Made in Addis: Coaches producing stars out of ordinary Ethiopian athletes

Coaches are the unsung heroes behind the success of athletics stars globally.

In the case of Kenya and Ethiopia, the coaches have fed the athletics conveyor belt with fresh talent which has gone on to conquer the world, making the national anthems of these two countries familiar among fans globally and keeping the rivalry between these two countries alive on track, in road races, and in cross country running.

Here, we sample some of the leading coaches in Ethiopia.

Hussein Shibo

Nation Sport caught up with Shibo training athletes at the high altitude area of Entoto Park In addis Ababa, an area frequented by athletes for hill work sessions.

As we enter the park accompanied by Ethiopian runner Senbere Teferi, we see a mean-looking man standing on an elevated hill monitoring the athletes in training. The man is coach Hussein Shibo.

Some of the athletes who have gone through his hands include long distance running legends Haile Gebreslassie, Kenenisa Bekele, Tirunesh Dibaba and her sister Genzebe Dibaba, and more recent names such as Mare Dibaba, Selemon Barega, Berihu Aregawi, Mekides Abebe, Diribe Welteji, among others.

The 56-year-old started his coaching career 30 years ago and he has taken Ethiopian team to six editions of the Olympics, 25 World Cross Country events, several World Indoor Championships, and 10 World Athletics Championships.

Ethiopia has won more than 300 medals under his watch.

“I started coaching at the age of 25. Working in the military pushed me to start developing athletics talents and I’m glad I have been able to earn a living through what I love. Many athletes have gone through my hands and I enjoy what I do so far,” Shibo told Nation Sport in Addis Ababa.

Coaching comes first in his life.

“I don’t have better friends than those in athletics and I love my job. I can be on the field at any time, ready to help and guide athletes to success because that’s part of me. It comes so naturally,” said Shibo.

Haji Adilo

We tracked down Adilo in Sandafa, a high altitude area some 35 kilometres north east of Addis Ababa where he was monitoring athletes on long run sessions.

Tens of athletes arrive each morning in Sandafa for serious group training sessions, others accompanied by pacemakers.

Adilo started coaching 20 years ago and has moulded several world-beating stars. Born in Arsi region next to Bokoji town in central Ethiopia which is home to most of the country’s world-beating athletes, he started his career as an athlete while in school but an injury ended his athletics career prematurely.

He is proud to have started competing with the athletics legend Haile Gebrselassie while at Arsi High School in Addis Ababa, which opened new opportunities when he got injured and couldn’t continue his running career.

“I have been coaching for long and I’m glad it is something I enjoy. This is my life, and I’m happy when I see athletes whom I have coached doing well and winning in various races,” said Adilo.

But one thing has been troubling Adilo: the doping menace that is now tainting the sport globally, and the need to reclaim the sport.

“I would like to urge athletes not to use performance-enhancing drugs because it is running the sport. We used to run clean and competition was healthy but when I hear of athletes being banned every month, it saddens me,” he said.

After presiding over his training session, he assembles all the athletes and he listens to their concerns about training in an open forum.

“I think many of the athletes have been successful under my guidance because I usually advise them on financial investments and share personal experiences in athletics,” Adilo, who runs his coaching sessions with his brother Kasim, says.

His other brother Hussein Adilo is also an athletics coach.

Gemedu Dedefo

He has been in the coaching business for more than 15 years. He started coaching as a hobby, but it has come with its fair share of challenges.

The period between 2016 and 2020 proved tricky for Gemedu as some of his athletes sponsored by German sportswear manufacturer Adidas were hit hard by the introduction of new shoes by American sportswear manufacturer Nike.

“We had challenges in getting races. My athletes struggled to match opponents in the major races because Nike hit the market with new shoe technology. When Adidas introduced new shoes, we tried to catch up with the competitors who were way ahead,” revealed Gemedu.

He is upbeat some of his upcoming athletes will announce themselves to the world next season.

As a coach, Gemedu is normally apprehensive and nervous whenever his athlete lines up for a race.

“We normally don’t sleep the night before the race. We are normally nervous, unsure of what will happen to our athletes because we all need them to win,” Gemedu, a former teacher, said.

He says a successful coach must have a good programme to guide athletes.

On the other hand, athletes must be exercise self discipline and follow instructions.

“Our plan is to move with the body of the athlete during training and that is how we have managed to get better results. We ask ourselves how an athlete feels after covering a given distance, and how they react towards finish line.

Among the athletes he has trained are two-time 5,000m world champion Muktar Idris, world marathon champion Tamirat Tola, 5,000m specialist Yomif Kejelcha, Asefelech Mergia, and Aberu Kebede.

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