15 JUN 2015 General News Cali, Colombia
Colombian athletics has come a long way since Jorge Perry, the nation’s first athletics Olympian, failed to finish the marathon at the 1932 Olympics.
Five years later, FECODATLE (the Colombian Athletics Federation) was founded and joined CONSUDATLE (the South American Federation). Soon after, in 1938, the Colombian capital of Bogota hosted the inaugural edition of the Bolivarian Games where the host nation’s athletes won four events.
Jaime Aparicio was one of the first Colombian athletes to truly make an impact at the continental level. The 400m hurdles specialist won gold medals at the 1947-48 Bolivarian Games, the 1950 and 1954 Central American and Caribbean Games, the 1951 Pan-American Games and the 1954 and 1956 South American Championships.
A decade or so later, Alvaro Mejia emerged as the nation’s leading distance runner. He too won numerous gold medals at various continental championships and finished 10th in the 10,000m at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. Three years later, he won the Boston Marathon.
Domingo Tibaduiza, the 1982 Berlin Marathon champion, was another talented Colombian distance runner. His national records in the 5000m and 10,000m set in 1978 have remained intact.
Race walking has also been a strong event for Colombia over the years. In 1987, Querubin Moreno became the country’s first top-eight finisher at the IAAF World Championships.
But despite the country’s early success in men’s endurance events, it was a female sprinter who won Colombia’s first global athletics medal. At the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Ximena Restrepo set a South American 400m record of 49.64 to take the bronze medal.
It would be another 19 years before Colombia won their first medal at the IAAF World Championships, though. And, just like waiting for a bus, two came along in quick succession.
At the 2011 edition in Daegu, Luis Fernando Lopez took the bronze medal in the men’s 20km race walk. Three days later, Caterine Ibarguen earned a medal of the same colour in the women’s triple jump.
Ibarguen has since established herself as not only Colombia’s greatest athlete, but also as one of the most dominant athletes in the world. Since taking the silver medal at the 2012 Olympics – Colombia’s best performance in the history of the Games – she hasn’t lost a single triple jump competition to date.
Included in that streak is her victory at the 2013 IAAF World Championships, becoming Colombia’s first global athletics champion.
With Ibarguen currently at her absolute peak, it seems fitting that the Colombian city of Cali will host this year’s edition of the IAAF World Youth Championships.
It will be the first time that Colombia has staged a global athletics event, but numerous Colombian cities have hosted various continental athletics championships.
Cali hosted the 1971 Pan-American Games, where Cuba’s Pedro Perez set a triple jump world record of 17.40m and Jamaica’s Don Quarrie equalled the 200m world record with 19.86.
The 1963 South American Championships was also held in Cali before returning there in 2005. The city also hosted the 1993 Central American and Caribbean Championships and the 1970 South American Junior Championships.
Beyond the IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015, Colombia will also host the 2017 Bolivarian Games in Santa Marta and then the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games in Barranquilla.
From the marathon runner who famously failed to finish to the triple jump who is near impossible to beat, Colombian athletics has had a truly colourful past. Its future looks even brighter.
Courtesy IAAF
Five years later, FECODATLE (the Colombian Athletics Federation) was founded and joined CONSUDATLE (the South American Federation). Soon after, in 1938, the Colombian capital of Bogota hosted the inaugural edition of the Bolivarian Games where the host nation’s athletes won four events.
Jaime Aparicio was one of the first Colombian athletes to truly make an impact at the continental level. The 400m hurdles specialist won gold medals at the 1947-48 Bolivarian Games, the 1950 and 1954 Central American and Caribbean Games, the 1951 Pan-American Games and the 1954 and 1956 South American Championships.
A decade or so later, Alvaro Mejia emerged as the nation’s leading distance runner. He too won numerous gold medals at various continental championships and finished 10th in the 10,000m at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. Three years later, he won the Boston Marathon.
Domingo Tibaduiza, the 1982 Berlin Marathon champion, was another talented Colombian distance runner. His national records in the 5000m and 10,000m set in 1978 have remained intact.
Race walking has also been a strong event for Colombia over the years. In 1987, Querubin Moreno became the country’s first top-eight finisher at the IAAF World Championships.
But despite the country’s early success in men’s endurance events, it was a female sprinter who won Colombia’s first global athletics medal. At the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Ximena Restrepo set a South American 400m record of 49.64 to take the bronze medal.
It would be another 19 years before Colombia won their first medal at the IAAF World Championships, though. And, just like waiting for a bus, two came along in quick succession.
At the 2011 edition in Daegu, Luis Fernando Lopez took the bronze medal in the men’s 20km race walk. Three days later, Caterine Ibarguen earned a medal of the same colour in the women’s triple jump.
Ibarguen has since established herself as not only Colombia’s greatest athlete, but also as one of the most dominant athletes in the world. Since taking the silver medal at the 2012 Olympics – Colombia’s best performance in the history of the Games – she hasn’t lost a single triple jump competition to date.
Included in that streak is her victory at the 2013 IAAF World Championships, becoming Colombia’s first global athletics champion.
With Ibarguen currently at her absolute peak, it seems fitting that the Colombian city of Cali will host this year’s edition of the IAAF World Youth Championships.
It will be the first time that Colombia has staged a global athletics event, but numerous Colombian cities have hosted various continental athletics championships.
Cali hosted the 1971 Pan-American Games, where Cuba’s Pedro Perez set a triple jump world record of 17.40m and Jamaica’s Don Quarrie equalled the 200m world record with 19.86.
The 1963 South American Championships was also held in Cali before returning there in 2005. The city also hosted the 1993 Central American and Caribbean Championships and the 1970 South American Junior Championships.
Beyond the IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015, Colombia will also host the 2017 Bolivarian Games in Santa Marta and then the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games in Barranquilla.
From the marathon runner who famously failed to finish to the triple jump who is near impossible to beat, Colombian athletics has had a truly colourful past. Its future looks even brighter.
Courtesy IAAF
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