Wodajo Bulti is a retired Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

n long-distance runner who specialized in the 5000 metres

5000 metres

The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...

, 10000 metres

10000 metres

The 10,000 metres or 10K is a common long distance running event. As "10,000 metres" it is a track event, and appears in athletics events such as the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics; as "10K" it is a roadrace or cross country running event...

 and cross-country running.
Wodajo was one of the most significant Ethiopian middle and long-distance runners in 80's. In his early years on the track he concentrated more on shorter distances such as 1500m because of great depth of Ethiopian talent over longer distances. He spent these years in the shadow of great Miruts Yifter, double Olympic Champion from Moscow and Mohamed Kedir, Olympic and World Cup medalist. Breakthrough came in 1982, at 25 years of age, when Wodajo finished at 3rd place over 1500m at the African championships in Cairo and followed it by the gold medal at 5000m. On 16th September in Rieti, he won at 5000m in huge personal best time of 13:07.29min recording third fastest time ever. With such achievements behind him, he was somewhat disappointed when finished at 7th place over 5000m at next year's inaugural World Championships in Helsinki. In 1984, he was strong 5000m medal contender for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, finishing second in Florence behind Said Aouita in a time of 13:10.08min (4th in 1984 World lists), but was unable to compete in L.A. due to the Ethiopian boycott. At the Olympic Boycott Games in Moscow, Bulti came third at 5000m and second at 10000m, breaking 28 minutes barieer. After these performances, Wodajo exploded in 1985 and opened season with the bronze medal at the World Cross Country Championships, finishing behind Carlos Lopes and Paul Kipkoech. At the African Championships, he became champion at both, 5000 and 10000m distances, beating many great runners and relegating Kipkoech to second respectively third place. He was elected to represent Africa over both distances at the World Cup in Canberra and at day one, he won the gold over longer distance thanks to his fast finish and followed it by the bronze medal performance over 5000m. Bulti concentrated on longer distances for the remainder of his career and in 1987, he won in Helsinki over 10000m in new personal best time of 27:29.41min which placed him second at 1987 World lists, but finished disastruos 24th at the World Championships in Rome. He set career best of 2:08:44hours finishind third in Rotterdam marathon in 1988, but again, he was unable to compete at the Olympic Games in Seoul, due to Ethiopian boycott.

Achievements

Representing
1982	World Cross Country Championships 1982 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 10th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 21, 1982 in Rome, Italy. There were a total number of 380 participating athletes from 33 countries.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :...	Rome Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half... , Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...	12th	Long race
			1st	Team
	African Championships 1982 African Championships in Athletics -Men's events:-Women's events:-Medal table:-External links:* - GBR Athletics...	Cairo Cairo Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life... , Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...	3rd	1500 m
			1st	5000 m
1983	World Cross Country Championships 1983 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 11th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 20, 1983 in Gateshead, England. There were a total number of 431 participating athletes from 33 countries.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :...	Gateshead Gateshead Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside... , England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...	20th	Long race
			1st	Team
	World Championships 1983 World Championships in Athletics The inaugural World Championships in Athletics were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between August 7 and August 14, 1983....	Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... , Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...	7th	5000 m 1983 World Championships in Athletics - Men's 5000 metres These are the official results of the men's 5000 metres event at the 1983 IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. There were a total of 39 participating athletes, with three qualifying heats, two semi-finals and the final held on Sunday 14 August 1983.-Medalists:-Records:Existing records at...
1984	World Cross Country Championships 1984 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 12th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 25, 1984 in the Meadowlands Sports Complex . There were a total number of 442 participating athletes from 40 countries.- Individual :- Team :...	New York City New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...	1st	Team
	Friendship Games Friendship Games The Friendship Games or Friendship-84 was an international multi-sport event held between 2 July and 16 September 1984 in the Soviet Union and eight other socialist states which boycotted the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles....	Moscow Moscow Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent... , Soviet Union Soviet Union The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....	3rd	5000 m	13:29.08 Athletics at the Friendship Games Athletics at the Friendship Games was contested in 41 events, 24 events by men and 17 by women. Men competed at the Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium in Moscow, Soviet Union between 17 and 18 August, while women's events took place at the Evžen Rošický Stadium in Prague, Czechoslovakia...
			2nd	10,000 m	27:58.97 Athletics at the Friendship Games Athletics at the Friendship Games was contested in 41 events, 24 events by men and 17 by women. Men competed at the Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium in Moscow, Soviet Union between 17 and 18 August, while women's events took place at the Evžen Rošický Stadium in Prague, Czechoslovakia...
1985	World Cross Country Championships 1985 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 13th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 24, 1985 in Lisbon, Portugal. There were a total number of 570 participating athletes from 50 countries.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :...	Lisbon Lisbon Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban... , Portugal Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...	3rd	Long race
			1st	Team
	African Championships 1985 African Championships in Athletics -Men's events:-Women's events:-Medal table:-External links:* - GBR Athletics...	Cairo Cairo Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life... , Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...	1st	5400 m
			1st	10,000 m
	World Cup 1985 IAAF World Cup The 4th IAAF World Cup in Athletics was an international track and field sporting event sponsored by the International Association of Athletics Federations, held on October 4–6, 1985, at the Bruce Stadium in Canberra, Australia.-Men:|width="50"| ...	Canberra Canberra Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne... , Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...	3rd	5000 m
			1st	10,000 m
1986	World Cross Country Championships 1986 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 14th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 23, 1986 in Colombier . There were a total number of 670 participating athletes from 57 countries.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :...	Neuchâtel, Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....	2nd	Team
1987	World Cross Country Championships 1987 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 15th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on March 22, 1987 in Warsaw, Poland. There were a total number of 576 participating athletes from 47 countries.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :...	Warsaw, Poland	3rd	Team
	World Championships 1987 World Championships in Athletics The 2nd World Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations were held in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy between August 28 and September 6, 1987.-Track:1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995...	Rome, Italy	24th	10,000 m 1987 World Championships in Athletics - Men's 10000 metres The men's 10,000 metres event featured at the 1987 World Championships in Rome, Italy. There were a total number of 30 participating athletes, with the final being held on 29 August 1987.-Medalists:-Records:...

External links