Portrait of Gelete Burka

Birthday profile

Gelete Burka

Ethiopian middle distance runner

Born
January 23, 1986
Age in 2026
40
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Birth year
1986

About Gelete Burka

Gelete Burka Bati (sometimes misspelled Burika, Oromo: Galate Burqaa Baati, Amharic: ገለቴ ቡርቃ; born 23 January 1986) is an Ethiopian middle-distance and long-distance runner. She was born in Kofele in the Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region, the same district as double Olympic champion Haile Gebrselassie. Gelete was the short course champion at the 2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. She is a three-time medalist at the IAAF World Indoor Championships, her best performance being a gold medal win in the 1500 m in 2008. She is a four-time participant at the World Championships in Athletics (2005 to 2011) and represented Ethiopia at the Olympics in both 2008 and 2012. She has also medalled on the regional stage, having been the runner-up at the 2010 African Championships in Athletics and the gold medallist at the 2007 All-Africa Games. She was the African record holder for the mile run and the indoor 1500 m. Burka's first significant achievement was at the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where she won the bronze in the junior race. A month later she won the bronze medal in 3000 metres at the World Athletics Final.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Gelete Burka timeline

  1. She was the African record holder for the mile run and the indoor 1500 m.
  2. Burka's first significant achievement was at the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where she won the bronze in the junior race.

The world when Gelete Burka was born

Gelete Burka was born in 1986. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1986

  • #1 song"That's What Friends Are For" – Dionne Warwick & Friends
  • Top moviePlatoon
  • Top TV showThe Cosby Show
  • Best-selling bookIt – Stephen King

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentMaradona's "Hand of God" goal at the World Cup
  • Top headlineSpace Shuttle Challenger disaster
  • Technology milestoneChernobyl nuclear disaster in Soviet Ukraine
  • Defining fadTop Gun aviator sunglasses
  • Notable inventionDisposable camera
  • World population4.94 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderRonald Reagan
  • Sports championNew York Mets (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population240.1M

1986 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Gelete Burka's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19862026
Gas$0.93$3.45/gal
Average home$80,300$435,000
Average income$29,458$67,500
Minimum wage$3.35$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$3.71$11.95
Postage stamp$0.22$0.73
Population240.1M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, International Olympic Committee, Olympedia. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.