Robert De Castella
'Deek'
* From my personal point of view one of the greatest marathoner of all time...
*The only marathoner to place top 10 in three consecutive olympics...
Moscow 1980 (10th-->2:14:31), LA 1984 (5th-->2:11:09), Seoul 1988 (8th)
* he also participated in Barcelona 1992 (26th)
Robert DeCastella won the Marathon in the Commonwealth games of 1986 in Edinburgh in 2:10:15.
DeCastella celebrates his victory in the Commonwealth Marathon in Brisbane 1982 running negative
splits, and defeating Jumma Ikangaa and Gidamis Shahanga from Tanzania after they pulled away
most of the race. His time was 2:09:18.
(Photography property of the National Library of Australia)
Major athletic achievements
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* 1979 - won the Victorian Championship and the Australian marathon title (2h 14' 44"). * 1980 - 10th in the 1980 Summer Olympics marathon in Moscow. * 1981 - won the Fukuoka marathon in 2h 08'18" (world record from 1981 to 1984) * 1982 - won the 1982 Commonwealth Games marathon in Brisbane in 2h 09'18" * 1983 - won the Rotterdam marathon in 2h 08'37" * 1983 - won the 1983 World Championships marathon in Helsinki in 2h 10'03" * 1984 - 5th in the 1984 Summer Olympics marathon in Los Angeles. * 1984 - 3rd in the Chicago marathon in 2h 09'09" * 1985 - 3rd in the Chicago marathon in 2h 08'48" * 1986 - won the 1986 Commonwealth Games marathon in Edinburgh in 2h 10'15" * 1986 - won the Boston marathon in 2h 07'51" (course record) * 1988 - 4th in the Tokyo marathon in 2h 08'49" * 1988 - 8th in the 1988 Summer Olympics marathon in Seoul. * 1991 - won the Rotterdam marathon in 2h 09'42" * Five times under 2:09.00 * Nine times under 2:10.00 * World Marathoner of the 1980's |
DeCastella also won the Marathon in the first World Champinship
held in Helsinki, Finland in 1983 with (2:10:03), beating Kebede Balcha from
Ethiopia (2nd place), and defeating W. Cierpinski 3rd place (GDR) as a revenge for the Moscow 1980 Olympic games .
DeCastella also ran well in XC World Champinship in Gateshead, England in 1983. Among the leaders were Bekele
Debele (Eth), S. Muge 197 (Ken), Carlos Lopes (Por) in blue obscured by Muge, Alberto Salazar (USA),
Antonio Prieto (Spain, 333) and Deek (at the end he obtained 6th place).
Deek near the 30K mark in the 1984 Olympic Marathon
DeCastella during the Olympic Marathon in LA 1984.
Also in the photo Djama (Dji) and Seko (Japan).
(for more details, please download the video provided)
Deek arriving in 5th place during the Olympic Marathon in Los Angeles 1984.
(Photography property of the National Library of Australia)
After failing in LA84, DeCastella ran in the America's marathon of Chicago obtaining 3rd place (2:09:09).
Among the leaders are Martin Pitayo, Mex (34) [now in 2006 still a great master runner in Mexico, running still 30'00" for 10K];
Geoff Smith, GBR (5), Steve Jones, GBR (10), Carlos Lopes (Por) obscured by Jones, Deek and Gabriel Kamau, Ken, (24).
DeCastella came back to Chicago 1985 and again was 3rd place with 2:08:48.
That day Steve Jones missed the WR by 1 second.
In the photo Henrik Jorgensen 6 (Den), Mark Curp, Martín Pitayo (Mex), Don Janicki
Robleh Djama (3), Jesús Herrera (Mex), Francisco Pacheco 67 (Mex), DeCastella (2)
and Gianni Poli (obscured by Deek).
In 1983, DeCastella won the Rotterdam Marathon in 2:08:37 defeating Lopes, and became the favorite for Olympic Marathon in LA84.
from left: Armand Parmentier (Bel), José Gómez (Mex), Deek, Carlos Lopes (Por), Salazar, and Rodolfo Gómez (Mex)
(obscured by Salazar). See the video provided below
Deek celebrates his victory in the Rotterdam Marathon in 1983 (2:08:37). Lopes 2nd.
DeCastella, Steve Jones and Carlos Lopes, winners of the Chicago
Marathon of 1984.
For a complete reference of this race, please download the video provided below
(converted from ESPN footage)
Deek's Running Log from 1983
(Article provided by Kevin Matthews , who scanned the article from a Runners World Magazine . Thanks a lot Kevin!!!)
