Degaga ("Mamo") Wolde - Olympic Medals: Gold at the 1968 /Mexico City/ Marathon, Silver at the 1968 /Mexico City/ 10km and Bronze at the 1972 /Munich/ Marathon Events

Degaga ("Mamo") Wolde (June 12, 1932 - May 26, 2002) was an Ethiopian long distance track and road running athlete and was winner of the marathon at the 1968 Summer Olympics.

Wolde was born in Diri Jille to an Oromo family. In 1951, he moved to Addis Ababa and joined the Imperial Bodyguard. Wolde later served as a peacekeeper in Korea from 1953 to 1955.

At his first Olympic appearance in 1956, Wolde competed in the 800 m, 1,500 m and the 4x400 relay. He didn't compete in the 1960 Summer Olympics.

Beginning in the 1960s, Wolde's focus changed from middle distance races to long distances. He placed fourth in the 10,000 m at the 1964 Summer Olympics. After Abebe Bikila had won the 1964 Olympic marathon, Wolde became the second Ethiopian to win the title in that race. Earlier in the same Olympics, Wolde had already won the silver medal in the 10,000 m. In 1972, Wolde won a third Olympic medal at the age of 40, winning bronze in the marathon. He blamed his third place showing on ill-fitting shoes forced on him by Ethiopian officials. Nonetheless, he became only the second person in Olympic history (Bikila was the first) to medal in successive Olympic marathons.

In 1993, Wolde was arrested by the Woyane government on the accusation that he was involved in a Red Terror execution. Amnesty International had seen no evidence he was involved in any human rights abuses, and appealed to the prosecutor to either charge or release him and all others in his situation. Ethiopia did neither, refusing even to say what he was suspected of. When the International Olympic Committee demanded an explanation, it was told to back off and "await the verdict of the court." In early 2002 he was convicted to six years of imprisonment, but released because he had spent nine years in detention already waiting for his trial.

Wolde died of an undisclosed illness a few months after his release. Wolde was buried at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Addis Ababa, next to Bikila, his idol, who died in 1973. He had been married twice and had three children; a son with his first wife and two children with his second wife. Source

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The Ordeal of Mamo Wolde - The Honolulu Marathon - September 27, 2006

Mamo Wolde, Olympic Marathon Champion - The New York Times - May 28, 2002