Fan El Guerrouj
Why El Guerrouj is no more involved to find new talents in Morocco? We see him more and more in the background.
I guess this is the syndrome of passage between a worldwide elite runner and a simple coach and the anti-ruler.
Anyway, Aouita had more impact on Athletics in North Africa. The "Style Aouita" was adopted right and left in the whole region for at least 10 years.
Yesterday, while googling I found this article in a Moroccan new paper. It reveal a lot of informations on how the wave Aouita started.
https://www.lopinion.ma/Il-etait-une-fois-Said-Aouita_a2941.html
Google translation for those that dont know French:
Sport
Once upon a time Saïd Aouita
Portrait of the week
Written by A. KITABRI on Thursday April 30, 2020
He is the only athlete in the world to have been able to hold the world records for 5 distances of middle distance.
Once upon a time Saïd Aouita
A native of Kenitra, the young Saïd and his family settled in Fez in 1966. Before becoming an athlete, Saïd wanted to be a footballer. His idol: a certain Franz Beckenbauer. But he abandoned the round ball to devote himself to the race. In 1978, Aouita was one of five Moroccan competitors selected for the World Cross Country Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. In 1979, he signed his first great feat: he broke the world record for the 1500 at the Summer Universiade Games in Bucharest.
From the same year, Aouita broke all Moroccan records over 800m, 1,500m, 5,000m and managed to win a national scholarship thanks to Aziz Daouda, to train in Marignane, France. He distinguished himself in particular by winning, in 1981, the famous Figaro cross. This victory gave him confidence and moved to Siena in Italy where he increased his participation in meetings facing off against the best. It was in Siena that he achieved the best world performance in 1500 just before the world championships in Helsinki.
In 1983, it was the revelation at the World Championships in Helsinki where he won the bronze medal in the 1st 1500m behind the Briton Steve Cram and the American Steve Scott. He confirmed by winning the same year the Mediterranean Games in Casablanca over 800m and 1,500m, then the African Championships in 1984. The same year, he created a sensation at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles by winning the gold medal of the 5 000m, setting a new Olympic record in 13:59:59. “… My biggest victory was in Los Angeles in 1984 against the Englishman Moorcroft, record holder for the distance. It is the best victory of all my history. There is before 84 and after 84! », Says Aouita.
Lowering
At the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, he was the great attraction of athletics events along with Carl Lewis. It is registered over 800m, 1,500m and 5,000m, the last 2 finals of which will have to take place on the same day! He hopes to leave on an exploit.
But injured, he finally only lined up for 800m where he won the bronze medal in suffering because of a strained calf and had to give up the other 2 events. He is very affected. He's a winner. For him, when our name is Aouita, we are first or we are nothing! Before that, he lined up about twenty consecutive victories over distances ranging from 800m to 5,000m. The following year, he recovered by beating the world record for 3,000 meters on August 20, 1989 at the Cologne meeting and won the World Indoor Championships over the same distance.
His last participation dates back to the Worlds Tokyo 1999 where he lets go against his successor the Algerian Noureddine Morceli. Bruised pride, he crossed the finish line by walking taking refuge in the locker rooms. He could have finished second but it will not be Aouita. Aouita either he is first or it is nothing.
The anti-ruler
Long marginalized and excluded from the affairs of national athletics because he dares to declare loudly what others whisper low. He has an explosive, frontal and confrontational relationship with the leaders of athletics. He nevertheless ended up occupying the post of National Technical Director of Moroccan athletics in 1993 but without going through to the end of his mission. Then he became DTN in Qatar. He will also coach Australian long-distance and middle-distance runners in 2002. For several years, he collaborated as a consultant with the Qatari channel Bein Sport.
In 2008, he was re-appointed technical director of Moroccan athletics in order to regain control of national athletics after the poor performance at the Beijing Olympic Games by Moroccan athletes. But it was not long before he threw in the towel, in controversial circumstances in March 2009.
On his arrival, he tried to put some order in the training programs of the athletes and put an end to certain practices established at the center of Ifrane. During this mandate, he also stood out by asking the FRMA to intervene to improve the food and accommodation conditions of the athletes during their concentration sessions. "I do not understand how we could hope to have high ranking champions when our athletes are still complaining about the food they are served and the rooms where they have to rest," he said.
He also wanted to eradicate the problem of increasing doping among athletes. The old glory did not have the slightest official support to carry out its reform. He gave up his duties.
This without the senior officials of the FRMA questioning themselves. Today history holds that Aouita was right. The current debacle of our athletics and its latest setbacks linked to doping cases is proof of this. As a reminder, six cases of Moroccan athletes using doping products have been recorded during the last decade. Morocco has even joined the club of great cheaters in doping. It is classified in category A. It is now subject to very strict anti-doping obligations. In easier language, our national athletics is discredited. International bodies no longer trust him.
Prepared by A. KITABRI