Attaoui, fifth in a big 800 final

Mohammed Attaoui showed his bright future on the final day of athletics at the Stade de France. And he did it in a thrilling 800 meters final, coming with everything to break the event’s all-time ranking… except Rudisha’s world record. Attaoui was the fifth most expensive final in history, won by Kenyan Emmanuel Wanyonyi with the third best time ever (1.41.19). The athlete from Torrelavega worked hard to reach his extraordinary Spanish record, which is four hundredths away from: 1.42.08. At just 22 years of age, Attaoui, this summer’s European runner-up, has shown that he has enormous room for improvement.

Never, even in the London 2012 Olympic final, where Rudisha was in a state of grace to break the record that still stands, has there been a final as high on the international level as in Paris. He flew, literally, from the hands of Wanyonyi, the youngest (20 years old) of the eight main characters, who took command from the first meter and did not let go, a huge merit in a career fought breathlessly, using a knife. In 50.28 he passed the first lap, with Attaoui almost always behind, from less to more, as he wanted, but not losing speed. He got one position when the bell rang and another at the counter. Progressing further was an odyssey due to the tenacity of Wanyonyi, who did not give up, even when Marco Arop jumped him at the finishing line. He seemed to have power over the Kenyan, but he held on until he put his chest in front of the line, a hundred (1.41.19 for the Kenyan, 1.41.20 for the Canadian) that marked the difference between gold and silver. Algerian Djamel Sedjati progressed to bronze (1.41.50) and Attaoui overtook Frenchman Tual to take fifth place, 1.42.08, a record high. Wanyonyi set the third best mark of all time (1.41.19) and was 28 hundredths behind Rudisha’s universal record.

Attaoui, born in Morocco, arrived at the age of six in Spain, in Torrelavega, with his family. This year he took a step towards full professionalism and settled in Switzerland, with a young German, Thomas Dreissigacker, as coach. He lives most of the year at altitude, in Saint Moritz, with stages in South Africa, within the commitment of the sneaker brand that sponsors him. And the results, including his European silver, his Olympic final and the Spanish record he broke in Monaco before the Games, justified the bet.

Moha cites the best Moroccan distance runner in history, Hicham El Guerrouj, as his idol, but his background is Spanish. “I’m from Torrelavega. I feel Cantabrian and Spanish. I’ve been here all my life. It is true that I was born in Morocco and I will never forget my roots, but I am Spanish, I have lived here most of my life and I will stay here.