Birhanu Balew (born 27 February 1996) is an

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

n-born long-distance runner representing

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

. He reached the final of the 5000 m event at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

Athletics career

Early career

Birhanu started competing internationally in 2015. In 2016 Birhanu competed in his first

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. He placed 9th in the men's 5000m Final clocking a time of 13:09.26. The race was won by Great Britain's

Mo Farah Sir Mohamed Muktar Jama Farah (born Hussein Abdi Kahin; 23 March 1983) is a Somali-British former long-distance runner. Considered one of the greatest runners of all time, his ten global championship gold medals (four Olympic and six World tit ...

in 13:03.30.

2017

Birhanu's first race of 2017 came on 17 January at the Kuwait City Half Marathon, where he won in a personal best time of 1:01:45. On 26 March, Birhanu represented

at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships in Kampala, Uganda. In the Senior race Birhanu placed 27th. On 25 and 26 April Birhanu won both the 10000m and 5000m at the Doha EMIR Cup in 31:16.51 and 13:52.39 respectively. On 5 May Birhanu competed in his first

Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fifteen invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics one-day meet competitions. The inaugural season was ...

Meeting of the season running 7:52.98 to place 14th in

Doha, Qatar Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It is also Qatar's ...

. Birhanu then returned to the roads to race the Okpekpe Road Race 10 km in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, placing 10th in 31:15. Birhanu then won three 5000m races in a Europe before going to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

to compete in the

2017 World Championships in Athletics The 2017 IAAF World Championships, the sixteenth edition of the IAAF World Championships, were held from 4 to 13 August at London Stadium in London, United Kingdom. London was officially awarded the championships on 11 November 2011. Bidding p ...

. In

Birhanu qualified to the final of the 5000m, and finished 12th in a time of 13:43.25; the race was won by Ethiopia's

Muktar Edris Muktar Edris (born 14 January 1994) is an Ethiopian professional long-distance runner who competes in track and cross country races. He is a two-time World champion over 5000 metres. Career Muktar made his first international appearances in 2 ...

. Birhanu won two more 5000m before his final competition of the year at the Sao Paulo Corrida de Sao Silvestre 15 km in

Sao Paulo, Brazil SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Serb Autonomous Regions (''Srpska autonomna oblast'', SAO), during the breakup of ...

2018

In 2018 Birhanu represented his country at the 2018 World Indoor Championships in

Birmingham, United Kingdom Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

over 3000m. After qualifying to the final, Birhanu placed 10th in 8:18.89. Birhanu won a 5000m at the

Shanghai Diamond League The Shanghai Diamond League is an annual athletics event at the Shanghai Stadium in Shanghai, China, as part of the Diamond League. The meeting was founded as the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in 2005. The meet assumed its current name in 2010. Fro ...

on 12 May in 13:09.64, and raced 2miles at the

Prefontaine Classic The Prefontaine Classic is a track and field meet held at Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Organized by the Oregon Track Club, it was previously one of the IAAF Grand Prix events, and ...

in Eugene, Oregon, USA on 25 May, placing 3rd in 8:21.54. On 5 July Birhanu won the 5000m at the Lausanne Diamond League Meeting. LRunning in third place into the final 200m, race leader

Yomif Kejelcha Yomif Kejelcha Atomsa (born 1 August 1997) is an Ethiopian distance runner. He formerly held world records in the short track mile (3:47.01 from 2019 to 2025) and the half marathon (57:30 from 2024 to 2025). Yomif won the silver medal in the 1 ...

fell at grabbed

Selemon Barega Selemon Barega Shirtaga (born 20 January 2000) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He won the gold medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, silver for the 5,000 metres at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and bronze in the ...

's shorts, pulling him out of the inside lane, while Birhanu ran by to win in a time of 13:01.09. On 30 August Birhanu represented his country at the

2018 Asian Games The 2018 Asian Games ( or ''Asian Games 2018''), officially known as the 18th Asian Games (), and also known as Jakarta-Palembang 2018 or Indonesia 2018, were a Asia, continental multi-sport event that was held from 18 August to 2 September 201 ...

Jakarta, Indonesia Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

. Birhanu won the 5000m in a time of 13:43.17.

2019–20

Birhanu started his 2019 track season running indoors in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. On 2 February he won the 3000m at the Meeting National, Mondeville, and on 10 February he won the 2000m at the

Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais The Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais (formerly Meeting Pas de Calais) also called Meeting International de Liévin (''International Meeting of Liévin'') is an annual indoor track and field competition which takes place in February at Arena ...

. On 30 March Birhanu represented his country at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships in

Aarhus, Denmark Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...

. Birhanu finished 19th in the senior men's race, which was won by Uganda's

Joshua Cheptegei Joshua Kiprui Cheptegei (born 12 September 1996) is a Ugandan Long-distance running, long-distance runner. He is the current world record holder for the 5000 metres and the 10,000 metres, and held the world best time over the 15K run, 15 kilomet ...

. Birhanu then won both the

Arab Championships Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

Cairo, Egypt Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

and the

Asian Championships An Asian Championship is a top level international sports competition between Asian athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. List of championships (Summer Olympic Sports) ;Aquatics and wate ...

over the 5000m. On 18 May Birhanu finished 4th at the

5000m running a time of 13:05.04. On 6 June Birhanu finished 4th at the

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual Track and field, track and field event normally held at the Stadio Olimpico, Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 deat ...

-Pietro Minnea in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, clocking a personal best of 12:56.26; his first sub-13 minute 5000m clocking. Birhanu contested several

Meetings over the summer before his next global championships at the

2019 World Championships in Athletics The 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships () was the seventeenth edition of the biennial, global sport of athletics, athletics competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), since renamed World Athleti ...

. On 30 September after qualifying for the final Birhanu placed 9th in 13:14.66; the race was won by Ethiopia's

. On 26 October Birhanu won the 5000m at the CISM

Military World Games The Military World Games is a multi-sport event for military sportspeople, organized by the International Military Sports Council (CISM). They have been held since 1995, although championships for separate sports had been held for some years. A ...

Wuhan, China Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine national central cities and the second most livabl ...

in a time of 14:08.99. Birhanu only had a short 2020 track season racing indoors between 31 January and 21 February.

2021–present

Birhanu began his 2021 track season by competing indoor over 3000m at the

; he finished 5th in an Asian Record of 7:34.58. On 19 May Birhanu raced 10000m at the 60th

Ostrava Golden Spike Golden Spike () is an annual athletics event at the Městský Stadion in Ostrava- Vítkovice, Czech Republic as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. It was first organized in 1961. The history of the meeting was interrupted in 1999, whe ...

Ostrava, Czech Republic Ostrava (; ; ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 283,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rivers: Oder, Opava (river), Opa ...

. Birhanu finished 2nd in 27:07.49, and new personal best and national record. Uganda's

Jacob Kiplimo Jacob Kiplimo (born 14 November 2000) is a Ugandan long-distance runner. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and the 2022 World Athletics Championships, Kiplimo won a bronze medal in the 10,000 m events. Kiplimo won gold medals in the 5000 m and 10,000 ...

won the race in 26:33.93 Birhanu's race in

Ostrava Ostrava (; ; ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 283,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rivers: Oder, Opava (river), Opa ...

qualified him for the 10000m at the

2020 Tokyo Olympic Games The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

; he had already qualified for the 5000m. Birhanu's next race was at the

-Pietra Minnea in

Florence, Italy Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence was a centre of medieval European t ...

. Birhanu placed 7th in 12:57.71; the race was won by Norway's

Jakob Ingebrigtsen Jakob Asserson Ingebrigtsen (born 19 September 2000) is a Norwegian Middle-distance running, middle- and Long-distance running, long-distance runner who is the world record holder in the short track 1500 metres, short track Mile run, mile, 2000 ...

. Birhanu next raced at the

Bislett Games The Bislett Games is an annual track and field meeting at the Bislett Stadium in Oslo, Norway. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. History The first international athletics meeting at Bislett ...

Oslo, Norway Oslo ( or ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of towns and cities in Norway, most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a Counties of Norway, county and a Municipalities of Norway, municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a populat ...

in the 3000m placing 4th in a personal best time of 7:33.05."Athlete Profile Birhanu Balew." World Athletics
www.worldathletics.org/ athletes/bahrain/birhanu-balew-14695983
Accessed 1 July 2021. At the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

in Paris, Birhanu represented Bahrain in the 5000m and 10,000 metre competitions, but did not advance from the heat stage in the 5000m. Birhanu finished 17th in the 10,000m.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Balew, Birhanu 1996 births Living people Ethiopian emigrants to Bahrain Naturalized citizens of Bahrain Bahraini male long-distance runners Ethiopian male long-distance runners Olympic athletes for Bahrain Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2018 Asian Games World Athletics Championships athletes for Bahrain Asian Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Asian Games gold medalists for Bahrain Medalists at the 2018 Asian Games Asian Athletics Championships winners Asian Games gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Islamic Solidarity Games medalists in athletics Medalists at the 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games Islamic Solidarity Games gold medalists for Bahrain Arab Athletics Championships winners Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics Diamond League winners