Guor Marial

Guor Marial at the 2012 Olympic Marathon

Guor Marial (born April 15, 1984 in Panrieng ) is a marathon runner who competed in the 2012 Olympic Games as an independent participant , as South Sudan , founded in 2011, did not yet have a National Olympic Committee and therefore could not officially send athletes.

Life

Marial belongs to the Dinka people . In the Civil War he lost 28 family members by its own account, including killed eight of his ten brothers. At the age of ten, Marial was abducted by gunmen and taken to a labor camp in northern Sudan. After his escape he was kidnapped again in 1995 and forced to work unpaid for a year in the family of a soldier. In 1999 he and his sister managed to escape to Egypt . Marial reached the United States on July 19, 2001 . There he was subsequently recognized as a refugee and received an unlimited residence permit. He graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in chemistry in 2011 . In October 2011 he met the Olympic standard with a time of 2 hours 14 minutes and 32 seconds. The IOC initially offered Marial to be sent as a participant by the NOC of Sudan , which he refused. He tried for nine months to become an independent athlete before the IOC granted his application on July 21, 2012.

Marathon results

San Diego , Rock n 'Roll Marathon, June 3, 2012: 2:12.55 (personal best)
London, Olympic Games 2012 marathon, August 12, 2012: 2:19:32 h (47th place)

Web links

Guor Marial in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )

Individual evidence

^ For South Sudanese marathoner, Olympics would be the ultimate refuge. Chicago Tribune , July 18, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .
↑ A stateless person enters under the Olympic flag. Die Welt , July 27, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .
↑ Joshua Kors: Guor Marial: Marathon Runner Flees Sudan, Heads to London Olympics. Huffington Post , July 23, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .

personal data
SURNAME	Marial, Guor
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Sudanese marathon runner
DATE OF BIRTH	April 15, 1984
PLACE OF BIRTH	Panrieng , South Sudan

[1] For South Sudanese marathoner, Olympics would be the ultimate refuge. Chicago Tribune , July 18, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .

[2] A stateless person enters under the Olympic flag. Die Welt , July 27, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .

[3] Joshua Kors: Guor Marial: Marathon Runner Flees Sudan, Heads to London Olympics. Huffington Post , July 23, 2012, accessed July 27, 2012 .