BAHTA Meraf

Sweden

Athletics

Date of Birth: 24 Jun 1989

Age: 32

Gender: Female

Birth Country:

Eritrea

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Athletics	Women's 10,000m	18

Schedule

Change

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Olympic Stadium - Track	Women's 10,000m Final	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Athlete:

Olympic Games

Year	Location	1500m
2016	Rio de Janeiro, BRA	6th (4:12.59)

World Athletics Championships

Year	Location	1500m
2017	London, GBR	9th (4:04.76)

European Championships

Year	Location	10,000m
2018	Berlin, GER	DQ

Diamond League overview - Three best ranks per season and event since 2017

Year	1500m	3000m
2017	1 x 4th, 2 x 5th	1 x 9th

Diamond League - Ten best performances since 2020

Rank	Year	Event	Location	Result
4	2017	1500m	Rome, ITA	4:00.59
5	2017	1500m	Brussels, BEL	4:00.49
5	2017	1500m	Birmingham, GBR	4:03.04
9	2017	3000m	Monaco, MON	8:37.50

World Athletics Continental Tour - Ten best performances since 2020

Rank	Year	Event	Competition	Location	Result
10	2020	5000m	World Athletics Continental Tour	Ostrava, CZE	15:27.54

World Challenge - Ten best performances since 2020

Rank	Year	Event	Competition	Location	Result
12	2019	1500m	World Challenge	Zagreb, CRO	4:29.55

World Indoor Championships

Year	Location	1500m	3000m
2018	Birmingham, GBR	10th (4:23.05)	12th (9:05.94)

Legend
SF - Semifinal, QF - Quarterfinal, 1R - 1st Round, Qual. - Qualification, QR - Qualification Round, DNF - Did Not Finish, DNS - Did Not Start, DQ - Disqualified, NM - No Mark, [Relay athlete without time] - Did not run in final

Occupation:

Athlete

Languages spoken:

Swedish

Club name:

Halle IF [Ljungskile, SWE]

Coach:

Ulf Friberg [personal], SWE

Injuries:

In mid-2020 she struggled with allergies, which affected her training. (svt.se, 16 Aug 2020)

In late 2014 she suffered a stress fracture in her foot. The injury continued to trouble her for most of 2015, and she missed the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, People's Republic of China. She returned to training in October 2015, and resumed competitive action in early 2016. (gp.se, 14 Mar 2016; halleif.nu, 14 Feb 2016; aftonbladet.se, 01 Dec 2015)

Ambition:

To compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (friidrott.se, 25 Oct 2020)

General Interest

General
REPRESENTING SWEDEN
She previously represented Eritrea at international level. In 2008 she absconded from the Eritrean team at a race in Spain, and flew to Stockholm, Sweden, before arriving at a refugee camp in Alvsbyn, Sweden. Swedish coach Ulf Bjorklund had seen her race before and was aware of her potential, and managed to help defer her deportation after her initial appeal for asylum was rejected. In 2010 she received temporary residence, at the fourth attempt, and in December 2013 she obtained Swedish citizenship. "It was one of the best days of my life. At first I did not believe it was true. It felt unbelievable." (gp.se, 02 Jan 2015; expressen.se, 14 May 2014; alvsbynews.se, 18 Jul 2013; SportsDeskOnline, 30 Mar 2008)

SANCTION
In 2018 she was investigated for missing three doping tests within a 12-month period. In June 2019 the Athletics Integrity Unit [AIU] issued her a one-year suspension, backdated from September 2018. Her period of ineligibility ended on 31 August 2019. (svenska.yle.fi, 28 Aug 2020; expressen.se, 24 Jun 2019; sportstar.thehindu.com, 24 Jun 2019; news24.com, 24 Jun 2019)

Social Media

Legend

:: Gold Medal Event
:: Silver Medal Event
:: Bronze Medal Event

Timing and scoring provided by OMEGA. Results powered by Atos