Souad Aït Salem (born 6 January 1979) is an Algeria

Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...

n long-distance runner who specializes mainly in the half marathon

Half marathon

A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a...

 and marathon

Marathon

The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...

. She was born in Mecheria

Mécheria

Mécheria is a small city situated in Naâma Province, Algeria in the Atlas mountains, capital of Mécheria District.- Railway :Mecheria is served by a narrow gauge railway from Mohammedia, however, replacing it with a standard gauge line has been proposed....

. She won gold in the 10,000 metres at the 2000 African Championships in Athletics and the 2005 Mediterranean Games

Athletics at the 2005 Mediterranean Games

The Athletics competition at the 2005 Mediterranean Games was held in the Mediterraneo Stadium in Almería, Spain from 29 June to 2 July 2005.-Men's:-Women's:-Medal table:-References:**...

. Salem also won the gold in the half marathon at the 2007 All-Africa Games

Athletics at the 2007 All-Africa Games

The athletics competition at the 2007 All-Africa Games was held on the Stade 5 Juillet 1962 in Algiers, Algeria between 18 July and 22 July 2007. Nigeria was the most successful nation of the competition having won nine golds and 24 medals in total. South Africa was a close second with seven golds...

. She holds the Algerian records

Algerian records in athletics

The following are the national records in athletics in Algeria maintained by its national athletics federation: Fédération Algérienne d'Athlétisme .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:+ = en route to a longer distance# = not recognised by federation...

 for every women's event between 3000 metres

3000 metres

The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and...

 and the marathon distance.

Her first appearance on the world stage was in the junior race at the 1997 IAAF World Cross Country Championships

1997 IAAF World Cross Country Championships

The 25th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held on 23 March 1997 in Turin, Italy.- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- Individual :- Team :- External links :**...

, where she finished in 98th place. Salem reached the top fifty at the 2000

2000 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships

The 9th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships was held on November 12, 2000 in the city of Veracruz, Mexico. A total of 182 athletes, 121 men and 61 women, from 52 countries took part.-Individual:-Team:-Individual:-Team:...

 and 2003 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships

2003 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships

The 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships was held on October 4, 2003 in Vilamoura, Portugal. A total of 171 athletes, 98 men and 73 women, from 49 countries took part.-Individual:-Team:-Individual:-Team:-External links:*...

. She ran in the 5000 metres

5000 metres

The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...

 at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics and the 2004 Summer Olympics

2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...

 but did not progress beyond her heat in either competition.

After winning the Universiade

Universiade

The Universiade is an International multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation . The name is a combination of the words "University" and "olympiad"...

 cross country competition, Salem switched to the marathon distance in 2006 and the move paid off: she won the 2006 Alexander The Great Marathon

Alexander The Great Marathon

The Alexander The Great Marathon is an annual marathon race which is held between Pella and Thessaloniki, Greece, in Mid-April.First held in 2006, the race begins at the birthplace of Alexander the Great and finishes in what was the last capital of Ancient Macedonia, Thessaloniki. It received IAAF...

 in Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...

. She won the women's race at the 13th Rome Marathon on March 18, 2007. Her time was 2:25:08 hrs was a new course record. She finished 9th in the women's marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, with a time of 2:28:29 hrs. At the 2007 World Championships in Athletics, she finished 16th in the marathon race. She finished sixth at the London Marathon

London Marathon

The London Marathon is one of the biggest running events in the world, and one of the five top world marathons that make up the World Marathon Majors competition, which has a $1 million prize purse. It has been held each spring in London since 1981. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money,...

 in 2008 and went on to finish in ninth place in the women's marathon race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics

Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics were held during the last 10 days of the games, from August 15 to August 24, 2008, at the Beijing National Stadium. The Olympic sport of athletics is split into four distinct sets of events: track and field events, road running events, and racewalking...

.

Personal bests

• 3000 metres
  3000 metres
  The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and...
  
   - 8:47.99 min (2006)
• 5000 metres - 15:07.49 min (2006)
• 10,000 metres - 32:13.15 min (2004)
• 20 kilometres - 1:06:11 hrs (2006)
• Half marathon
  Half marathon
  A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a...
  
   - 1:09:15 hrs (2008)
• Marathon
  Marathon
  The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
  
   - 2:25:08 hrs (2007)

Achievements

Representing
2000	African Championships 2000 African Championships in Athletics The 12th African Championships in Athletics were held in Algiers, Algeria in July, 2000.- Men's Results :-Field:-Track:-Field:-Medal table:-External links:* - GBR Athletics...	Algiers, Algeria Algeria Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...	1st	10,000 m
2002	African Championships 2002 African Championships in Athletics The 13th African Championships in Athletics were held in Tunis and Radès, Tunisia in August, 2002.- Men's Results :-Field:-Track:-Field:-Medal table:-External links:* - GBR Athletics...	Radès Radès Radès is a harbour city in Ben Arous Governorate, Tunisia. Situated 9 kilometres south-east of the capital Tunis, some consider it a Tunis suburb, and parts of the harbour installations of Tunis are located in Radès.... , Tunisia Tunisia Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...	5th	10,000 m
2003	World Championships 2003 World Championships in Athletics The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.-Track:...	Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... , France	12th (heats)	5000 m 2003 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 5000 metres These are the official results of the Women's 5000 metres event at the 2003 IAAF World Championships in Paris, France. There were a total number of 33 participating athletes, with two qualifying heats and the final held on Saturday 30 August 2003 at 18:35h.-Final:-Heats:*Held on Tuesday 26 August...
2004	Pan Arab Games 2004 Pan Arab Games The 10th Pan Arab Games was an international multi-sport event which took place in Algiers, Algeria, between 24 September and 10 October 2004. It witnessed the participation of all Arab League members for the first time – 22 countries participated in 26 sports....	Algiers Algiers ' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000... , Algeria Algeria Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...	1st	5000 m
			1st	10,000 m
			1st	Half marathon
	Summer Olympics 2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...	Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... , Greece	16th (heats)	5000 m
			DNF	10,000 m
2005	Mediterranean Games Athletics at the 2005 Mediterranean Games The Athletics competition at the 2005 Mediterranean Games was held in the Mediterraneo Stadium in Almería, Spain from 29 June to 2 July 2005.-Men's:-Women's:-Medal table:-References:**...	Almería, Spain	1st	10,000 m
2006	World Road Running Championships 2006 IAAF World Road Running Championships The 1st IAAF World Road Running Championships were held in Debrecen, Hungary on 8 October 2006, the women's race starting at 11:00 and the men's race at 13:00. This was the first time the title of World Road Running Champion had been competed for, with this competition replacing the IAAF World Half...	Debrecen Debrecen Debrecen , is the second largest city in Hungary after Budapest. Debrecen is the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar county.- Name :... , Hungary Hungary Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...	9th	20 km	1:06:11 PB
2007	All-Africa Games Athletics at the 2007 All-Africa Games The athletics competition at the 2007 All-Africa Games was held on the Stade 5 Juillet 1962 in Algiers, Algeria between 18 July and 22 July 2007. Nigeria was the most successful nation of the competition having won nine golds and 24 medals in total. South Africa was a close second with seven golds...	Algiers Algiers ' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000... , Algeria	1st	Half Marathon
	Rome City Marathon Rome City Marathon The Rome Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of Rome, Italy on a Sunday of March.The competition has also doubled as the Italian Marathon championships on two occasions; in 1983 and 1986. The race date was shifted from the traditional March schedule to 1 January in 2000...	Rome, Italy	1st	Marathon	2:25:08
	World Championships 2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007...	Osaka Osaka is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe... , Japan	16th	Marathon	2:35:09
2008	Summer Olympics	Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... , China	9th	Marathon

External links