Background and career
Maria de Lurdes Mutola ( mə-REE-ə moo-TOH-lə; born 27 October 1972) is a retired Mozambican female track and field athlete who specialised in the 800 metres running event. She is only the fourth female track and field athlete to compete at six Olympic Games. She is a three-time world champion in this event and a one-time Olympic champion.
Although Mutola never broke the world record in her favourite event, she is regarded by many track insiders and fans as one of the greatest 800 metres female runners of all time. Due to her consistent performance in major championships and her exceptional longevity, she competed at the highest level for two decades before retiring from athletics in 2008 at the age of 35. She is also the only athlete ever to have won Olympic, World, World indoor, Commonwealth Games, Continental Games and Continental Championships titles in the same event. She is also the main coach and mentor of Caster Semenya.
