gelete Burka</span> Ethiopian runner

Gelete Burka Bati is an Ethiopian middle-distance and long-distance runner. She was born in Kofele in the Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region, the same district as double Olympic champion Haile Gebrselassie.

Olga Nikolayevna Yegorova is a Russian distance runner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marta Domínguez</span>

Marta Domínguez Azpeleta is a Spanish former runner and politician. She competes mainly in the steeplechase. She has represented Spain four times at the Olympics and has competed at the World Championships on six occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hailu Mekonnen</span> Ethiopian long-distance runner

Hailu Mekonnen is an Ethiopian runner, who specializes in the 5000 metres and cross-country running.

Nebiat Habtemariam Measho is an Eritrean long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. She was the first woman to represent Eritrea at the Olympics. Earlier in her career, she ran the 5000 metres and cross-country running. She is a three-time participant at the Summer Olympics. She has a marathon best of 2:32:04 hours set at the 2008 Hamburg Marathon, where she was seventh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irina Mikitenko</span> German long-distance runner

Irina Mikitenko, néeVolynskaya, is a retired German long-distance runner who competed in marathons. She won the Berlin Marathon in 2008 and is a two-time winner of the London Marathon. She has competed at the Summer Olympics on four occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genzebe Dibaba</span> Ethiopian middle and long-distance runner

Genzebe Dibaba Keneni is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. A 1500 metres 2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist, she won a gold medal in this event and a bronze in the 5000 metres at the 2015 World Championships. Genzebe is the current world record holder for the indoor events of the one mile, 3000m and 5000m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teklemariam Medhin</span> Eritrean long-distance runner

Teklemariam Medhin Weldeslassie is an Eritrean long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres. He represented his country at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Tsegay</span> Eritrean long-distance runner

Samuel Tsegay Tesfamriam is an Eritrean long-distance runner running for the Swedish track club Hälle IF and currently going through the process of acquiring Swedish citizenship, who specializes in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres. He was born in Eritrea. As a junior, he competed in the junior races at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, finishing seventeenth in 2005, eighth in 2006 and eighth in 2007. He finished fourth in the 10,000 metres at the 2006 World Junior Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abeba Aregawi</span> Ethiopian-born middle-distance runner

Abeba Aregawi Gebretsadik is an Ethiopian-Swedish retired middle-distance runner who specialised in the 1500 metres. She won the bronze medal in the 1500 m at the 2012 Summer Olympics and a gold medal at the World Championships in 2013. She represented both Ethiopia and Sweden internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brett Robinson (runner)</span> Australian runner

Brett Robinson is an Australian track and field athlete specializing in the 5000 metres who has competed in the World Championships. Robinson qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He came 66th in the Men's marathon with a time of 2:24.04.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juliana Paula dos Santos</span> Brazilian middle-distance runner

Juliana Paula Gomes dos Santos is a Brazilian middle-distance runner. Her greatest achievement is a gold medal in the 1500 metres at the 2007 Pan American Games held in Rio de Janeiro. She is a three-time gold medallist at the South American Championships in Athletics, being the 1500 m champion in 2003 and 2006, as well as a 4×400 metres relay champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawit Seyaum</span> Ethiopian middle-distance runner

Dawit Seyaum Biratu is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner who specialises in the 1500 metres. She placed fourth at the 2015 World Championships and won the silver medal at the 2016 World Indoor Championships. Dawit took a bronze in the 5000 metres at the 2022 World Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Krumins</span> Dutch middle- and long-distance runner

Susan Krumins is a Dutch middle- and long-distance runner. She was the 5000 metres bronze medalist at the 2014 European Athletics Championships and also won a 3000 metres bronze at the 2014 IAAF Continental Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nazret Weldu</span> Eritrean long-distance runner

Nazret Weldu Gebrehiwet is a female long-distance runner from Eritrea. She competed in the 10,000 metres at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing finishing 24th. In 2019, she competed in the senior women's race at the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships held in Aarhus, Denmark. She finished in 27th place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Aprot Nawowuna</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Alice Aprot Nawowuna is a Kenyan long-distance runner. She was the gold medallist in the 10,000 metres at the 2015 African Games, where she also won the bronze medal in the 5000 metres. Aprot claimed gold and silver in the 10,000 m at the 2016 and 2018 African Championships in Athletics respectively. She earned the silver medal for the senior women's race at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lilian Kasait Rengeruk</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Lilian Kasait Rengeruk is a Kenyan female long-distance runner. She won the bronze medal in the women's senior race at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships. Rengeruk is the former 3000 metres World Under-18 champion and World U20 Championship silver medallist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stacey Chepkemboi Ndiwa</span> Kenyan long-distance runner

Stacey Chepkemboi Ndiwa is a Kenyan female long-distance runner who competes across cross country, track and road running disciplines. She was a gold medallist at the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games in the 1500 metres and was a team silver medallist at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in 2015, where she was fifth individually. She was also a bronze medallist in the 1500 m at the 2011 African Junior Athletics Championships.

The women's 3000 metres at the 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships took place on 1 March 2018.

Malin Charlotta Wästlund is a Swedish former long-distance runner. She represented Sweden twice at the IAAF World Women's Road Race Championships, placing fourth in 1987 with a Swedish national record of 49:21 minutes for the 15K run and placing fifth at the 1988 race. She also competed at the 1988 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, finished fifteenth in the women's senior race.

References

  1. 1 2 Meraf Bahta at World Athletics OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  2. ":: COJA 2007 :: Site Officiel des 9 èmes jeux africains - Alger du 11 AU 23 juillet 2007". 2007-09-28. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  3. Radio, Sveriges. "Meraf Bahta springer för medborgarskap och VM - P4 Väst" (in Swedish). Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  4. ":: friidrott.se :: - Nyheter & Artiklar". www.friidrott.se. Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  5. "Bahta överlägsen i Tjejmilen" (in Swedish). SVT Sport. 6 September 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  6. "IAAF: 1500 Metres Result | IAAF World Championships London 2017 | iaaf.org". iaaf.org. Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  7. "Friidrottsstjärnan Meraf Bahta i blåsväder – har missat tre dopningskontroller".
  8. Jacob Johannesson, Petter Landén (24 June 2019). "Meraf Bahta stängs av" (in Swedish). Expressen. Retrieved 13 July 2019.