We changed the title as the original title was grammatically incorrect and not very descriptive as it didn't include Aregawi's name. It was initially titled, "Swedish Women who ran 3:56 Runs HM in 1:06.36 After 9 Year Retirement"
Abeba Aregawi developed into the world's best 1,500-meter runner, winning both indoor and outdoor World Championships gold medals. She also won an outdoor European Championships silver medal and an indoor European Championships gold medal in Gothenburg in 2013. But the successes were also marred by scandals. SportExpressen had a series of revelations that gave a new picture of Sweden's new running queen. She had registered as an expatriate the day before she was ready to compete for Sweden, she had lied about her relationship with her Swedish husband Henok Weldegebriel and she had claimed in questioning by the Tax Agency that she had "never lived in Sweden" . In 2016, the blow came that she never recovered from: Aregawi tested positive for the banned substance meldonium and was investigated for violating anti-doping rules. It all ended with her being acquitted , after the anti-doping agency Wada issued new directives on how cases with meldonium should be handled. But Abeba Aregawi never returned to the running track.
Aregawi last competed in 2015. Since then, she has remained in Ethiopia and reports about her have been sparse, to say the least. Now, however, it is clear that she has retired. According to SportExpressen's information, the 28-year-old has informed the federation that she has decided to end her career and this has been confirmed by national team captain Karin Torneklint. – She may decide she wants to make a comeback in the future, but it's true that she has put her investment aside, says Torneklint. – We have now removed her from our "active list" for anti-doping.
Abeba Aregawi has divorced Henok Weldegebriel and remarried Ethiopian running star Yemane Tsegay. Together they have a daughter named Heran.
steals Swedish records and places in world champs/olympics from Swedish warriors along with government funding all because shes not good enough to run for Ethiopia, and all the while being pumped up
Her 10K time has not been and will not be recognized as a Swedish record since she wasn't member of any Swedish club at the time and that is a requirement here. She basically ran her 31 low as a private citizen with no sponsors and the national federation and every single local journo was like "Say WHAT?" when her name and results popped up on the list.
Then she just disappeared of the radar again.
As for her HM marathon time this weekend it might be a Swedish record since she allegedly joined a club the day before the race - but it's a club I've never heard of and even if that part turns out to be okey she still needs to be tested by WADA for the last six months or that won't be enough either* - and right now it seems that noone here knows if that's the case.
*Remember that there has been young kenyans that has done well on their nationals and yet not been sent to WC or OL because they weren't on the WADA testing list for those six months prior etc.
Since it seems that Abeba so far has avoided contact with the national federation of Sweden it's either that's she's just fishing for a shoe contract or actually runs as a private citizen with no sponsors whatsover - would that make her the current fast such in the World?
Bonus info: This will probably come as a big surprise to all Americans on both side of the political isle that make too fast asumptions about things simply based on a Europan athletes skin colour but Abeba has been (and might still be) in a kind of beef with the Swedish national T&A organization because of her religious beliefs since she was gotchad by journos about those and initially refused to support gay marriage and HBTG until she was kinda blackmailed into following the official narrative of their sponsors etc. One could say she was kinda MAGA (MSGA?) in 2013 before MAGA even was a thing!
Swedish champion athlete Abeba Aregawi has said she is "disappointed" her comments over homosexuality overshadowed her gold medal win at the Moscow World Championships when she refused to take part in the rainbow protest due...
Bonus info: This will probably come as a big surprise to all Americans on both side of the political isle that make too fast asumptions about things simply based on a Europan athletes skin colour but Abeba has been (and might still be) in a kind of beef with the Swedish national T&A organization because of her religious beliefs since she was gotchad by journos about those and initially refused to support gay marriage and HBTG until she was kinda blackmailed into following the official narrative of their sponsors etc. One could say she was kinda MAGA (MSGA?) in 2013 before MAGA even was a thing!
This well makes conservatives heads explode: They want to hate her because she's a woman from Ethiopia in Sweden, but they want to love her because she made anti-gay and anti-trans comments.
1) So marry Ethiopian guy with Sweden citizenship to get European citizenship and sponsorship. Still train most of the time in Ethiopia.
2) Once that's secured move back to Ethiopia to have family with a different guy who while Ethiopian doesn't have European citizenship.
3) Go back to Europe - at least for races - so you once again can be relevant and get $ as as 66 minute half woman.
Call me close minded. But I don't get why people who train /live most of the time in their native countries need European / US citizenship.
As a fellow American dude who has never walked a mile in the shoes of an Ethiopian woman runner, I am prepared to suppose that there may be good reasons for her life choices that go far beyond what is readily obvious to me.
This reads kind of like an Ethiopian runner saying they don't understand why I choose to rent and not buy my kid an apartment where they go to school.
Sweden's fast tracking of Rift Valley enduros/asylum seekers who then sh%t on the national vest and reputation by cheating is quite prolific. There's the case in this thread, Bahta, and then Fshaw(?spelling) who made a huge advance to win the Euro XC Champs 2019 and then promptly failed an EPO test. You'd think the federation might have a once bitten twice shy approach but it seems not so.
Call me close minded. But I don't get why people who train /live most of the time in their native countries need European / US citizenship.
I won't call you close minded, but very naive. If you had the choice, would you:
Live and train in a great place for training, but knowing that when your career is over/you get older you could enjoy the benefits of a western welfare system AND possibly be given a stipend/wages in USD/euros and spend them in a much cheaper country.
OR
Live and train in a great place for training, but might not have and outlook to any welfare when your career is over, not have a large stipend/wage and addition you might have a harder time travelling around due to not having a "golden" passport?
What would you choose? Chill in ethiopia with free healthcare a plainride away in Sweden? Or chill in ethiopia without free healthcare a plainride away?
For some it also can mean a chance to go to the olympics for their new country vs being the 20th best Kenyan or whatever.
Time to go see the world Rojo?
This post was edited 2 minutes after it was posted.
Absolutely true. The times in Lisbon were one and a half to two minutes slower than on a superfast course like Valencia.
Portuguese TV view:
Aregawi really impressed and while I thought she looked a little bit heavy for a world-class distance runner, she never flinched in the race and maintained a very good pace from start to finish. She can run 63:00-64:00 in optimal conditions. She's a monster. She deserves credit for getting back to this high level after so many years away from the sport, which is very unusual.
Let's remember, before burying this woman ten feet under, that she has served her time, and deserves a second chance.
As for the LGBT debacle, Aregawi's initial reaction was normal for someone coming from a conservative background and she later changed her opinion when it was called to her attention. As a Swedish citizen she's willing to accept diversity, even though it may be anethma to her gut feeling.
Maybe just maybe this was a tune-up race for the London Marathon>?
The racist dope-accusers don't understand training. They don't understand priorities. They don't understand peaking. All they have is black=doping. Sad to be one of them.
Maybe just maybe this was a tune-up race for the London Marathon>?
The racist dope-accusers don't understand training. They don't understand priorities. They don't understand peaking. All they have is black=doping. Sad to be one of them.
Abeba Aregawi Gebretsadik (Amharic: አበባ አረጋዊ; born 5 July 1990) is an Ethiopian-born Swedish retired middle-distance runner who specialised in the 1,500 metres. She won the silver medal in the 1,500 m at the 2012 Summer Olymp...
The good news is that because of the years off, her legs might offer her a career until age 38-40.
Her run in Lisbon, 66 minutes half, indicates good form this coming season. 2:16:00-2:18:00 marathon? Definitely possible.
Can she run 2:10:00-2:13:00 like the top women ? probably not but can she be competitive in a major championship? absolutely yes. She's a monster, that's a given.
In other news from Sweden, Emil De La Oliva, 25, 13:28/28:23/1:02:53, will make his marathon début in Lima, Peru, May 25, 2025. He's already acted as pacemaker at Stockholm, but in Peru he's going for the win. Last year's winner, Kenya runner Mr Letting, ran 2:11.
According to reports, Emil receives zero funding from Svensk Athletics, so his family needs the money. He's currently working as a cleaner. Emil did not finish high school, which prevented him getting a US university scholarship.
After Lima, Emil is heading to Kapsabet, Kenya, for 6 months of hard training, with the aim of becoming a 2:04:00-2:05:00 runner.
Personally, I think Emil made a mistake by stopping his track career after his incredible success as a 19 year old in which he set all his personal bests, but only time will tell whether that decision has consequences or not on his future career.
Sweden's crime statistics are misleading and do not present an accurate picture of the overall peaceful and serene nature of the country. The crime statistics are inflated and reflect only a very niche area of certain cities where criminal gangs are involved in different crimes especially with their rival groups but which do not overall affect the lives of citizens in Sweden in general.
I've been to Sweden several times in the Gothenburg area and beyond to visit famed coach JS and the overall vibe is very peaceful and safe and that cannot be said of some areas of Great Britain where I presently live. Overall Sweden is an extremely safe and law abiding country. On the negative side, if you can call it a negative, some visitors and migrants to Sweden will consider Sweden to be a "boring country" because it is so safe but that's another matter.
I recently spent two weeks in Portugal in the city of Viseu, visiting the home of Carlos Lopes, 1984 O.G. champion in the marathon, and reflected that Portugal for me is the Sweden of Southern Europe with equally very reserved and private people and an overall vibe of calm and serenity right down to the ubiquitous coffee shops in Portugal where people spend their time. In Sweden coffee shop = Konditorei....analogous. Fika time (Coffee ☕ and cakes ).
