Morocco at the Olympics
List of medalists
Table:
Medal

Name

Games

Sport

Event

Silver
Rhadi Ben Abdesselam
1960 Rome
Athletics
Men's marathon

Gold
Nawal El Moutawakel
1984 Los Angeles
Athletics
Women's 400 metre hurdles

Gold
Saïd Aouita
1984 Los Angeles
Athletics
Men's 5,000 metres

Gold
Brahim Boutayeb
1988 Seoul
Athletics
Men's 10,000 metres

Bronze
Saïd Aouita
1988 Seoul
Athletics
Men's 800 metres

Bronze
Abdelhak Achik
1988 Seoul
Boxing
Men's featherweight

Gold
Khalid Skah
1992 Barcelona
Athletics
Men's 10,000 metres

Silver
Rachid El Basir
1992 Barcelona
Athletics
Men's 1,500 metres

Bronze
Mohammed Achik
1992 Barcelona
Boxing
Men's bantamweight

Bronze
Salah Hissou
1996 Atlanta
Athletics
Men's 10,000 metres

Bronze
Khalid Boulami
1996 Atlanta
Athletics
Men's 5,000 metres

Silver
Hicham El Guerrouj
2000 Sydney
Athletics
Men's 1,500 metres

Bronze
Ali Ezzine
2000 Sydney
Athletics
Men's 3,000 metre steeplechase

Bronze
Nezha Bidouane
2000 Sydney
Athletics
Women's 400 metre hurdles

Bronze
Brahim Lahlafi
2000 Sydney
Athletics
Men's 5,000 metres

Bronze
Tahar Tamsamani
2000 Sydney
Boxing
Men's featherweight

Gold
Hicham El Guerrouj
2004 Athens
Athletics
Men's 1,500 metres

Gold
Hicham El Guerrouj
2004 Athens
Athletics
Men's 5,000 metres

Silver
Hasna Benhassi
2004 Athens
Athletics
Women's 800 metres

Silver
Jaouad Gharib
2008 Beijing
Athletics
Men's marathon

Considering the table as well as the passages provided at the end.

Respond to the question below: From all the athletes who won a medal at the 1984 games , who was born in April ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}.

Rhadi Ben Abdesselam ( Arabic : راضي بن عبد السلام ; 28 February 1929 - 4 October 2000 ) was a Moroccan long-distance runner . He competed at the 1960 Olympics in the marathon and 10,000 meters events . He also ran in the International Cross Country Championships in 1958-1963 . In March 1960 , he and Belgium 's Gaston Roelants quickly broke away from the field , and he became the first African athlete to win the individual gold medal in that event , defeating Roelants by 40 yards . On September 8 , 1960 , he finished in 14th place in the finals-only 10,000 meters , in 29:32.0 , almost a minute behind the winner , the Soviet Union 's Pyotr Bolotnikov , who broke the Olympic record for the event . Just two days later , the blazing pace through the first 20 kilometers in the marathon helped result in an eventual world record for the barefoot winner , Ethiopia 's Abebe Bikila . After they dispatched the rest of the field by 25 kilometers , the leading pair stayed stride-for-stride until the final 500 meters , with Ben Abdesselam finishing a close second in 2:15:41.6 , 25.4 seconds behind Abebe 's new world record . Abebe 's mark trimmed 8/10ths of a second off Sergei Popov 's world record of 2:15:17.0 , set in 1958 . Ironically , Abebe had been advised to watch out for Ben Abdesselam , but the latter wore his 10,000 meter competition number , so Abebe was unaware of the identity of his pursuer . Popov finished 5th in Rome , two minutes behind New Zealand 's Barry Magee , who took the bronze medal .
The 1960 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( Italian : Giochi della XVII Olimpiade ) , was an international multi-sport event that was held from August 25 to September 11 , 1960 , in Rome , Italy . The city of Rome had previously been awarded the administration of the 1908 Summer Olympics , but following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1906 , Rome had no choice but to decline and pass the honour to London . The Soviet Union won the most gold and overall medals .
At the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome , 34 events in athletics were contested , 24 by men and 10 by women . There were a total number of 1016 participating athletes from 73 countries .
These are the official results of the men 's marathon at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome , Italy , held on Saturday September 10 , 1960 . There were a total number of 69 participants from 35 nations . Abebe Bikila ran the race barefoot , finished in record time and became the first sub-Saharan African to win an Olympic gold medal .
Nawal El Moutawakel ( Amazigh : Nawal Lmutawakkil ; Arabic : نوال المتوكل ; born on April 15 , 1962 in Casablanca ) is a Moroccan former hurdler , who won the inaugural women 's 400 metres hurdles event at the 1984 Summer Olympics , and was the inaugural female , Muslim , born in Africa , Moroccan to become an Olympic medalist ( gold ) . In 2007 , El Moutawakel was named the Minister of Sports in the upcoming cabinet of Morocco .
The 1984 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad , was an international multi-sport event that was held from July 28 to August 12 , 1984 , in Los Angeles , California , United States ( and other venues around the United States ) . This was the second time that Los Angeles had hosted the Games , the first being in 1932 . California was the home state of then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan , who officially opened the Games . The logo for the 1984 Games , branded Stars in Motion , featured red , white and blue stars arranged horizontally and struck through with alternating streaks . The official mascot of the Games was Sam the Olympic Eagle . These were the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Juan Antonio Samaranch . The 1984 Games were boycotted by a total of fourteen Eastern Bloc countries , including the Soviet Union and East Germany , in response to the American-led boycott of the previous 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ; Romania was the only Eastern Bloc nation that opted to attend the Games . Iran and Libya also chose to boycott the Games for unrelated reasons . Despite the field being depleted in certain sports due to the boycott , 140 National Olympic Committees took part , which was a record at the time . The United States won the most gold and overall medals , followed by Romania and West Germany . The 1984 Summer Olympics are widely considered to be the most financially successful modern Olympics and served as an example of how to run the model Olympic Games . As a result of low construction costs , coupled with a reliance on private corporate funding , the 1984 Olympic Games generated a profit of more than $ 250 million .
At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles , 41 events in athletics were contested . There were a total number of 1273 participating athletes from 124 countries . Womens marathon and womens 3000 meters were contested for the first time at these Games .
The Women 's 400 metres Hurdles at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles , California ( USA ) had an entrylist of 26 competitors , with four qualifying heats ( 26 runners ) and two semifinals ( 16 ) before the final ( 8 ) took place on August 8 , 1984 . The women 's event was for the first time contested at the Olympic Games .
Saïd Aouita ( Arabic : سعيد عويطة ; born November 2 , 1959 ) is a former Moroccan track and field athlete . He won the 5000 meters at the 1984 Summer Olympics and the 1987 World Championships in Athletics , as well as the 3000 meters at the 1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships . He is a former world record holder over 1500 metres ( 3:29.46 ) , 2000 m ( 4:50.80 ) , 3000 m ( 7:29.45 ) , and twice at 5000 m ( 13:00.40 and 12:58.39 ) . Aouita was one of the first globally known Arab sportspeople . He lives in Orlando , Florida .
These are the official results of the Men 's 5000 metres event at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles , California .
Moulay Brahim Boutayeb ( Arabic : مولاي ابراهيم بوطيب ; born 15 August 1967 in Khemisset ) is a retired Moroccan track and field athlete . He was the winner of the 10,000 m race at the 1988 Summer Olympics .
The 1988 Summer Olympics ( Korean : 서울 하계 올림픽 ; RR : Seoul Hagye Ollimpik [ sʌ.ul ɦaɡje olːimpʰik ] ) , officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad , was an international multi-sport event celebrated from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul , South Korea . In the Seoul Games , 159 nations were represented by a total of 8,391 athletes : 6,197 men and 2,194 women . 237 events were held and 27,221 volunteers helped to prepare the Olympics . 11,331 media ( 4,978 written press and 6,353 broadcasters ) showed the Games all over the world . These were the last Olympic Games for the Soviet Union and East Germany , as both ceased to exist before the next Olympic Games . The Soviets utterly dominated the medal table , winning 55 gold and 132 total medals . No country came close to this result after 1988 . The games were boycotted by North Korea and its ally , Cuba . Ethiopia , Albania and the Seychelles did not respond to the invitations sent by the IOC . Nicaragua did not participate due to athletic and financial considerations . The participation of Madagascar had been expected , and their team was expected at the opening ceremony of 160 nations . However , the country withdrew because of financial reasons .
At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul a total number of 42 events in athletics were contested : 24 by men and 18 by women . There were a total number of 1617 participating athletes from 149 countries .
The men 's 10,000 metres at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul , South Korea had an entrylist of 52 competitors , with two qualifying heats ( 52 ) before the final ( 20 ) took place on Monday September 26 , 1988 . Through the halfway mark , Kipkemboi Kimeli was pushing the pace close to the world record , marked by Brahim Boutayeb . Only Moses Tanui and trailing off the back Salvatore Antibo managed to stay in contact . More than 60 metres back , Arturo Barrios led the chase pack . As Tanui came up behind Boutayeb to tighten the lead group of three , Boutayeb went around Kimeli . The two Kenyans ran together in chase for part of a lap then Tanui was unable to keep up with the accelerated pace . Kimeli managed to keep close to Boutayeb but ever so slightly was losing ground . As Tanui faded , Antibo accelerated to move himself into a stronger medal position . By 5 laps to go , Antibo closed down on Kimeli . The two were jockeying for the position , Antibo first sprinting past Kimeli , then Kimeli accelerating away from Antibo . Boutayeb entered the last lap with a 20-metre lead and ran the last lap checking behind him . Coming down the home stretch , realizing the world record was out of reach , he slowed the last 30 metres and celebrated , blowing kisses to the crowd .
The men 's 800 metres at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul , South Korea had an entrylist of 70 competitors , with nine qualifying heats ( 70 ) , four second-round races ( 32 ) and two semi-finals ( 16 ) , before the final ( 8 ) took off on Monday September 26 , 1988 .
Abdelhak Achik ( born March 11 , 1959 ) is a former Moroccan amateur boxer , who won the bronze medal in the men 's featherweight ( - 57 kg ) category at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul .
Boxing at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place in the Chamshil Students ' Gymnasium in Seoul between 17 September and 2 October . Twelve men 's individual boxing events were contested , attended by 432 athletes and 159 officials from 106 countries . Cuba boycotted the 1988 Olympics which impacted the competition . The events were also notable for a controversial decision in the light middleweight championship bout between Roy Jones Jr. and Park Si-Hun , when Roy Jones was denied gold despite being vastly superior , and also for a referee being attacked by South Korean boxing officials in the ring after the Jong-Il Byun and Aleksandar Khristov bout .
Khalid Skah ( Arabic : خالد سكاح ) ( born January 29 , 1967 ) is a Moroccan track and field athlete , winner of the 10,000 metres at the 1992 Summer Olympics . Born in Midelt , Morocco , Skah established himself first as a good cross country runner by winning the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in 1990 and 1991 .
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( Spanish : Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992 , Catalan : Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992 ) , officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad , was an international multi-sport event held in Barcelona , Spain from 25 July to 9 August 1992 . Beginning in 1994 , the International Olympic Committee decided to hold the Summer and Winter Olympics in alternating even-numbered years . The 1992 Summer Olympics was the last occasion for the Summer and Winter Olympics to be staged in the same year . This Olympiad was the first since the end of the Cold War , and was unaffected by boycotts for the first time since the 1972 Olympiad . The Unified Team topped the medal table , winning 45 gold and 112 overall medals .
At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona , 43 events in athletics were contested , 24 events by men and 19 by women . The competition ran from July 31 , 1992 , to August 9 , 1992 . Fourteen world record-holders ( eight men and six women ) were among the contenders . Thirty former Olympic champions competed , and a total number of 1725 athletes from 156 countries .
These are the official results of the men 's 10,000 metres event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona , Spain . There were a total number of 56 participating athletes . Khalid Skah from Morocco dueled with Richard Chelimo from Kenya during much of the race . It was a sprint finish over the last 150 meters , Skah pulled ahead and crossed the finish line 1.02 seconds in front of Chelimo .
Rachid El Basir ( Arabic : رشيد البصير ) born October 4 , 1968 ) is a Moroccan middle distance runner who won the silver medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics over 1500 metres . This achievement came as a great surprise as an El Basir had not qualified for the final at the World Championships the previous year and was generally considered as an outsider . The final in Barcelona was run at an extremely slow pace , which helped El Basir as he could make good use of his natural speed on the last 200m .
These are the official results of the men 's 1500 metres event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona , Spain . There were a total number of 51 participating athletes , with four qualifying heats . Most of the eyes were on reigning world champion Noureddine Morceli , who hovered in the middle of the pack , while Joseph Chesire led most of the race , marked by Jens-Peter Herold through a slow race of 62.25 and 64.58 for the first two laps , setting up a fast finish . A step behind the leaders , as the pace quickened going into the final lap , home team favorite Fermín Cacho who had been strategically watching the field , pushed the final backstretch to move up on Chesire . Passing on the inside with just over 200 to go , Cacho accelerated and was surprised Chesire was not able to mount a challenge . Charging out into a big lead around the turn , Cacho kept looking back for the next challenger , but there was none , Cacho and the Spanish fans celebrated . Even with his celebrating and looking back , Cacho 's last lap was about 50.5 . Mohamed Suleiman edged past a fading Chesire and a final sprint around the outside from eighth place netted Rachid El Basir the silver . Suleiman earned the first Olympic medal for Qatar .
Mohamed Abdelhak Achik ( born February 1 , 1965 ) is a former Moroccan amateur boxer who won a bronze medal in the men 's bantamweight ( 54 kg ) category at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona .
Boxing at the 1992 Summer Olympics took place in the old Pavelló Club Joventut Badalona in Barcelona . The boxing schedule began on 26 July and ended on 9 August . Twelve boxing events ( all men 's individual ) were contested , with the participation of 336 athletes from 78 countries .
Salah Hissou ( Arabic : صلاح حيسو ) ( born January 16 , 1972 in Ait Taghia , Kasba Tadla ) is a long-distance runner from Morocco , who won the gold medal over 5000 metres at the 1999 World Championships in Athletics in Seville . With 26:38.08 he also set a world record over 10,000 metres in Brussels in 1996 and won a bronze medal over 10,000 m at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta .
The 1996 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad , commonly known as Atlanta 1996 , and also referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games , were an international multi-sport event that was held from July 19 to August 4 , 1996 , in Atlanta , Georgia , U.S . These Games , which were the fourth Summer Olympics to be hosted by the United States , marked the centennial of the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens - the inaugural edition of the modern Olympic Games . They were also the first since 1924 to be held in a different year from a Winter Olympics , under a new IOC practice implemented in 1994 to hold the Summer and Winter Games in alternating , even-numbered years . More than 10,000 athletes from 197 National Olympic Committees competed in 26 sports , including the Olympic debuts of beach volleyball , mountain biking , and softball , as well as the new disciplines of lightweight rowing and women 's football ( soccer ) . 24 countries made their Summer Olympic debut in Atlanta , including eleven former Soviet republics participating for the first time as independent nations . The hosting United States led the medal count with a total of 101 medals , and the most gold ( 44 ) and silver ( 32 ) medals out of all countries . The U.S. topped the medal count for the first time since 1984 , and for the first time since 1968 in a non-boycotted Summer Olympics . Notable performances during competition included those of Andre Agassi - who became the first men 's singles tennis player to combine a career Grand Slam with an Olympic gold medal , Donovan Bailey - who set a new world record of 9.84 for the men 's 100 meters , and Lilia Podkopayeva - who became the second gymnast to win an individual event gold after winning the all-round title in the same Olympics . The festivities were marred by violence on July 27 , when Eric Rudolph detonated pipe bombs at Centennial Olympic Park - a downtown park that was built to serve as a public focal point for the Games ' festivities , killing 1 and injuring 111 . In 2003 , Rudolph confessed to the bombing and a series of related attacks on abortion centers and a gay bar , and was sentenced to life in prison . He claimed that the bombing was meant to protest the U.S. government 's sanctioning of abortion on demand . The Games turned a profit , helped by record revenue from sponsorship deals and broadcast rights , and reliance on private funding ( as opposed to the extensive public funding used on later Olympics ) , among other factors .
At the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta , 44 events in athletics were contested . There were a total number of 2053 participating athletes from 191 countries .
These are the official results of the men 's 10,000 metres at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta , Georgia . The final was held on July 29 , 1996 .
Khalid Boulami ( Arabic : خالد بولامي ; born 7 August 1969 ) is a former long-distance runner from Morocco . Most notably he won a bronze medal in the 5000 metres event at the 1996 Summer Olympics . He is the older brother of Brahim Boulami .
These are the official results of the men 's 5000 metres at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta , Georgia . The event took place between 31 July and 3 August .
Hicham El Guerrouj ( Arabic : هشام الݣروج , Hishāmu l-Karrūj ; Berber : Hicam El Gerruj , ⵀⵉⵛⴰⵎ ⴻⵍ ⴳⴻⵔⵔⵓⵊ ; born 14 September 1974 ) is a retired Moroccan middle-distance runner . El Guerrouj is the current world record holder of the outdoor 1500 meters , mile , and 2000 meters events . He also held indoor world records for the mile and 1500 meters until 2019 , and is the only man since Paavo Nurmi to earn a gold medal in both the 1500 metres and 5000 metres at the same Olympic Games . El Guerrouj holds 7 of the fastest 10 times ever run in the 1500 meters and in the mile . He is considered by many to be the greatest middle-distance runner of all time . In November 2014 , he was inducted into the International Association of Athletics Federations ( IAAF ) Hall of Fame .
The 2000 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and commonly known as Sydney 2000 or the Millennium Olympic Games/Games of the New Millennium , was an international multi-sport event held between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney , New South Wales , Australia . It was the second time the Summer Olympics were held in Australia , and also the Southern Hemisphere , the first being in Melbourne , Victoria , in 1956 .
At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney , 46 events in athletics were contested , 24 for men and 22 for women . There were a total number of 2134 participating athletes from 193 countries .
The 1500 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics programme were held at Stadium Australia on Monday 25 September , Wednesday 27 September , and Friday 29 September 2000 . The top six runners in each of the initial three heats automatically qualified for the semifinals . The next six fastest runners from across the heats also qualified . Those 24 runners competed in 2 heats in the semifinals , with the top five runners from each heat qualifying for the finals and the next two fastest runner from the semifinals also qualified . World record holder Hicham El Guerrouj was the clear favorite coming into the race , but he had a reputation for setting records in races set up by a pacemaker . His countryman Youssef Baba provided the service , sacrificing his own ambition in the final , he took the pace out in 54.14 , the two Moroccan teammates leading the two Kenyan challengers Noah Ngeny and Bernard Lagat , separating from the rest of the field . On the second lap the pace lagged to 60.63 , letting the other runners back in . Baba disappeared quickly leaving El Guerrouj to burn off the Kenyans taking the third lap in 56.90 . But the Kenyans remained close with Mehdi Baala a step behind . Through the final turn Ngeny executed a textbook kick , moving onto El Guerrouj 's shoulder , sliding into the second lane and sprinting past him for the gold . Lagat moved into lane 3 with hopes of passing as well but ran out of real estate to take the bronze .
Ali Ezzine ( Arabic : علي الزين ; born September 3 , 1978 in Ain Taoujdate , Morocco ) is a Moroccan athlete who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase . He won the bronze medal in this event at the 2000 Summer Olympics held in Sydney , Australia . He first came to prominence with a bronze medal in the steeplechase at the 1996 World Junior Championships in Athletics , also held in Sydney . His first senior medal came at the 1998 IAAF World Cross Country Championships , where his twelfth-place finish helped the Moroccan men to the team silver medal . He had his first individual global success at the World Championships in Athletics . At the 1999 World Championships he won the bronze medal in the men 's steeplechase . He also won the bronze at the 1999 IAAF Grand Prix Final . Two years later , after his Olympic medal performance , he attended the 2001 World Championships and improved to the silver medal . He returned to the Olympic stage at the 2004 Athens Olympics , but he did not reach the podium on that occasion , finishing in eighth in the final . In 1999 he achieved the fastest ever time in the steeplechase for a non-Kenyan athlete ( 8:03.57 ) . This mark has since been surpassed by several other non-Kenyans .
The Men 's 3000 metres Steeplechase at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics programme were held at Stadium Australia on Wednesday 27 September and Friday 29 September 2000 . The top four runners in each of the initial three heats automatically qualified for the final . The next three fastest runners from across the heats also qualified . Over the previous couple of months , the two Moroccan runners Ali Ezzine and Brahim Boulami had proven they could run with the Kenyans in sub-8:04 races . That still was not in the range of the capability of World Record holder Bernard Barmasai or previous record holder Wilson Boit Kipketer . But the Kenyans did not assert the same dominance they had displayed in the previous three Olympics . Less than 100 metres into the race , Damian Kallabis fell over the first barrier . A loud sound went off in the stadium as if the race had been recalled , but none of the runners stopped and Kallabis rushed to catch up with the back of the pack . The third Kenyan was Reuben Kosgei , who had won the Athletics Kenya World Championship Trials , not world # 2 Moses Kiptanui . The Kenyan trio , took their position at the point of the pack , but Ezzine made it clear he was going to run with them , taking the lead a lap and a half into the race . The Kenyans immediately stopped fighting to keep the lead , Luis Miguel Martin , Ezzine and Simon Vroemen took their turns at the front . After another lap and a half , Kosgei and Kipketer had had enough and moved back into the lead , taking Günther Weidlinger in their move to the front , with Barmasai , Boulami and Eliseo Martin at the back of the group of leaders .
Nezha Bidouane ( Arabic : نزهة بدوان ; born 18 September 1969 in Rabat ) is a retired Moroccan track and field hurdler who specialised in the 400 metres hurdles . A two-time World champion , she won the 400 m hurdles gold medal at the 1997 World Championships in Athens and the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton . In 1999 , she won the silver medal at the World Championships in an African record time of 52.90 seconds . In 2000 , she won the bronze medal at the Olympic Games . Bidouane is married to Abdelaziz Sahere , and oversees the annual Women 's Race to Victory 8K road race in Rabat .
The Women 's 400 metre Hurdles at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics programme were held at Stadium Australia on Sunday 24 September , Monday 25 September and Wednesday 27 September 2000 . The top two runners in each of the initial five heats automatically qualified for the semifinals . The next six fastest runners from across the heats also qualified . Those 16 runners competed in 2 heats in the semifinals , with the top three runners from each heat qualifying for the finals . The next two fastest runners from across the heats also qualified .
Brahim Lahlafi ( Arabic : إبراهيم لحلافي ) ( born 15 April 1968 , in Fes ) is a retired long-distance runner who represented Morocco during his active career . He acquired French citizenship on 6 April 2002 , but represented Morocco again from 15 March 2007 . His greatest achievement was the Olympic bronze medal in 2000 . This was his first medal at a major international event , having barely missed the podium at the 1995 World Cross Country Championships ( 5th place ) and twice in 5000 metres at the World Championships ; 1995 ( 5th ) and 1999 ( fourth ) . He did win a bronze medal in 3000 metres at the 1998 African Championships . He has the fastest 5000m time for a runner from neither Kenya nor Ethiopia ( 12:49.28 ) . In 1996 he was the winner of the inaugural Belgrade Race Through History competition . He beat Paul Tergat to the finish line of the 6 km race and remains the course record holder of the competition .
The Men 's 5000 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics programme was held at Stadium Australia on Wednesday 27 September , and Saturday 30 September 2000 . The top six runners in each of the initial two heats automatically qualified for the final . The next three fastest runners from across the heats also qualified . There were a total number of 38 participating athletes .
Tahar Tamsamani ( born 10 September 1980 ) is a retired Moroccan boxer . He competed at the 2000 , 2004 and 2008 Olympics and won a bronze medal in 2000 . In 2000 he won a bronze medal in the featherweight ( 57 kg ) division , after falling in the semifinals to Kazakhstan 's Bekzat Sattarkhanov . At the 2004 Summer Olympics he was defeated in the first bout of the lightweight ( 60 kg ) division by Uganda 's Sam Rukundo . He qualified for the Athens Games by winning the gold medal at the 1st AIBA African 2004 Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Casablanca , Morocco . In the final of the event he defeated Tunisia 's Taoufik Chouba . At the 2008 Olympic qualifier he lost to Hamza Kramou but won the third-place bout and therefore qualified for his third Olympics . In Beijing he lost to Domenico Valentino in the first bout .
The boxing competition at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney , Australia was held at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour . The event was only open to men and bouts were contested over four rounds of two minutes each . Five judges scored the fighters in real time and the boxer with the most points at the end was the winner . Like other Olympic combat sports , two bronze medals are awarded ; in the case of boxing , both losing semi-finalists receive a bronze medal , with no further play-off . As a result , the quarter-final essentially equates to a bronze medal match , a semi-final to a silver medal match , and the final to a gold medal match . 48 medals are therefore available , half of which are bronze medals .
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( Greek : Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004 , Therinoí Olympiakoí Agónes 2004 ) , officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad and commonly known as Athens 2004 , was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens , Greece , from 13 to 29 August 2004 with the motto Welcome Home . The Games saw 10,625 athletes compete , some 600 more than expected , accompanied by 5,501 team officials from 201 countries . There were 301 medal events in 28 different sports . Athens 2004 marked the first time since the 1996 Summer Olympics that all countries with a National Olympic Committee were in attendance . 2004 also marked the return of the Olympic Games to the city where they began . Having previously hosted the Olympics in 1896 , Athens became one of only four cities to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games on two separate occasions at the time ( together with Paris , London , and Los Angeles ) . A new medal obverse was introduced at these Games , replacing the design by Giuseppe Cassioli that had been used since the 1928 Games . This rectified the long lasting mistake of using a depiction of the Roman Colosseum rather than a Greek venue . The new design features the Panathenaic Stadium . The 2004 Summer Games were hailed as unforgettable , dream games by IOC President Jacques Rogge , and left Athens with a significantly improved infrastructure , including a new airport , ring road , and subway system . There have been arguments ( mostly in popular media ) regarding the cost of the 2004 Athens Summer Games and their possible contribution to the 2010-2018 Greek government-debt crisis , however , there is little or no evidence for such a correlation . The 2004 Olympics were generally deemed to be a success , with the rising standard of competition amongst nations across the world .
At the 2004 Summer Olympics , the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29 , except for the marathons ( run from Marathonas to the Kallimarmaro Stadium ) , the race walks ( on the streets of Athens ) , and the shot put ( held at the Ancient Olympia Stadium ) . A total of 46 events were contested , of which 24 by male and 22 by female athletes .
The men 's 1500 metres at the 2004 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 20 to 24 . The first round comprised three heats with the first five gaining a direct qualification and then the next nine fastest across all heats progressing to the semifinals . The top five runners in each of the two semifinal heats moved on directly to the final , and they were immediately joined by the next two fastest from any of the semifinals . World record holder Hicham El Guerrouj came into the race with a target on his back . Though El Guerrouj had won four straight World Championships , he had failed to win the previous Olympics , falling with a lap to go in his breakthrough year of 1996 and being beaten to the line in 2000 by the same Noah Ngeny who had chased El Guerrouj to the mile world record a year earlier . Ngeny was not back but bronze medalist Bernard Lagat was , seeking to finally beat El Guerrouj . Lagat had the potential assistance of two Kenyan teammates , but El Guerrouj also had his teammate Adil Kaouch make the final and Kaouch had previously sacrificed himself by acting as a pacesetter leading El Guerrouj to the 1999 and 2001 world titles . Because of the assistance , El Guerrouj 's ability in a strategic race was suspect . Off the line , the three Kenyan runners took the lead and formed a wall keeping the field behind as they slowed the pace ; El Guerrouj could not run away from the start and the race would be strategic . With 500 metres to go , El Guerrouj worked his way to the front , with a line of kickers including Lagat , Reyes Estevez , Ivan Heshko and the unknown Mulugeta Wendimu lined up behind him . Down the backstretch , Lagat stayed a step behind El Guerrouj as other speedsters jockeyed for position and then fell back . From deep in the pack ( dead last with less than 500 metres to go ) , Rui Silva was on the outside passing the others .
The men 's 5,000 metres at the 2004 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium on August 25 and 28 . The final witnessed an epic clash between two track greats from different generations : in his final competitive international race , 1500m champion and track legend Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco and 10,000 meter Olympic champion , world record holder at the distance and rising star 21-year-old Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia . The race had a preview at the World Championships a year earlier . There the medalists were barely separated , but the young World Junior record holder Eliud Kipchoge upset the stars by taking gold after El Guerrouj had tried to break away on the final lap . Here Bekele took an early lead , but instead chose not to push the pace . That duty fell onto Kipchoge , who had watched from behind the year before . Here , El Guerrouj spent most of the race watching from several places behind the lead . As the last lap began , El Guerrouj moved toward the front . Bekele challenged Kipchoge with 200 metres to go . It was a shoulder to shoulder all out sprint battle as Kipchoge refused to let Bekele by , but he could n't hold him off . Bekele broke out at a lead of several metres . El Guerrouj first ran down Kipchoge , then overhauled the Ethiopian in the final strides to win by just two tenths of a second .
Hasna Benhassi ( Arabic : حسنة بنحسي ; born 1 June 1978 ) is a retired Moroccan middle-distance runner . She competed at the 2000 , 2004 and 2008 Olympics and won two medals in the 800 m event , in 2004 and 2008 . At the world championships she won a gold medal over 1500 m indoors in 2001 and silver medals over 800 m outdoors in 2005 and 2007 . In 2004 , she was named Sportsperson of the Year in Morocco after a survey conducted by the Moroccan Radio among 43 press institutions . Benhassi is married to the fellow Olympic middle-distance runner Mouhssin Chehibi ; they have a daughter named Farah .
The women 's 800 metres at the 2004 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 20 to 23 . The first round had split a full roster of runners into six heats with the first three gaining a direct qualification and then the next six fastest across all heats advancing to the semifinals . The top two runners in each of the three semifinal heats moved on directly to the final , and they were immediately joined by the next two fastest from any of the semifinals . The final started with a fast first 200 metres , but Kelly Holmes and Maria de Lurdes Mutola were last at this stage . As the pace slowed , Mutola and Holmes moved forward through the field . The time at 400 metres was 56.37 seconds , with American Jearl Miles Clark leading . They entered the finishing straight with Mutola taking the lead , before Holmes took the lead and held off Mutola to take gold . Hasna Benhassi and Jolanda Čeplak finished strongly , both with a time of 1:56.43s , Benhassi winning silver in a photo finish . Mutola was forced into fourth place . Holmes ' face lit up as she crossed the line , but then , unsure of the result , she anxiously waited for the times to come up . Holmes had only decided to enter the 800 metres at the last moment , and went on to also win gold in her preferred event , the 1500 m. This feat made her one of the UK 's most successful ever athletes ; the Olympic 800-1500 metres double was never accomplished by any of their great 1980s middle distance trio , Sebastian Coe , Steve Ovett or Steve Cram .
Jaouad Gharib ( Arabic : جواد غريب , born 22 May 1972 in Khenifra ) is a Moroccan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon . Winner of the 2003 World Championships and 2005 World Championships over the distance , he is also notable because he only began running seriously at the age of twenty-two . His 2005 retention made him one of only two successive world championship marathon champions , after Abel Antón . He was the silver medallist in the marathon at the 2008 Summer Olympics .
The 2008 Summer Olympics , officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad ( Chinese : 第二十九届夏季奥林匹克运动会 ; pinyin : Dì Èrshíjiǔ Jiè Xiàjì Àolínpǐkè Yùndònghuì ) and commonly known as Beijing 2008 , was an international multi-sport event that was held from 8 to 24 August 2008 in Beijing , China . [ b ] A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees ( NOCs ) competed in 28 sports and 302 events ( one event more than those scheduled for the 2004 Summer Olympics ) . This was the first time that China had hosted the Summer Olympics , but the third time that the Games had been held in East Asia , following the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo , Japan , and the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics . These were the second summer Olympic Games staged in a Communist country , after the Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics and the third in a developing country after the Mexico City 1968 Summer Olympics and the 1980 Summer Olympics in the Soviet Union and the first overall Olympics to be hosted by a Communist state since the former Yugoslavia hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo . Beijing was awarded the 2008 Games over four competitors on 13 July 2001 , having won a majority of votes from members of the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) after two rounds of voting . The Government of the People 's Republic of China promoted the Games and invested heavily in new facilities and transport systems . A total of 37 venues were used to host the events , including twelve constructed specifically for the 2008 Olympics . The equestrian events were held in Hong Kong , making this the third Olympics for which the events were held under the jurisdiction of two different NOCs . [ c ] The sailing events were contested in Qingdao , while the football events took place across several different cities . The official logo for the 2008 Games , titled Dancing Beijing , featured a stylised calligraphic character jīng ( 京 , means capital ) in reference to the host city . The Beijing Olympics was watched by 3,500,000,000 people worldwide and featured the longest distance for an Olympic Torch relay . The event sets numerous world and Olympics records in the history of sports , and is also the most expensive Summer Olympics of all time and second-most expensive overall , after the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi .
Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics were held during the last ten days of the games , from August 15 to August 24 , 2008 , at the Beijing National Stadium . The Olympic sport of athletics is split into four distinct sets of events : track and field events , road running events , and racewalking events . Both men and women had very similar schedules of events . Men competed in 24 events and women in 23 , as their schedule lacked the 50 km race walk . In addition , both the men 's 110 m hurdles and decathlon are reflected in the women 's schedule by the 100 m hurdles and heptathlon , respectively . The Olympic record was broken in 17 returning events . In five events , including the inaugural women 's 3000 m steeplechase , the world record was broken . The athletics was , alongside the Olympic cycling events , one of the few large sports programmes in which the host nation fared comparatively poorly in terms of medals won . Despite a haul of 100 medals at the games as a whole , Chinese athletes took home two bronze medals from the athletics events . The country 's foremost athlete Liu Xiang , the 2004 Olympic champion in the 110 metres hurdles , had to withdraw after a false start due to injury . In the years following the events , results were significantly affected by doping findings ; 19 of the 47 events have had amendments to their medal rankings as a result of testing and retesting of samples taken at or before the Games . Multiple medalists have been sanctioned for doping violations .
The men 's marathon at the 2008 Summer Olympics took place on 24 August at 7:30am in Beijing , ending in the Beijing National Stadium . The winner of the event was Samuel Wanjiru of Kenya , who set an Olympic record in the time of two hours , six minutes , and 32 seconds . The qualifying standards were 2:15:00 ( A standard ) and 2:18:00 ( B standard ) .