Sifan Hassan: Top facts to know about the Dutch distance-running sensation

Sifan Hassan is not called an endurance athlete for nothing. The Ethiopian-born Dutchwoman competed in six races over eight days covering 24,500 metres of Olympic racing in Tokyo 2020 to walk away with the long-distance track double gold and 1,500m bronze.

Hassan fell painstakingly short of an audacious golden treble in Tokyo 2020 but made history by becoming the first person to win three medals over 1500m, 5000m, and 10,000m.

The 29-year-old Hassan has emerged as one of the middle and long-distance greats boasting world records and global titles. Here are the top facts you might not know about the Dutch athletics superstar.

Sifan Hassan: From asylum seeker to global superstar 

Her triumphs at Tokyo 2020 culminated in a remarkable journey for Hassan. Born in Ethiopia in 1993, Hassan arrived in the Netherlands in 2008 as a refugee. 

The then 15-year-old moved into a shelter for young asylum seekers in Zuidlaren before her athletic prowess led her to a better life. 

"I think all of us, nobody has a perfect life," she is quoted in The Guardian. "I tell people: 'When life is hard, you will see yourself like you never imagined. Never give up.'"

Five years after arriving in the Netherlands, Hassan won the European U23 cross-country title in the orange colours of her adopted country, a month after gaining Dutch citizenship.

Sifan Hassan: Record-breaking appetite

Hassan has demonstrated an incredible range, setting world records in the mile, one-hour event and the women-only road 5km before shattering the 10,000m record ahead of Tokyo 2020 (in 2021).

Her record-breaking run started in 2019 when she set the women's-only 5km record of 14:44 in Monaco before lowering the global mark in the mile world record of 4:12.33 at a Diamond League meeting in the same country.

The following year she set a new one-hour world record at the Brussels Diamond League meeting with a final distance of 18.930km, over a lap further than the previous record of 18.517km set by Ethiopia's Dire Tune in 2008.

She underscored her class ahead of Tokyo 2020, smashing the 10,000m record of 29:17.45, Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Hassan was in imperious form in Hengelo, Netherlands clipping 10.63 seconds off the previous mark clocking 29:06.82. Her hold on the 10 000m world record lasted two days before Ethiopia's Letesenbet Gidey lowered the mark.

Sifan Hassan: An early start

Hassan made a stunning start to her career, winning the Eindhoven Half Marathon in 2011 when she was just 18 years old.

She would get her international breakthrough at the 2015 World Athletics Championships in Beijing, where she won the 1500m bronze medal in her first big international meeting.

At the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Hassan won a rare 1500m-10,000m double becoming the first person to achieve the feat at the world championships. She first beat Gidey to the line in the 10,000m before upsetting Kenyan Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon to win the gold medal in the 1,500m seven days later.

Hassan delivered her crowning achievement over six epic races at Tokyo 2020, clinching golds in the 5,000m and 10,000m and the bronze in the 1500m.

"Many people doubted that it would happen," she was quoted by World Athletics. "Is it possible, is it not possible? When I think about it, it feels like a dream. But it has happened.

"This Olympics is one of the best feelings I've ever had in my life. It's something special. I'll never forget it."

Sifan Hassan: Her day off

Hassan's unprecedented treble bid translated into an incredible amount of running, which included two rounds of 5,000m, three in the 1,500m, and 10,000m which was a straight final. 

In response, World Athletics poked fun at Hassan's audacious attempt with social media memes about the Dutch athlete's "day off". The social media posts of photo-shopped images of Hassan doing various Olympic sports saw fans get in on the action with their own suggestions.

Sifan Hassan: The big fall

Hassan did not only receive plaudits for her winning performances but also her dogged determination en route to her three-medal haul in Tokyo 2020. 

She created a global buzz when she took a tumble in her 1,500m heat with nearly a lap left in the race. Hassan gathered herself and went on to win the race just hours before she claimed her first Olympic gold medal in the 5,000m in the evening.