Simon Bairu
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Born | 8 August 1983 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Running |
| College team | University of Wisconsin |
Simon Bairu (born 8 August 1983) is a Canadian long-distance runner.
Early life
Bairu was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to an Ethiopian mother and an Eritrean father.[1] He grew up in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada where his family moved to when he was three years old.
Career
Bairu attended Dr. Martin LeBoldus High School, where he flourished as a provincial and then national level track and field athlete. He then attended the University of Wisconsin[2] where he was guided by coach Jerry Schumacher to win two NCAA cross-country titles.
As a post-collegiate, Bairu moved to Portland, Oregon to train with the Bowerman Track Club, a professional athletics group founded by Schumacher that was originally formed primarily by Wisconsin teammates, such as Chris Solinsky, Matt Tegenkamp, Evan Jager and Tim Nelson.
In 2010, Bairu placed 12th at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, as well as set a 10,000 m Canadian national record of 27:23.63 minutes at Stanford (this record was bettered by Cameron Levins in 2013). Over his career, Bairu won a record seven Canadian Cross Country Championship titles. Additionally, he also won the inaugural Miami Beach Half Marathon in December 2011,[3] as well as the San Jose Half Marathon in October 2012.[4]
Bairu officially retired from professional racing in September 2014.[5]
Personal bests
| Surface | Event | Time (m:s) | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Track | 3000 m | 7:49.20 | Gent, Belgium | 7 July 2007 |
| 5000 m | 13:25.91 | Heusden-Zolder, Belgium | 28 July 2007 | |
| 10,000 m | 27:23.63 | Palo Alto, USA | 1 May 2010 | |
| Road | 10 km | 28:30 | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | 26 May 2007 |
| Half marathon | 1:02:08 | Philadelphia, USA | 19 September 2010 |
- All information taken from IAAF profile.
See also
References
- ^ "The Official Website of Simon Bairu". SimonBairu.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2012. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
- ^ "Taking the long way: Bairu makes run at Olympic bid in marathon". CBSSports.com. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
- ^ Flanagan, with sights on London qualification, runs 1:09:58 in Miami Beach. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-12-16.
- ^ Simon Bairu Wins Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half Marathon Archived 2012-10-24 at the Wayback Machine Added 2012-10-07
- ^ Simon Bairu retires from professional racing
