Habtom Amaniel
Personal information
Birth nameHabtom Amaniel Soquar
Born (1990-05-05) 5 May 1990 (age 34)
Sport
SportAthletics
Eventlong distance running
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)800m: 1:56.59 (Yverdon-les-Bains, 2023)
1500m: 3:51.15 (Decines, 2023)
3000m: 8:14.57 (Langenthal, 2023)
5000m:14:05.54 (Wien, 2023)
10000m: 31:08.96 (Lausanne, 2023)

Habtom Amaniel Soquar (born 5 May 1990) is a track and field athlete who competes as a long distance runner.[1]

Early life

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He grew up in Eritrea alongside 12 siblings. He would run 10km to get to school. He was forced into the Eritrean army and then imprisoned for an indefinite amount of time. After escaping, mostly on foot through a desert across Sudan and Libya, he settled in Vaud, Switzerland with refugee status.[2][3]

Career

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He started running regularly when a sports coach, Catherine Collomb, offered to make her Wednesday mornings available to create a running team for refugees in 2015.[4][3] In 2019, he won at the Tour du Pays de Vaud.[5] By 2021, he said he was running "100km a week".[4] He trains at the Volodalen Centre in Aigle.[6]

Personal life

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He has a wife and two children. To supplement his income he works as a housepainter.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Habtom Amaniel Soquar". World Athletics. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  2. ^ Camenzind Broomby, Jan (11 April 2024). "Competing in the Olympics without a country". Swiss.info. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Eritrean-born refugee athletes Luna Solomon and Habtom Amaniel: Sport lighting the path to peace". Olympics.com. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b Burgy, Vincent (16 July 2021). "Top athlete, house painter and father: the three lives of Habtom Amaniel". unhcr.org. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  5. ^ Schlosser, Pierre-Alain (24 June 2019). "Habtom Amaniel, a champion with worn shoes". 24heures.ch. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Habtom Amaniel". Olympics.com. Retrieved 14 April 2024.