Abdi Bile

Abdi Bile (Somali: Cabdi Bile Cabdi, Arabic: عبد بلي عبد; born 28 December 1962) is a former middle distance runner. He holds the highest number of national records in athletics in Somalia across various disciplines.[2] He is currently Somalia's national record holder in nine athletic disciplines, and is thus far Somalia's most decorated athlete in history.[note 1]

Abdi Bile
Abdi Bile
Personal information
NationalitySomali
Born (1962-12-28) 28 December 1962
Las Anod, Sool, Somali Republic (Somalia)
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight75 kg (165 lb)
Sport
SportTrack
Event(s)800m, 1500m, mile, 3000m
College teamGeorge Mason
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)800m: 1:43.60[1]
1500m: 3:30.55[1]
Mile: 3:49.40[1]
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Somalia
World Championships in Athletics
Gold medal – first place 1987 Rome 1500 m
Bronze medal – third place 1993 Stuttgart 1500 m
Goodwill Games
Silver medal – second place1994 Saint Petersburg1 mile
African Championships
Silver medal – second place1985 Cairo1500 m
Representing Africa
IAAF World Cup
Gold medal – first place1989 Barcelona1500 m

In 1987, he became world champion in the 1500 metres, the first Somali to do so.[3] Bile ran the final 800m of the race in 1:46.0, which as of the 2020s, remains the fastest latter half in the history of the 1500m track race. During the semi-finals of the same championships, on 4 September 1987, he set a championship record with a time of 3:35.67 which lasted until 1 September 1991, when broken by Noureddine Morceli.

He defeated Britain's Sebastian Coe at the 1500m to win gold at the 1989 World Continental Cup. He also won silver at the same event in the 1985 African Championships in Cairo. In 1996 he represented Somalia at the 1996 Summer Olympics for the 1500 meters. His brother, Jama Bile, ran competitively for Northern Arizona University. His son Ahmed Bile ran competitively for Georgetown University.

Early life
Bile (right) competing in the quarter-finals of the 800 meters in the 1984 Olympics

Bile was born in Las Anod, Somalia[4] a member of the Nur Ahmed sub-clan of the Dhulbahante tribe. He was raised with fourteen siblings, in a nomadic society.[5] He completed high school in Erigavo. He began competitive running after hearing of the Somali runner Jamac Karacin, a scholarship recipient in the US.[6] As a youth he was very interested in football/soccer.[3]

Running career

Bile won the 1500 m World Championship in 1987, running the final 800 m of the race in 1:46.00, the fastest final 800 m of any 1,500-metre race in history. He was a two-time Olympian (1984 and 1996) and dominated the event in the late 1980s. Bile was ranked first in the world at the mile distance in 1989. He was World Cup champion in the 1500 m in 1989[4] and two-time world Grand Prix final champion.

Bile graduated from George Mason University with a BSc in marketing management.[4] At George Mason, Bile was team captain and a two-time NCAA Division I 1,500-metre champion, winning his first title in 1985 (3:41.20) and the second in 1987 (3:35.79). He also won many conference titles and held the inter-collegiate 1500 m record for more than ten years.

He was coached by John Cook,[3] the former coach of 2008 Olympic 10,000-metre bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan. His career was riddled with injuries, and he missed the 1991 World Championships as well as the 1988 and 1992 Olympics because of such problems.[4] In 1996 he finished sixth in the Olympic 1500 final.[4] As of the 2020s, Bile has the 17th fastest kilometer race of all time with a time of 2:14.50.[7]

Achievements
YearCompetitionVenuePositionNotes
1984 Olympic Games Los Angeles, United States 5th (quarter-finals) 800 metres
4th (heats) 1500 metres
1985 African Championships Cairo, Egypt 2nd 1500 m
1987 World Championships Rome, Italy 1st 1500 metres
IAAF Grand Prix Final Brussels, Belgium 1st 1500 m
1989 IAAF World Cup Barcelona, Spain 1st 1500 m
IAAF Grand Prix Final Fontvieille, Monaco 1st 1500 m
1993 World Championships Stuttgart, Germany 4th (heats) 800 m
3rd 1500 metres
IAAF Grand Prix Final London, United Kingdom 2nd 1500 m
1994 IAAF Grand Prix Final Paris, France 3rd 1500 m
Goodwill Games St. Petersburg, Russia 2nd Mile
1995 World Championships Gothenburg, Sweden 7th (heats) 1500 m
1996 Olympic Games Atlanta, United States 6th 1500 metres

Awards and national records

Bile has won gold medals in the 1987 World Championships in 1987 at the 1500m. In 1989 he won the gold medal at the World Continental Cup in Barcelona at the 1500m in a time of 3:35.56. In 1987, he won first place at the NCAA Championships in Baton Rouge, Louisiana at the 1500m in a time of 3:35.79. In 1993, he won second place at the 1500m in the Grand Prix Final in London UK, in a time of 3:34.65. In the same year, he also won the bronze medal at the World Championships at 1500m in Stuttgart, Germany in a time of 3:35.96. At the 1985 African Championships in Athletics, he won silver at the 1500m. Bile holds Somalia's national records in seven outdoor disciplines, namely the 800m, 1000m, 1500m, one mile, 2000m, 3000m and the 4x1500 metre relay as well as in two indoor disciples, namely the 1500m and the one mile, thus in a total of nine disciplines. The collapse of state institutions from 1990 onwards and injuries had prevented Bile from competing at the Olympics during his prime years.[8][9]

Personal life

Bile has traveled widely and has inspired many young people and helped several humanitarian organizations.[4] He is married, with two sons and daughter named Farhiya, born in 1995, Ahmed born 1993 and Mohamed born 2001. As a senior in high school, Ahmed won the Virginia state cross country title,[4] the 1000m title and 1600m title along with being a two-time New Balance All-American in the 800m. The largest stadium in Las Anod is named after him.[10]

Notes
  1. See the List of Somali records in athletics page

References
  1. IAAF. "Athlete profile for Abdi Bile".
  2. Jones, Thomas W., et al. "Influence of a concurrent strength and endurance training intervention on running performance in adolescent endurance athletes: An observational study." (2018).
  3. Janofsky, Michael (8 May 1998). "OLYMPIC PROFILE: Abdi Bile; Running as a Nation Watches". Retrieved 13 March 2013.
  4. Abdi Bile Returns to Somalia Archived 3 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine Running Times
  5. Hero for a thirsty land, Sports Illustrated, Kenny Moore, May 30, 1988. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  6. Jama, Abdirasak Ahmed (29 April 2012). "Tarikhda Cabdi Bile Cabdi oo ah ordaagii caanka ahaa ee Soomaaliya". Allgedo News Media Network (in Somali).
  7. "All-time men's best 1000m". alltime-athletics.com. 8 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  8. "Abdi BILE - Profile - iaaf.org". iaaf.org.
  9. Rage, Deqo, and Samah Kahim. "Naiseus somalialaisessa kulttuurissa: muistelua moniaistisessa tilassa." (2013).
  10. "Laascaanood Garoonka Casriga Ah Ee Abdi Bile loogu Magacdaray oo xadhiga laga jaray". somalsports.com.
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