Wolde, Mamo

▪ 2003

Degaga Wolde 

      Ethiopian long-distance runner (b. June 12, 1932, Dirre Jille, Eth.—d. May 26, 2002, Addis Ababa, Eth.), became a national hero at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, where he unexpectedly captured the gold medal in the marathon and the silver in the 10,000 m. Wolde, who was participating in his third Olympics, won the marathon by more than two minutes in a time of 2 hr 20 min 26.4 sec. In the Munich, Ger., Games four years later, he won the bronze in the marathon at the record age of 40. Wolde, a former army sergeant, was arrested in 1993 on charges that in 1978 he had participated in the killing of a 15-year-old boy. He vehemently proclaimed his innocence, and his case drew worldwide support from fellow Olympians and from the International Olympic Committee. Wolde finally was tried and convicted in early 2002, sentenced to six years, and released because he had already been in prison for nine years.

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