Draft:Habtom Amaniel

Habtom Amaniel Soquar (born 5 May 1990) is a track and field athlete who competes as a long distance runner.

Early life
He grew up in Eritrea alongside 12 siblings. He would run 10km to get to school. He was forced into the Eritrean army and then imprisoned for an indefinite amount of time. After escaping, mostly on foot through a desert across Sudan and Libya, he settled in Vaud, Switzerland with refugee status.

Career
He started running regularly when a sports coach, Catherine Collomb, offered to make her Wednesday mornings available to create a running team for refugees in 2015. In 2019, he won at the Tour du Pays de Vaud. By 2021, he said he was running "100km a week". He trains at the Volodalen Centre in Aigle.

Personal life
To supplement his income he works as a housepainter. He has a wife and two children.