Video: Great Olympic Moments: Haile Gebrselassie, a lion in summer If ever a person proved that anyone, regardless of size, can have a big heart it was the 5ft 4in (1.64m) Gebrselassie in those two races, which tested his will way beyond the point at which most people would have hailed a taxi. At the 1996 Games in Atlanta, Kenyan pair Josephat Machuka and Paul Koech ganged up on the Ethiopian midway through the race. The Kenyans knew all about Gebrselassie's waiting tactics. Machuka had once been disqualified for hitting him between the shoulder blades during a race because he refused to share the pacemaking. This time they were going to run the finish out of Gebrselassie. With 2,000 metres to go, and with six runners now in contention, Tergat moved to the front and put in a searing two laps, covering 800 metres in 2min 02.3sec. The intention was to burn off his rivals, which he managed to do - with the exception of Gebrselassie. On the final lap Gebrselassie sprinted into a 12-metre lead before Tergat summoned the energy to fight back only for the finish to arrive before he could reach the Ethiopian. Gebrselassie had covered the second 5,000 metres in 13min 11.4sec, a faster time than the winner's over that distance at the 1992 Games. The final at the 2000 Games in Sydney was a much cagier affair than the one in Atlanta. Approaching the final bell Tergat found himself boxed in by Gebrselassie in front of him and another Ethiopian, Assefa Mezegebu, to his right. Tergat almost had to stop and jump to his right to get out of trouble. And with clear air ahead he shot into the lead, apparently catching Gebrselassie unawares. This time it seemed Tergat must win as he held onto his lead coming down the final straight. But with his final eight strides Gebrselassie somehow managed to find a way to retain his title. "I did my best," Tergat said. I could do no better than that.