Terefe Ejigu
Personal information
Birth nameTerefe Tsegaye Ejigu
Nationality New Zealand
Born (1988-10-14) 14 October 1988
Arsi Negele, Ethiopia
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight130 lb (59 kg)
Sport
CountryNew Zealand
University teamEastern Michigan Eagles
Medal record
Athletics
Representing  New Zealand
Oceania Youth Championships
Gold medal – first place2004 Townsville 1500 m
Gold medal – first place2004 Townsville 3000 m

Terefe Ejigu (born 14 October 1988) is an Ethiopian-born New Zealand long distance runner.

Early life

He was born as Terefe Tsegaye Ejigu in Ethiopia. In 2001 at the age of 13 he fled violence in Ethiopia with his siblings. He settled in Wellington, New Zealand with his family where he enrolled at Wellington College. At the time, he spoke no English. While at the college, he began training as a runner, setting a new national junior record for the 5000 m. He attended Victoria University of Wellington to earn a degree in development studies. In 2009, he was awarded a $100,000 scholarship from Eastern Michigan University in the United States.[1][2] In 2012 he won first team ALL-MAC honors for his academic achievement at the university.[3] In 2012, Ejigu won the 5000 m at the Mid-American Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. He also won the mile race and finished second in the 3000 m. Filmmaker Anna Cottrell documented Ejigu's life story in the documentary Running For His Life.[4]

Achievements

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  New Zealand
2004 Oceania Youth Championships Townsville, Australia 1st 1500 m 4:00.73
Oceania Youth Championships Townsville, Australia 1st 3000 m 8:41.04

References

  1. ↑ Hill, Ruth (22 August 2009). "A child refugee still on the run". Stuff. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  2. ↑ "Ethiopian runner targets Olympic glory for NZ". TVNZ. 21 August 2009. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  3. ↑ "Ejigu, George and Kalinowski Earn Academic All-MAC Awards". EMU Eagles. 17 April 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  4. ↑ Katzenstein, Josh (28 April 2012). "Filmmaker spotlights EMU runner's dreams". Detroit News. Archived from the original on 26 June 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
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