Belay Teka Kassa

Home Country: Ethiopia
Date of Birth: 10/20/1981


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Belay Teka Kassa was born October 20, 1981 to an Oromo peasant family in the village of Abbso which is located in Shoa, Ethiopia. He entered Megabit 28 Middle School in 1990. However, he was forced to drop out of school in 1995 because his father, Teka died of an unknown disease that same year. When his father died, his mother, Tugegew and brothers needed his assistance with farming their land. Despite his engagement with farming, his family’s living fell short of the poverty line. In an effort to help his family, he applied and earned a position on the Ethiopian’s Military National Sports Team as a professional runner. He earned 650 birr which was enough money to send home to his family. In addition to a month salary, the military sports club also provided food and lodging. But most importantly, they allowed him to train without distraction. He trained hard for six months before he was ready to compete. He traveled the world participating in the following events:

  • 2001 Ethiopian National Olympic Games
  • 2002 Eastern Africa Olympic Game, Rwanda
  • 2003 Eastern Africa Game, Burundi
  • 2004 Congo Brazzaville, 1:04, 2nd Overall
  • 2005 International Marathon, Xiamen, 2:18, 20th overall
  • 2005 Istanbul Marathon in Turkey
  • 2005 Ethiopian Marathon Championships, 2:20, 8th Overall

While in Ethiopia in May 2006, he was invited to participate in the 2006 Potomac Marathon which he ran as an up-tempo race and won by over 15 minutes. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Foot Solutions Elite Team. He is currently developing his speed (leg turn-over) in an effort to run a qualifying Olympic Time Trail Time in the fall and spring. Current races include:

  • 2006 Cotton Row Run, Huntsville, AL, 30:01, 3rd Overall
  • 2006 Army HOOAH Race, GA, 30:00, 1st Overall
  • 2006 Peachtree Road Race, GA, 20th Overall
  • Army Ten Miler, DC, 49:27 2nd Place Overall
  • Miami Marathon, FL, 2:24, 5th Place Overall
  • Gasperilla Marathon, FL, 2:21, 2nd Overall




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