Kenya’s world-famous runner Abel Mutai was in the final round of an Olympic race, just a few
meters away from the finish line. His competitors were far behind, and victory was almost
certain. The crowd was cheering his name in excitement.
However, due to a misunderstanding, Abel mistakenly thought he had already crossed the finish
line and stopped running—just one meter short of the actual line.
Spanish athlete Iván Fernández, who was right behind him, realized what had happened. He
shouted for Abel to continue running, but since Abel didn’t understand Spanish, he remained
still. Seeing this, Iván gently pushed Abel forward until he crossed the actual finish line,
making Abel the winner while Iván secured second place.
After the race, journalists asked Iván:
“Why did you do that? You had the chance to win!”
Iván replied:
“My dream is to see a world where people help each other. I didn’t lose first place—I did what was right.”
The reporter insisted,
“But you pushed a Kenyan athlete ahead of you!”
Iván calmly responded,
“He had already won. The race was his!”
The reporter pressed further,
“But you could have won a gold medal!”
To this, Iván said,
“What meaning would that victory have? My medal wouldn’t have been honorable. What
would my mother have thought? Values are passed from one generation to the next.
What lesson would I have given to future generations? My mother taught me to help
others, not to take advantage of their weakness or ignorance.”
Blessed is the mother who raised such a son!
— Maulijee
