Sifan Hassan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Sifan Hassan

Hassan at the 2023 Chicago Marathon
Personal information
Nationality	Dutch
Born	(1993-01-01) 1 January 1993 (age 32) Adama, Oromia, Ethiopia
Employer	Nike
Height	1.70 m
Weight	49 kg
Sport
Country	Netherlands
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	Middle-, long-distance running
Coached by	Tim Rowberry
Achievements and titles
World finals	2015 Beijing 800 m, sf (9th) 1500 m, 3 Bronze 2017 London 1500 m, 5th 5000 m, 3 Bronze 2019 Doha 1500 m, 1 Gold 10,000 m, 1 Gold 2022 Eugene 5000 m, 6th 10,000 m, 4th 2023 Budapest 1500 m, 3 Bronze 5000 m, 2 Silver 10,000 m, 11th
Olympic finals	2016 Rio de Janeiro 800 m, h (21st) 1500 m, 5th 2020 Tokyo 1500 m, 3 Bronze 5000 m, 1 Gold 10,000 m, 1 Gold 2024 Paris 5000 m, 3 Bronze 10,000 m, 3 Bronze Marathon, 1 Gold
Highest world ranking	No. 1 (overall, 2019) No. 1 (1500 m, 2019) No. 1 (5000 m, 2019) No. 1 (10,000 m, 2019) No. 1 (road running, 2019) No. 1 (marathon, 2025)
Personal best(s)	800 m: 1:56.81 (2017) 1500 m: 3:51.95 (2019, AR) Mile: 4:12.33 (2019, AR) 3000 m: 8:18.49 (2019, AR) 5000 m: 14:13.42 (2023, AR) 10,000 m: 29:06.82 (2021, AR) Indoors 1500 m: 4:00.46 i (2015, NR) Mile: 4:19.89 i (2017, NR) 3000 m: 8:30.74 i (2017, NR) Road 5 km: 14:44 (2019) Half marathon: 1:05:15 (2018, AR) Marathon: 2:13:44 (2023, AR)
Medal record Women's athletics Representing the  Netherlands Olympic Games Gold 2020 Tokyo 5000 m Gold 2020 Tokyo 10,000 m Gold 2024 Paris Marathon Bronze 2020 Tokyo 1500 m Bronze 2024 Paris 5000 m Bronze 2024 Paris 10,000 m World Championships Gold 2019 Doha 1500 m Gold 2019 Doha 10,000 m Silver 2023 Budapest 5000 m Bronze 2015 Beijing 1500 m Bronze 2017 London 5000 m Bronze 2023 Budapest 1500 m World Indoor Championships Gold 2016 Portland 1500 m Silver 2018 Birmingham 3000 m Bronze 2018 Birmingham 1500 m Diamond League 2015 1500 m 2019 1500 m 2019 5000 m European Championships Gold 2014 Zürich 1500 m Gold 2018 Berlin 5000 m Silver 2014 Zürich 5000 m Silver 2016 Amsterdam 1500 m European Indoor Championships Gold 2015 Prague 1500 m European Cross Country Championships Gold 2013 Belgrad U23 race Gold 2015 Hyères Senior race Continental Cup Representing Europe Gold 2014 Marrakech 1500 m Gold 2018 Ostrava 3000 m World Marathon Majors Gold 2023 London Marathon Gold 2023 Chicago Marathon Bronze 2025 London Marathon

Sifan Hassan (born January 1993 in Ethiopia) is a Dutch long-distance runner. She is famous for being able to run well in many different races, from middle distances to very long ones.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Sifan did something amazing. She won two gold medals in the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres races. She also earned a bronze medal in the 1,500 metres. No other athlete in Olympic history has won medals in a middle-distance race and both long-distance races at the same Olympics.

Sifan continued her success at the Paris 2024 Olympics. She won bronze medals in both the 5,000 m and 10,000 m events. Then, she won a gold medal in the women's marathon. This made her the only woman to win Olympic gold in the 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres, and Marathon races.

At the World Athletics Championships, Sifan won both the 1,500 m and 10,000 m titles in 2019. She is the only athlete ever to win both these events at a single World Championships or Olympic Games. She has also won many other medals, including at the World Athletics Indoor Championships and European Athletics Championships. Sifan is also a three-time Diamond League champion. In 2023, she won the 2023 London Marathon in her very first marathon race.

Sifan Hassan has held several world records. She has been the world record holder for the one hour run since 2020. She also held the world record for the one mile on the track from 2019 to 2023. She holds six European records and three Dutch records.

Early Life and Journey

Sifan Hassan was born in Adama, Oromia, Ethiopia. She grew up in the countryside. She enjoyed running for fun there. When she was 15, in 2008, she left her home country as a refugee. She arrived in the Netherlands.

Sifan started running more seriously while she was studying to become a nurse. She became a Dutch citizen in 2013.

Running Career Highlights

Starting Out (2011–2012)

Hassan (right) at the 2012 Gouden Spike meeting in Leiden, Netherlands.

Sifan joined Eindhoven Atletiek and started competing. In 2011, she won the Eindhoven half marathon. She also did well in cross country races. In 2012, she won more races, including the 3000 m at a meet in Leiden.

Breaking Through (2013–2014)

Hassan (left) with her silver medal for the 5,000 metres at the 2014 European Athletics Championships in Zurich.

Sifan really started to shine in 2013. She ran her fastest times in the 800 metres and 1500 m. She also placed high in big races like the Diamond League. Her time in the 3000 m was the fourth fastest in the world that year.

After becoming a Dutch citizen in November 2013, she competed for the Netherlands. She won a gold medal in the under-23 category at the 2013 European Cross Country Championships. In 2014, she set a new Dutch indoor record for the 1500 m. She also won gold in the 1500 m and silver in the 5000 m at the 2014 European Athletics Championships.

World and European Success (2015)

Women's 1,500 metres podium at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing. From left to right: Faith Kipyegon, Genzebe Dibaba and Sifan Hassan.

In 2015, Sifan won a gold medal in the 1500 m at the 2015 European Indoor Athletics Championships. She set a new national record in the 1500 m at the Monaco Diamond League. At the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, she won a bronze medal in the 1500 metres. She also won gold at the 2015 European Cross Country Championships.

Olympic and World Medals (2016–2017)

Hassan celebrates her 1,500 metres win and her first world title at the 2016 World Indoor Championships in Portland.

Sifan won gold in the 1500 m at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, she finished fifth in the 1500 m. In 2017, at the 2017 World Athletics Championships, she placed fifth in the 1500 m and won a bronze medal in the 5000 metres.

European Records and Wins (2018)

In 2018, Sifan broke the European record for the 5000 metres. She won a gold medal in the 5000 m at the 2018 European Athletics Championships, setting a new championship record. She also broke the European record for the half marathon, winning the Copenhagen Half Marathon.

Double World Champion (2019)

Hassan races 10,000 m at the Payton Jordan Invitational in Palo Alto, California, in 2019.

In 2019, Sifan set a world record for a 5 km road race in Monaco. She also broke the European 3000 m record.

Mile World Record

On July 12, Sifan Hassan set a new world record for the mile run at a race in Monaco. She finished in 4:12:33, breaking a record that had stood for almost 23 years!

Hassan celebrates crossing the finish line in the 1,500 m final of the 2019 Doha World Championships.

The fastest women in the world over the 1500 m at the 2019 World Athletics Championships. From left to right: Kipyegon, Hassan and Gudaf Tsegay.

Hassan holds up her two gold medals.

Sifan became a double world champion at the 2019 World Athletics Championships. She won both the 10,000 metres and the 1500 metres. This was the first time any athlete, male or female, had won both these events at a single World Championships or Olympic Games. Her 1500 m winning time was also a new European record.

Olympic Glory (2020–2021)

In 2020, Sifan set a new world record for the One hour run, covering 18,930 metres. In 2021, she set a European record for the 10,000 metres. She even held the world record for the 10,000 m for two days in June 2021!

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, Sifan achieved incredible success. She won gold medals in both the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres. She also earned a bronze medal in the 1500 metres. This made her the only athlete ever to win medals in all three of these events at the same Olympics.

A Year of Rest and Return (2022)

The year 2022 was a bit of a break for Sifan. She competed in the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon. She finished sixth in the 5000 metres and fourth in the 10,000 metres.

Marathon Debut and More Medals (2023)

Hassan after winning silver over 5000 m at the 2023 World Championships.

On April 23, Sifan ran her very first marathon race at the 2023 London Marathon. Even though she had to stop twice to stretch her leg, she caught up and won the race in a sprint finish! She said she never thought she would even finish a marathon.

Just 41 days later, she returned to the track and won both the 10,000 metres and 1500 metres at the FBK Games. She also set a new European record for the 5000 metres.

At the 2023 World Athletics Championships, Sifan had a tough race in the 10,000 metres, falling near the end and finishing 11th. But she bounced back to win a bronze medal in the 1500 metres and a silver medal in the 5000 metres.

On October 8, Sifan Hassan won the Chicago Marathon with an amazing time of 2:13:44. This was a new record for the Chicago Marathon and the second-fastest women's marathon time ever!

Paris Olympic Champion (2024)

In March 2024, Sifan finished fourth at the 2024 Tokyo Marathon. She then started her track season.

At the Paris 2024 Olympics, Sifan won a bronze medal in the women's 5,000 metres. She also won another bronze in the 10,000 metres. On the final day of the Olympics, she won a gold medal in the women's marathon! She sprinted in the last 200 metres to win. With this gold, she became the first woman to win Olympic gold in the marathon, 5,000 metres, and 10,000 metres. She is also the first Olympic athlete since 1952 to win medals in these three events at the same Games.

In December 2024, Sifan Hassan was named the World Athletics Female Athlete of the Year. She was the first Dutch woman to receive this award.

Coaching Journey

Sifan Hassan first became successful with her Dutch national coach, Honore Hoedt. After some injuries before the Rio Olympics, she looked for new coaching.

In 2017, Sifan moved to the United States to train with Alberto Salazar at the Nike Oregon Project. In 2018, Tim Rowberry was hired to coach Sifan and another athlete, Yomif Kejelcha, while Salazar was the main coach.

In October 2019, Salazar was banned from athletics for four years due to rule violations that happened before he coached Sifan. After this, the Nike Oregon Project closed. Sifan and Yomif Kejelcha then formed a new training group with Tim Rowberry as their coach.

Tim Rowberry is Sifan's current coach. Since they started working together in 2018, Sifan has set many new personal best times in various races, including the 1500m, 3k, 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon.

Personal Best Times

These are Sifan Hassan's fastest times in different races.

Awards and Honors

• Dutch Athlete of the Year: 2018, 2019, 2021
• Dutch Sportswoman of the Year: 2019, 2021, 2024
• Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau: 2021
• European Athlete of the Year: 2021

See also

In Spanish: Sifan Hassan para niños