Meryem Erdoğan

Meryem Erdoğan (formerly Mariam Tanga or Mariam Hana Dingo, born April 24, 1990) is an Ethiopian-born Turkish female long-distance runner.[2][1][3][4]

Meryem Erdoğan
Personal information
NationalityTurkey
Born (1990-04-24) April 24, 1990[1]
Ethiopia[1]
Sport
SportRunning
Event(s)Distance running (5000 m, 10000 m)
ClubKocaeli BB Kağıtspor[2]
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)1500 m: 4:16.87
5000 m: 15:14.92
10000 m: 31:44.86
15 km: 0:50:12
Half-marathon: 1:11:24

In 2012 Erdoğan was banned for two years after doping.[5]

Personal life

She was born on April 24, 1990 in Ethiopia.[1] Impressed by her countrywoman Elvan Abeylegesse, who became a renowned athlete after acquiring Turkish citizenship, she decided to go to Turkey in order to become an athlete there. In 2006, at age of 16,[1] she illegally immigrated to Turkey via Beirut, Lebanon.[2][3][6] She was caught by police in Istanbul, however barely escaped deportation. Following adventurous times, she was acknowledged as a talented athlete candidate by Ertan Hatipoğlu, the former coach of Elvan Abeylegesse.[2][3][6] Her application for Turkish citizenship was accepted in January 2010.[1] She took the Turkish name Meryem and chose as surname Erdoğan for her admiration of the Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[4]

Sports career

Rejected initially by the clubs Enkaspor and Fenerbahçe Athletics due to her illegal status, Meryem Erdoğan was admitted to Kasımpaşaspor in Istanbul and finally entered Kocaeli Büyükşehir Belediyesi Kağıt Spor Kulübü in İzmit, where she is being coached by Öznur Dursun, a former national female athlete.[2][3][4][6]

She participated at various international long-distance runs held in Turkey under her Ethiopian identification as Mariam Tanga or Mariam Hana Dingo. In 2009, she placed second at the half marathon in Trabzon[4] and fourth in the 15 km run at the 31st Eurasia Marathon in Istanbul.[7] In March of the same year, she won the 10 km road run of the 4th International Runtalya Marathon in Antalya with a time of 33:09.[8]

Her international debut following her acquirement of a Turkish passport was at the Papaflessia international meeting held in Kalamata, Greece on May 29, 2010, where she won the 1500 m event in 4:16.92.[3][9] At her next international participation, the 14th European Cup 10000m held on June 5, 2010 in Marseille, France, she placed fourth in a personal best time of 31:55.53.[6][10][11]

On July 28, 2010, Erdoğan finished fifth in the 10000 m final at the European Championships in Barcelona, Spain, clocking a new personal best of 31:44.86.[12] Four days later, on August 1, 2010, she finished seventh in the 5000 m final, in another personal best time of 15:14.92.[13] She became the women's under-23 champion at the 2010 European Cross Country Championships, winning by a margin of nine seconds.[14]

Performance progression
Distance Season Time Location Date
1500 m20094:15.62Istanbul, TURJune 13, 2009[15]
5000 m201015:14.92Barcelona, ESPAugust 1, 2010
10000 m201031:44.86Barcelona, ESPJuly 28, 2010
10 km200933:09Antalya, TURMarch 15, 2009
15 km201050:12Istanbul, TUROctober 17, 2010
200951:22Istanbul, TUROctober 18, 2009
Half marathon20091:11:24Trabzon, TURFebruary 22, 2009

References
  1. Butler, Mark. "2010 European Championships-Biographical Entry List-Women's 10,000 Metres" (PDF). European Athletics. Retrieved 2010-08-10.
  2. "Meryem Elvan'ın izinde". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2010-05-27.
  3. "Meryem, Türk kimliğiyle pistte ilk birinciliğini aldı". Zaman (in Turkish). 2010-05-30. Archived from the original on 2012-02-29.
  4. "Onun adı artık Meryem Erdoğan". Tüm Spor (in Turkish). 2009-09-12. Archived from the original on 2010-08-04.
  5. "Track athletes caught doping ahead of Games". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  6. "Avrupa rekoru kırdı". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 2010-06-07.
  7. "31st Intercontinental Istanbul Eurasia Marathon 2009 15km Overall Results" (PDF). Istanbul Marathon. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26.
  8. "Runtalya Maratonu Sone Erdi" (in Turkish). Başkent Masterleri. 2009-03-15. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07.
  9. "Papaflessia: Results". Papaflessia 2010. 2010-05-29. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-08-11.
  10. "Meryem Erdoğan'dan Rekor". TRT Haber (in Turkish). 2010-06-06.
  11. "Meryem Erdoğan'dan Avrupa rekoru". Radikal (in Turkish). 2010-06-06.
  12. "European Athletics Championships - Results Day 2" (PDF). European Athletics. 2010-07-28. Retrieved 2010-08-10.
  13. "Eküri bitti". Sabah (in Turkish). 2010-08-02.
  14. UNDER 23 WOMEN'S FINAL: Turkey’s Erdogan fulfils her role as favourite Archived 2010-12-15 at the Wayback Machine. European Athletics (2010-12-12). Retrieved on 2010-12-12.
  15. Jalava, Mirko. "European Athletics Athlete Database". Tilastopaja Oy. Retrieved 2010-08-11.
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