Tamirat Tola never thought he could leave Paris without Olympics gold

Paris 2024 Olympic marathon champion Tamirat Tola has revealed the reason he spared Ethiopia the embarrassment of leaving the world stage without a gold medal.

Tamirat Tola won Ethiopia’s only gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with an outstanding performance in the men’s marathon. On a uniquely testing course and in grueling conditions, he won gold in an Olympic record time of 2:06:26 hours, a performance made all the more remarkable by the fact that he was called up to the team with just two weeks’ notice as a replacement for his injured compatriot Sisay Lemma.

“It was a very difficult course in Paris. But the only thought in my mind was that I couldn’t lose. Our country had never won a gold medal on the track and the marathon was our last chance, so I had to make the most of my talent”, said Tamirat Tola.

Tamirat Tola, who is the 2023 New York City Marathon champion, won Olympic bronze in the 10,000m in 2016, adding a second major marathon title to his collection after winning the 2022 World Championships.

In his quest to win gold, Tola said the challenging course in Paris gave him sleepless nights, but encouraging words from his coach kept him motivated and made him feel that anything was possible.

“It was the hardest from 27 to 30 kilometers, with the steep hill and the long descent. I didn’t think about the time, but when I finished I had an Olympic record, which was another reason to be proud”, said Tamirat Tola. “My coach had told me that it was a very difficult course, so when I arrived in Paris, I thought about how I could run the course best. I used this challenge as motivation and fortunately I overcame it”, added he.

“Doing my best for my country” is never an option for the 2017 World Championship marathon silver medalist.

“In athletics, challenges are part of the sport. And we always have to do our best for our country”, said also Tamirat Tola.