One of the greatest distance runners of all-time, Kenenisa Bekele turns 34 today.

The Ethiopian is the world and Olympic record holder in both the 5,000m and 10,000m and is the most decorated runner in IAAF World Cross Country Championships history, with six long course (12km) and five short (4km) course titles to his name.

Owner of three gold and one silver Olympic medal, Bekele was unbeaten over 10,000m from his debut in 2003 until 2011 – a stretch that included four consecutive wins at the World Athletics Championships from 2003 to 2009.

At the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, he became the first man to win both 5,000m and 10,000m at the same championships.

He started his marathon career in 2014, winning the Paris marathon on debut, bettering the course record.

Other sporting stars born on this day:

1980: Florent Malouda, French footballer, who spent most of his career at Lyon and Chelsea (36).

1980: Juan Carlos Navarro, Spanish basketball player, who won two silver Olympic medals (36).

1981: Mick Fanning, Australian surfer, who punched a shark to survive an attack in South Africa last year (35).

1986: Keisuke Honda, Japanese footballer, who plays as a midfielder at AC Milan (30).