Alain Mimoun

Alain Mimoun
Mimoun in 2001
Personal information
Birth nameAli Mimoun Ould Kacha
NationalityFrench
Born(1921-01-01)1 January 1921
Telagh, Oran department, French Algeria, France
Died27 June 2013(2013-06-27) (aged 92)
Saint-Mandé, France
Height1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight56 kg (123 lb)
Sport
Sportlong-distance running
Event(s)5,000 metres, 10,000 metres, marathon and cross-country running
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  France
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1956 Melbourne Marathon
Silver medal – second place 1948 London 10,000 m
Silver medal – second place 1952 Helsinki 5,000 m
Silver medal – second place 1952 Helsinki 10,000 m
International Cross Country Championships
Gold medal – first place 1946 Ayr Team Race
Gold medal – first place 1947 Paris Team Race
Gold medal – first place 1949 Dublin Individual Race
Gold medal – first place 1949 Dublin Team Race
Gold medal – first place 1950 Brussels Team Race
Gold medal – first place 1952 Hamilton Individual Race
Gold medal – first place 1952 Hamilton Team Race
Gold medal – first place 1954 Birmingham Individual Race
Gold medal – first place 1956 Belfast Individual Race
Gold medal – first place 1956 Belfast Team Race
Silver medal – second place 1950 Brussels Individual Race
Silver medal – second place 1958 Cardiff Individual Race
European Athletics Championships
Silver medal – second place 1950 Brussels 5,000 m
Silver medal – second place 1950 Brussels 10,000 m
Mediterranean Games
Gold medal – first place 1951 Alexandria 5,000 m
Gold medal – first place 1951 Alexandria 10,000 m
Gold medal – first place 1955 Barcelona 5,000 m
Gold medal – first place 1955 Barcelona 10,000 m

Alain Mimoun, born Ali Mimoun Ould Kacha (1 January 1921 – 27 June 2013), was a French[1][2][3][4] long-distance runner who competed in track events, cross-country running and the marathon. He was the 1956 Olympic champion in the marathon. He is the most bemedalled French athletics sportsperson in history. In 1999, readers of the French athletics magazine Athlétisme Magazine voted him as the “French Athlete of the 20th Century”.[5]

On the track Mimoun won three Olympic silver medals, finishing second behind Emil Zátopek in the 10,000 metres final in 1948 and again second behind him in both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres finals in 1952. He was also the silver medallist in both events behind Zátopek at the 1950 European Athletics Championships. From 1949 to 1958, he won four individual gold medals and two individual silver medals at the International Cross Country Championships. He was a four-time gold medallist at the Mediterranean Games, completing the 5,000 m/10,000 m double in both 1951 and 1955.

Born in Algeria,[6][7][8] Mimoun fought military battles for France and the Western Allies during World War II. He settled in metropolitan France shortly after leaving the French army. Overall, he represented France in four consecutive Olympic Games from 1948 to 1960. He competed internationally for France on 86 occasions. From 1947 to 1966, he won a total of 29 senior titles in the 5,000 m, 10,000 m, marathon and cross-country events of the French national championships. Mimoun continued to run in his later life and set a number of veteran age-category records.

  1. ^ "Alain Mimoun". olympic.org – Official website of the Olympic Movement. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  2. ^ "Alain Mimoun". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  3. ^ Goldstein, Richard (30 June 2013). "Alain Mimoun, a Top Runner, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  4. ^ Universalis, Encyclopædia (19 February 2002). "ALAIN MIMOUN". Encyclopædia Universalis. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  5. ^ "Adieu Mimoun". www.sports.fr. 28 June 2013.
  6. ^ David E. Martin (2000). The Olympic Marathon. Human Kinetics Publishers. p. 222. ISBN 978-0880119696.
  7. ^ "Athlétisme : Alain Mimoun est mort". Le Monde (in French). 28 June 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Alain Mimoun est mort was invoked but never defined (see the help page).