Fita Bayisa

Fita Bayisa (Amharic: ፊጣ ባይሳ; born December 15, 1972, in Ambo, Oromia) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner, best known for winning a bronze medal in the 5,000 metres event at the 1992 Summer Olympics. A year earlier, he had won a silver medal at the World Championships in Tokyo. Before the Olympic Games in Barcelona, Bayisa had emerged as the favourite for 10,000 metres, as he had defeated a world-class field at the Bislett Games in Oslo in a time of 27:14.26 min. However, he failed to make an impact on the 10,000 m final, which was won by Khalid Skah.

Among his other achievements, he was the winner of the 1999 Belgrade Race Through History. He beat Paul Tergat by a second in the unusual race across Belgrade's city fortress.

Bayisa was the flag bearer for Ethiopia in the Atlanta 1996 opening ceremony.

Personal bests 1500 metres - 3:35.35 (1999) 3000 metres - 7:35.32 (1996) 5000 metres - 13:05.40 (1993) 10,000 metres - 27:14.26 (1992) 8 kilometres - 22:22 (2000) 5 miles road - 22:29 (2000)

Achievements