Before I started my running training the most important thing for me, besides getting a training plan that worked for me was choosing the best shoes. Shoes are the most important when you're training and you have to be careful what you choose as the wrong shoes can cause a lot of health damage starting from bruising to knee problems and more. You also have to know what size to buy as it's not the same as with normal, everyday shoes. You have to buy a bigger size if you don't want your nail to get blue and fall. In other world, there's a lot to learn and experience as there's no guarantee you get the shoes that fit your needs. One brand may be perfect for me and the worst for you.

A lot of fuss for a pair of shoes, right? tell me about it! I went through the process myself. However this is not set in stone, it doesn't have to be like this. Some people can do miracles without any fuss, [Abebe Bikila]( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abebe_Bikila) is one of them! He ran the the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome barefoot and won gold medal. Can you believe it? I bet he wasn't spoiled by his parents with expensive brand shoes and he ran barefoot because he had no shoes or money to buy shoes thus he had no other choice than to run barefoot. 

![gas9vsh4tt.jpg](https://img.esteem.ws/gas9vsh4tt.jpg)
[source](https://myhero.com/A_bikila_chs_US_2010_ul) 

I can really appreciate his determination and I'm not saying that just because he was able to run a marathon barefoot and win, but because what he did after that is also something to admire.

[In July 1967, he sustained the first of several sports-related leg injuries that prevented him from finishing his last two marathons.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abebe_Bikila) Was that because of the lack of shoes? We don't know. It could be but not necessarily. It could have been because of a number of users, who knows? 

Unfortunately things got worse for Abebe, due to a car accident that happened on March 22, 1969, he got paralyzed. This is heartbreaking for anyone, let alone for someone who had a promising athletic career.  He got better later, regained some upper-body mobility but unfortunately he never walked again.

>While he was receiving medical treatment in England, Abebe competed in archery and table tennis at the 1970 Stoke Mandeville Games in London. Those Games were an early predecessor of the Paralympic Games. He competed in both sports at a 1971 competition for the disabled in Norway and won its cross-country sleigh-riding event. [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abebe_Bikila)

It's not mandatory to get injured during your sports career but many do as that's life. Abebe got injured in a car accident, which is very unfortunate but he got the strength to continue his sports career still. 

>Abebe died at age 41 on October 25, 1973, of a cerebral hemorrhage related to his accident four years earlier. He received a state funeral, and Emperor Haile Selassie declared a national day of mourning. Many schools, venues, and events, including Abebe Bikila Stadium in Addis Ababa, are named after him. Abebe is the subject of biographies and films documenting his athletic career, and he is often featured in publications about the marathon and the Olympics. [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abebe_Bikila)

Back to the original topic, *Cushioned Shoes Or Barefoot?*, I guess it depends on what you are used to but also on genetics if I can say that. African athletes are more resistant, no one can deny that. Check the results and you'll see the list of winners. 

I was talking to a fellow runner of mine from Vienna who was participating in the Vienna marathon last year and she said by the time she finishes, the Ethiopians will be drinking campaign on the plane home and she was right. It's amazing what they are capable of and I really enjoy watching them.

As a not at the end, nowadays you're not allowed to participate in any competition unless you have proper equipment an that includes shoes.







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