Eduar Villanueva

Running career Born in Barquisimeto, Lara, he won his first international medal at the 2004 South American Under-23 Championships held in his hometown, where he took the 5000 metres bronze medal. He ran in the 1500 metres at the 2005 Bolivarian Games and set a personal best of 3:46.32 minutes, finishing in fourth place.

The 2006 season saw him establish himself as a senior athlete. He was third in the 800 metres at the 2006 Ibero-American Championships, won his first national title over 1500 m, and represented Venezuela at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games. At the Games he ran two personal bests: 1:48.21 min for fifth in the 800 m and 3:44.27 min for fourth in the 1500 m. He came fifth in the 800 m in his senior continental debut at the 2006 South American Championships in Athletics.

At the 2007 South American Championships in Athletics he won his first medal on the continental stage, securing the bronze medal behind Byron Piedra and Leandro de Oliveira. Villanueva was chosen to run for his nation at the 2007 Pan American Games and came sixth in the 1500 m with a personal best of 3:41.74 min and ended the competition by running an 800 m best of 1:48.05 min in the heats of that event. He gained selection for the Venezuelan team at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics held the following month and he improved his 800 m best further by running a time of 1:46.33 min in the heats.

In 2008 Villanueva made his global indoor debut at the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships and also ran at the Olympics for the first time, competing in the heats of the 800 m at the 2008 Beijing Games. At the World Military Track and Field Championships in June 2009, he came fourth in the 1500 m. Villanueva won a consecutive 1500 m bronze at the 2009 South American Championships in Athletics, but was the gold medallist in the event at the 2009 CAC Championships. He was selected to run the 800 m at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics (although he had focused on the longer distance regionally) and was eliminated in the first round. He broke José López's 14-year-old Venezuelan record in the 1500 m with a run of 3:38.96 min in Barakaldo.

He focused more on the 1500 m in 2011 and spent much of the season based in Spain with his coach Mariano Gonzalo. Villanueva improved his 1500 m national record to 3:38.29 minutes at a meeting in Barcelona in July 2011 and gained selection for the 2011 World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, South Korea. At the competition, he qualified for the 1500 m final by running a personal best of 3:36.96 min in the semi-finals. In the final he finished in eighth place, which was the best ever performance by a Venezuelan track runner at the world championships (improving upon William Wuycke's run in 1987).

Personal bests Outdoor 800 m: 1:46.33 min – Osaka, Japan, 30 August 2007 1500 m: 3:36.96 min – Daegu, South Korea, 1 September 2011 3000 m: 8:13.12 min – Valparaíso, Chile, 22 April 2007 Indoor 800 m: 1:49.75 min – Valencia, Spain, 9 February 2008

Achievements