Alison dos Santos

Dos Santos won bronze in the World U20 Championships in 2018. At the age of 19, he competed at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, where he won the 400m hurdles event in 48.45 seconds, surpassing both his personal record and the South American under-20 record. Dos Santos qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics with the fourth best time in the world at the time.

At the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, in September 2019, Dos Santos claimed the 400-meter hurdles semifinal in 48.35, breaking his own record once more and qualifying for the final with the second-best overall time. In April 2021, he broke his own Brazilian record with a timing of 48.15 in Des Moines.  He surpassed Panama’s athlete Bayano Al Kamani’s South American record of 47.84s, which had stood since 2005, on May 9, 2021. Dos Santos achieved a time of 47.68 in California at the Continental Athletics Tour’s Mt. Sac stage (USA). He again shattered the South American record on May 28, 2021, while competing in the Diamond League in Doha, Qatar, with a time of 47.57.

Alison advanced to the 400-meter hurdles final at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics by clocking a South American record-breaking 47.31 seconds. He won the bronze medal in the final with a timing of 46.72, once again shattering the South American record. He won the 400-meter hurdles event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, on July 19, 2022, with a timing of 46.29, shattering both the South American and world (then) records. He won the Diamond League title in the Diamond Race final in Zürich in September.

His greatest rival is Karsten Warholm. Karsten Warholm is a Norwegian sprinter who competes in the 400 meters and 400 m hurdles.

Dos Santos’ life did not get off to a smooth start. When his grandmother heated the oil to fry some fish, Dos Santos, who was only 10 months old at the time, unintentionally bumped against the pan handle. As a consequence, oil splashed all over him. He was hospitalised for four months with third-degree burns. He still bears scars on his forehead, scalp, face, chest, and left arm as a result. He wears hats or caps often, to protect the sensitive skin on his head from the sun. He eventually made a full recovery and started playing judo. During this time, he was given the name Piu, but he soon left the mat and began competing in athletics. At just sixteen years old, he was already battling professionals.