View source for Saïd Aouita

{{short description|Moroccan track and field athlete (born 1959)}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name           = Said Aouita<br>{{lang|ar|سعيد عويطة}}
| image          = Said Aouita.jpg
| imagesize      = 160px <!-- Only for images narrower than 220 pixels -->
| caption        = Aouita at the 1987 World Championships
| nationality    = [[Morocco|Moroccan]]
| sport          = [[Track and field]]
| event          = [[1500 meters]], [[3000 meters]], [[5000 meters]]
| club           =
| collegeteam    = 
| birth_date     = {{Birth date and age|1959|11|02|df=yes}}
| birth_place    = [[Kenitra]], Morocco
| pb             = {{unbulleted list
|'''[[800 meters|800 m]]:''' 1:43.86<ref name="IAAF">{{cite web|url=https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/morocco/said-aouita-91|author=IAAF|author-link=International Association of Athletics Federations|title=''Said AOUITA - Athlete Profile''}}</ref> ([[Cologne]] 1988)
|'''[[1500 meters|1500 m]]:''' 3:29.46<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Berlin]] 1985)
|'''[[Mile run|Mile]]:''' 3:46.76<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Helsinki]] 1987)
|'''[[3000 meters|3000 m]]:''' 7:29.45<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Cologne]] 1989)
|'''[[Two miles|2-mile]]:''' 8:03.45<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Turin]] 1987)
|'''[[5000 meters|5000 m]]:''' 12:58.39<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Rome]] 1987)
|'''[[10,000 meters|10,000 m]]:''' 27:11.26<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Oslo]] 1986)
|'''[[3000 meters steeplechase|3,000 m steeplechase]]:''' 8:21.92<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Latakia]] 1987)}}
| death_date     = 
| death_place    = 
| height         = 1.76 m
| weight         = 65 kg
| medaltemplates = {{Medal|Country | {{MAR}} }}
{{Medal|Sport | Men's [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Los Angeles]] | [[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|5000&nbsp;m]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze |[[1988 Summer Olympics|1988 Seoul]] | [[Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics - Men's 800 metres|800 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold | [[1987 World Championships in Athletics|1987 Rome]] | [[1987 World Championships in Athletics - Men's 5000 metres|5000&nbsp;m]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze | [[1983 World Championships in Athletics|1983 Helsinki]] | 1500 m}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Indoor Championships|World Indoor Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships|1989 Budapest]]|3000&nbsp;m}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Mediterranean Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1983 Mediterranean Games|1983 Casablanca]] | 800 m}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1983 Mediterranean Games|1983 Casablanca]] | 1500 m}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1987 Mediterranean Games|1987 Latakia]] | 1500 m}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1987 Mediterranean Games|1987 Latakia]] | 5000 m}}
{{Medal|Silver| [[1987 Mediterranean Games|1987 Latakia]] | 3000&nbsp;m steeple}} 
}}
'''Saïd Aouita''' ({{langx|ar|سعيد عويطة}}; born November 2, 1959) is a former Moroccan [[track and field]] athlete. He is the only athlete in history to have won a medal in each of the 800 meters and 5000 meters at the Olympic games. He won the [[5000 meters]] at the [[1984 Summer Olympics]] and the [[1987 World Championships in Athletics]], as well as the [[3000 meters]] at the [[1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships]].<ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ao/said-aouita-1.html |title=Said Aouita |access-date=2011-12-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417171152/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ao/said-aouita-1.html |archive-date=2020-04-17}}</ref> He is a former [[List of world records in athletics|world record]] holder over [[1500 metres]] (3:29.46), 2000&nbsp;m (4:50.81), 3000&nbsp;m (7:29.45), and twice at 5000&nbsp;m (13:00.40 and 12:58.39).

==Early life and education==
Saïd Aouita was born on November 2, 1959, in [[Kenitra]], a coastal Moroccan city. Nine years later, he moved along with his family to [[Fes]] due to the nature of his father's work. As a child he spent most of his time playing football and wanted to be a great footballer; however, his outstanding skills in running made his coaches foresee a great future in [[track and field]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

Aouita has a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in Management and [[master's degree]] in Business Administration. He is pursuing a [[doctorate]] in Sport Management and Leadership.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

==Running career==
Aouita had his first start towards stardom at the [[1983 World Championships in Athletics]] held in Helsinki. He contested  the 1500 m and finished third in the final, taking the [[bronze medal]], after the pace slowed in the last 1000 meters and then finished with a sprint.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In 1984, Aouita decided to run the 5000 m at the [[1984 Summer Olympics]]. [[Antonio Leitão]] from [[Portugal]] ran in first for the majority of the race. Aouita stayed behind Leitão and then sprinted past him on the last lap to win.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In 1985, Aouita ran two world records: first in 5000 m (13:00.40) in [[Oslo]] on 27 July, then in 1500 m (3:29.46) on 23 August.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In 1986 he missed setting the world record in the 3000&nbsp;m by 0.44 of a second.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1065153/1/index.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102222522/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1065153/1/index.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 2, 2012|title=Aouita Over Rono? Oh, No No|date=August 25, 1986|first=Kenny|last=Moore|magazine=Sports Illustrated|access-date=2010-08-05}}</ref>
 
In 1987, Aouita's main objective was to excel in the world championship held in Rome and break records.  First, he broke the 2000&nbsp;m world record with a time of 4:50.81 in [[Paris]] and only six days later, he surprised the world by breaking his own world record for 5000 m, becoming the first man to go under 13 minutes, with a time of 12:58.39 minutes. For the [[1987 World Championships in Athletics]], Aouita decided just to contest the 5000 m. In the 5000 m final, [[John Ngugi]] from [[Kenya]] set a fair pace, but by no means fast. Aouita, always in control of the race, made his move just before the bell, leading a mass sprint for the finish that he won in 13:26.44.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In 1988, at the [[1988 Summer Olympics]], he attempted to race in the 800&nbsp;m and 1500&nbsp;m but had a [[hamstring]] injury which made him finish third in 800&nbsp;m and withdraw from the 1500 m although he had qualified for the semi-final. In spite of that his bronze medal made him the only athlete in history to combine medals at both 800&nbsp;m and 5000&nbsp;m.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}
 
In 1989, Aouita won the 3000 m at the [[1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships]] in Budapest. Later that year, he broke the world record for the same distance in [[Köln]], [[Germany]] with the time of 7:29.45 and thus, he was the first man in history to go under 7:30:00.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

Aouita was a versatile middle and long distance runner, excelling at distances between 800 m and 10,000 m during the eighties. He raced and won against the Olympic champions [[Joaquim Cruz]] (800 m), [[Peter Rono]] (1500 m), [[John Ngugi]] (5000 m) and [[Alberto Cova]] (10000 m) over their respective main distances. Between September 1983 and September 1990 he won 115 of his 119 races. The defeats were against world champion [[Steve Cram]] over 1500 m, Olympic bronze medalist [[Alessandro Lambruschini]] over [[3000 m steeplechase]], Olympic champions [[Joaquim Cruz]] and [[Paul Ereng]] over 800 m and world champion [[Yobes Ondieki]] over 5000 m.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In the early nineties, Aouita underwent surgery on his leg, after which his doctors advised him to put an end to his career as an athlete for his health. After a set of failures in a number of races he decided to retire from athletics.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

==Personal life==
Said Aouita married Khadija Skhir in 1983, one year before the [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Olympic Games]]. Together they have four children: one son, Adil, and three daughters; Soukaina, Sarah, and Zeena.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}[[File:Stamp of Azerbaijan 385.jpg|thumb|180px|Aouita on Azerbaijani postage stamp]]

After his athletics career ended, Aouita worked with mixed success as a consultant for numerous sport institutions, as Technical National Manager in Morocco, and National Distance Coach in Australia thanks not only to his fruitful field experience, but also to his academic competences. Now, Aouita is working as Senior Analyst for [[Al Jazeera Sports]] channel. Aouita also has a sports clothing company which was established in 2009.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

Aouita is featured on an Azerbaijani postage stamp.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

He lives in [[Orlando, Florida]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

==International competitions==
{| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|-
|rowspan=2|1980
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the Islamic Games|Islamic Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[İzmir]], Turkey
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the Islamic Games#Men|800 m]]
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the Islamic Games#Men|1500 m]]
|-
|1981
|[[Athletics at the 1981 Summer Universiade|World Student Games]]
|[[Bucharest]], Romania
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1981 Summer Universiade – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]
|[[List of Universiade records in athletics|GR]]
|-
|rowspan=2|1982
|rowspan=2|[[1982 African Championships in Athletics|African Championships]]
|rowspan=2|[[Cairo]], Egypt
|bgcolor=cc9966|3rd
| [[1982 African Championships in Athletics#Men's events|800 m]]
|-
|bgcolor=silver|2nd
| [[1982 African Championships in Athletics#Men's events|1500 m]]
|-
|rowspan=3|1983
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 1983 Mediterranean Games|Mediterranean Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[Casablanca]], Morocco
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1983 Mediterranean Games#Men's events|800 m]]
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1983 Mediterranean Games#Men's events|1500 m]]
|-
|[[1983 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]
|[[Helsinki]], Finland
|bgcolor=cc9966|3rd
|[[1983 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]
|-
|rowspan=2|1984
|[[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]
|[[Los Angeles]], United States
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|[[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics – Men's 5000 metres|5000 m]]
|[[List of Olympic records in athletics|OR]]
|-
|[[1984 African Championships in Athletics|African Championships]]
|[[Rabat]], Morocco
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[1984 African Championships in Athletics#Men's events|1500 m]]
|-
|1985
|[[Athletics at the 1985 Pan Arab Games|Pan Arab Games]]
|[[Casablanca]], Morocco
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|1500 m
|-
|rowspan=4|1987
|rowspan=3|[[Athletics at the 1987 Mediterranean Games|Mediterranean Games]]
|rowspan=3|[[Latakia]], Syria
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1987 Mediterranean Games#Men's events|1500 m]]
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1987 Mediterranean Games#Men's events|5000 m]]
|-
|bgcolor=silver|2nd
| [[Athletics at the 1987 Mediterranean Games#Men's events|3000 m steeplechase]]
|-
|[[1987 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]
|[[Rome]], Italy
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|[[1987 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 5000 metres|5000 m]]
|-
|1988
|[[Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]
|[[Seoul]], South Korea
|bgcolor=cc9966|3rd
|[[Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Men's 800 metres|800 m]]
|-
|rowspan=3|1989
|[[1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships|World Indoor Championships]]
|[[Budapest]], Hungary
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships – Men's 3000 metres|3000 m]]
|-
|[[Athletics at the 1989 Jeux de la Francophonie|Jeux de la Francophonie]]
|[[Casablanca]], Morocco
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[Athletics at the 1989 Jeux de la Francophonie#Men|5000 m]]
|-
|[[1989 IAAF World Cup|IAAF World Cup]]
|[[Barcelona]], Spain
|bgcolor=gold|1st
| [[1989 IAAF World Cup#Men 2|5000 m]]
|-
|1991
|[[1991 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]
|[[Tokyo]], Japan

|[[1991 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|11th]]
|1500 m
|}

===World records===
*[[1500 metres]] – 3:29.46, [[Berlin]], 23 August 1985
*[[2000 metres]] – 4:50.81, [[Paris]], 16 July 1987
*[[3000 metres]] – 7:29.45, [[Cologne]], 20 August 1989
*[[Two miles]] –– 8:13.45, [[Turin]], 28 May 1987
*[[5000 metres]] – 13:00.40, [[Oslo]], 22 July 1985
*5000 metres – 12:58.39, [[Rome]], 27 July 1987

===Awards and distinctions===
*
*Three times [[IAAF Grand Prix Final]] winner (800 m, 1500 m, and 5000 m)<ref>[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/gp.htm IAAF GRAND PRIX FINAL]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2011-12-20.</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{World Athletics}}

{{S-start}}
{{s-ach|rec}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[Steve Cram]]
| title = [[World record progression 1500 metres|Men's 1,500 m World Record Holder]]
| years = 23 August 1985 – 6 September 1992
| after = [[Noureddine Morceli]]
}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[Steve Cram]]
| title = [[2000 metres world record progression|Men's 2000 m World Record Holder]]
| years = 16 July 1987 – 03 July 1995
| after = [[Noureddine Morceli]]
}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[Henry Rono]]
| title = [[World record progression for the Men's 3,000 m|Men's 3000 m World Record Holder]]
| years = 20 August 1989 – 16 August 1992
| after = [[Moses Kiptanui]]
}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[David Moorcroft]]
| title = [[5000 meters#World record progression|Men's 5000 m World Record Holder]]
| years = 22 July 1985 – 4 June 1994
| after = [[Haile Gebrselassie]]
}}
{{s-ach|aw}}
{{Succession box
| title = [[Track & Field Athlete of the Year|Men's Track & Field Athlete of the Year]]
| before = [[Carl Lewis]]
| after = [[Yuriy Syedikh]]
| years = 1985
}}
{{s-sports}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[Fernando Mamede]]
| title = [[5000 metres#Men's seasons best (outdoor track)|Men's 5000 m Best Year Performance]]
| years = 1984 – 1987
| after = [[John Ngugi]]
}}
{{Succession box
| before = [[Sebastian Coe]]
| title = [[1500 metres#Men.27s_Seasons_Best_.28Outdoor.29|Men's 1500 m Best Year Performance]]
| years = 1987
| after = [[Steve Cram]]
}}
{{Succession box
| title = [[3000 metres#Men.27s Seasons Best|Men's 3000 m Best Year Performance]]
| years = 1984 – 1986<br>1989
| before = [[Doug Padilla]]
| before2 = [[Sydney Maree]]
| after = [[Dieter Baumann]]
| after2 = [[Khalid Skah]]
}}
{{S-end}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions 5000 m Men}}
{{Footer World Champions 5000 m Men}}
{{Footer World Indoor Champions 3000m Men}}
{{Footer African Champions men's 1500 metres}}
{{Footer Mediterranean Champions 800m Men}}
{{Footer Mediterranean Champions 1500m Men}}
{{Footer Mediterranean Champions 5000m Men}}
{{Footer Universiade Champions 1500m Men}}
{{Footer IAAF World Cup Champions 5000m Men}}
{{Footer WBYP 1500m Men}}
{{Footer WBYP Mile Men}}
{{Footer WBYP 3000m Men}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aouita, Said}}
[[Category:1959 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Moroccan men middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:Moroccan men long-distance runners]]
[[Category:Moroccan men steeplechase runners]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for Morocco]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for Morocco]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Morocco]]
[[Category:World record setters in the sport of athletics]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Kenitra]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships medalists]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Morocco]]
[[Category:Mediterranean Games silver medalists for Morocco]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1983 Mediterranean Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1987 Mediterranean Games]]
[[Category:Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Track & Field News Athlete of the Year winners]]
[[Category:Mediterranean Games medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:FISU World University Games gold medalists for Morocco]]
[[Category:World Athletics Indoor Championships winners]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships winners]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1981 Summer Universiade]]
[[Category:20th-century Moroccan sportsmen]]