emil zátopek (19 september 1922 - 22 november 2000) was a czechoslovak runner from town kopřivnice. he is mostly known for winning 3 gold medals at the 1952 summer olympic games in helsinki. he won in 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres runs and in marathon. he never ran a marathon before. but he decided at the last minute to start with others. he set former record with time 2:23:03,2.