Bikila Repeats in 1964 Marathon After First Barefoot Triumph

by Marc Bloom

The Race

The 1964 Olympic marathon in Tokyo had none of the glamour of Rome's majestic setting four years before. In Rome, the marathon started late in the day because of the heat, followed many historic sites and finished in darkness at the Arch of Constantine, built in the year 315, adjacent to the Colosseum. Torchbearers flanked the last kilometers along the Appian Way so the athletes could see their path on the cobblestone route. It was an eerie yet spectacular backdrop. Tokyo was bland by comparison except for one constant: Bikila.

When Abebe Bikila won in Rome he was practically a marathon novice. The 28-year-old Ethiopian had run his first marathon in 1959, a 2:36 victory, then improved to 2:21:23 in his country's Olympic trial in 1960. Both runs were in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, at 8,000 feet. None of the experts had tabbed Bikila as a Rome contender, but he triumphed by 25 seconds in 2:15:16.2, a world record. And Bikila did it running barefoot, creating a mystique around not only himself as the first African distance champion but around the many magnificent Ethiopians and Kenyans who would follow. Bikila's distinctive approach, free of limitation, impressed Track & Field News, which wrote in 1960: "Bikila's main attribute, outside of his natural talent, was a complete innocence as to what was too fast and what was too slow. His mind was uncluttered with statistics and imaginary barriers."

That turned out to be a pretty astute assessment on the spot. In Tokyo, Bikila was of course the favorite. Or was he? Only five weeks earlier, Bikila had undergone an appendectomy. After the surgery, he had to take 11 days off before resuming training. Some runners in Tokyo were surprised when Bikila turned up to run; others knew that a man who had already won an Olympic marathon-barefoot, no less-was a man to be reckoned with no matter what.

Bikila, now 32, was a sergeant in Ethiopia's palace guard. Bikila's regal bearing set him apart. He had an assurance that no other runner could match, and as the Tokyo Olympic marathon got under way, Bikila let Ron Clarke of Australia do the work at the front. Clarke, the 10,000-meter world recordholder, was out for blood. Though he had a long collection of records, Clarke had run 9th in the 5,000 two days earlier and taken the bronze behind Billy Mills in the 10,000 five days before that. Clarke's frustration showed. He tore out ahead and hit the first 5-k in 15:06, sub-5:00 mile pace at a time when the world was 2:13:55, roughly 5:07 pace.

That world mark belonged to Britain's Basil Heatley, a veteran of the roads who hung back in Tokyo seemingly out of contention. Also in the 68-man field was another former world recordholder, Buddy Edelen of the U.S., whose 2:14:28 in England the year before, defeating Ron Hill by more than 3 minutes, remains one of the great marathons run by an American. Edelen was known to have back problems coming into Tokyo and still wound up 6th, then the highest U.S. Olympic marathon finish since 1928.

Clark's breakneck pace strung out the field. No one challenged him until 10-k, when Ireland's Jim Hogan drew to Clarke's shoulder and the two men shared the lead, at 30:14, still quite fast. Bikila also moved up to Clarke, but a stride away, giving the Australian false hope. Clarke's 10,000 record on the track was 28:15.6. Did he think he could get away with a marathon split only two minutes slower?

The tempo relented slightly as Clarke, Hogan and Bikila hit 15-k in 45:35, 2:10 pace. Huge crowds estimated at 500,000 jammed Tokyo streets. The Japanese-who revered marathoning and staged the Fukuoka Marathon, then considered the world's major race outside of the Olympics--could cheer three contenders of their own including Toru Terasawa, who'd held the world record before Edelen.

The second pack behind Bikila's threesome was a minute behind. Around 20-k, Bikila drew ahead, gapping Hogan, clearly in over his head. Clarke, meanwhile, slowed profusely and would finish 9th. Hitting the halfway turnaround in 1:04:28, Bikila moved further from Hogan, who tried desperately to hang on and would finally drop out at about 21 miles.

Try to stay with Bikila and the marathon Gods will punish you. A solitary figure running ceremoniously to the finish with a pair of white Pumas on his feet, Bikila, ever slender at 5'9" and 122 pounds (6 lbs. lighter than in Rome), strode into Olympic Stadium as a crowd of 75,000 roared approval. His time was 2:12:11.2, shattering the world record. Bikila won by over 4 minutes, the largest victory margin since 1924. Afterwards, fans relished seeing Bikila dance around doing calisthenics to loosen up. Where was the spent runner who'd just become the first man to win two Olympic marathons while leaving the field almost a mile behind?

While the gold medal was again going to Ethiopia, silver was in doubt until the last 200 meters when Heatley, in a brilliantly-paced run, outkicked a Japanese, Kokichi Tsuburaya. Their times were 2:16:20 and 2:16:23. On the medal podium, the national anthem of Japan was played. This was not a slight. The band did not have the Ethiopian music.

After the race, Ron Clarke called Bikila's achievement "the greatest performance in track and field." Who would doubt it? For his part, Bikila said he preferred wearing shoes, could have run another 10 kilometers and would compete in the 1968 Games in Mexico City. "I hope to win easily," he said.

However, in 1967, Bikila suffered a hamstring injury and was a dnf at Mexico City, where victory went to his countryman, Mamo Wolde. In 1969, Bikila was badly hurt in a car accident in Ethiopia. He sustained spinal injuries that confined him to a wheelchair and died of a brain hemorrhage in 1973 at the age of 51.

Eyewitness: John J. Kelley, 1960 Olympic Marathoner

The 1960 Olympic Village had a grassy quadrangle where many runners trained. The Games were held in late August into September, and it was very hot in Rome with no shade. We would work out on the grass in early morning or in the evening and you would see a lot of your fellow competitors doing pick-ups. On one particularly scorching day, with the marathon coming up, several runners including myself took off their shoes and ran barefoot. Among us that day were two Ethiopians, Abebe Bikila and a teammate. They too ran barefoot. I noticed how graceful and light on their feet the Ethiopians were. I was awed by their beauty.

To beat the heat, the marathon was scheduled for late afternoon. As we milled around Piazza de Camplidoglio for the start, I saw Bikila but did not notice he was barefoot. I knew that the last 10-k or so along the Appian Way was mostly large cobblestone, so it was unimaginable to me that someone would dare compete barefoot. After the race, when we were herded to a nearby tent to recuperate and the buzz went around that Bikila had run barefoot, and won in world record time, I was astounded.

I did not see Bikila again until the 1963 Boston Marathon, and this time race conditions were vastly different. It was a cold, foggy day, with an east wind. Bikila ran with a teammate, Mamo Wolde, and the two men were considered the best in the world. At the halfway point, the Ethiopians, both wearing shoes, had a 3-minute lead on the field. You could not see them in the fog. But later on, in the hills, they stiffened in the cold. First, I caught Wolde, who was walking; then, a mile down the road, same thing, another guy walking-by God, it was Bikila. I passed Bikila, who wound up 5th in his first marathon defeat while Wolde was 12th. I took 2nd to Aurele Vandendriessche of Belgium."

Johnny Kelley ("The Younger"), 1957 Boston Marathon winner, placed 19th in the Rome Olympics marathon in 1960. Now 74, he lives in Mystic, Connecticut.

BUY NOW! For more stories on the all-time greats, order Marc Bloom's books.