Byron Efrén Piedra Ávilés (born August 9, 1982 in Cuenca

Cuenca, Ecuador

Cuenca is the capital of the Azuay Province. It is located in the highlands of Ecuador at about 2500 m above sea level...

) is an Ecuador

Ecuador

Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

ian middle distance and long-distance runner.

He won the 2007 edition of the Guayaquil Marathon

Guayaquil Marathon

The or Maratón de Guayaquil, is an annual marathon road race which takes place in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on the first Sunday of October.The race, which was first held in 2005, draws a 1000 participants mostly from Ecuador, some runners from Colombia, Peru and Venezuela run every year.The winners of...

. He also competed at the 2004 Olympic Games

Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics - Men's 800 metres

-Qualifying:From the initial nine heats the first two in each plus six fastest losers progressed through to the semi-finals.The final was made up of the first two finishers from each of the semi-finals plus two fastest losers.-Heats:...

, the 2005 Summer Universiade

Athletics at the 2005 Summer Universiade

The athletics competition in the 2005 Summer Universiade was held on the İzmir Atatürk Stadyumu in İzmir, Turkey, between 15 August and 20 August 2005.-Men's events:-Women's events:-Medal table:-References:* - GBR Athletics* - GBR Athletics* - FIBU...

, the 2007 World Championships

2007 World Championships in Athletics

The 11th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007...

 and the 2008 Olympic Games

Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics - Men's 1500 metres

-Round 1:-Semifinal 1:17 August 2008 - 21:55-Semifinal 2:17 August 2008 - 22:04-Final:19 August 2008 - 22:50-Splits:-References:...

 without reaching the final round.

He demonstrated his regional strength with a double gold in the 1500 metres

1500 metres

The 1,500-metre run is the premier middle distance track event.Aerobic endurance is the biggest factor contributing to success in the 1500 metres but the athlete also requires significant sprint speed.In modern times, the 1,500-metre run has been run at a pace faster than the average person could...

 and 5000 metres

5000 metres

The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...

 at the 2009 South American Championships in Athletics

2009 South American Championships in Athletics

The 2009 South American Championships in Athletics was the forty sixth edition of the tournament and was held between 19 and 21 June in Lima, Peru....

. He decided to run in both the 1500 m and 5000 m races at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics

2009 World Championships in Athletics

The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate....

 but he did not succeed in either event, finishing third last in the heats of the 1500 m and failing to finish at all in the 5000 m

He has medalled at regional competitions a number of times. He took part in the 2003 Pan American Games and reached the 1500 m final, finishing in eighth. In 2004, he came within a second of scoring a long race/short race double at the South American Cross Country Championships

South American Cross Country Championships

The South American Cross Country Championships is an annual continental cross country running competition for athletes from South America or, more specifically, member countries of CONSUDATLE. It was first held in 1986, making it the oldest of the continental cross country championships...

, but Juan Suárez of Argentina just finished ahead of him in the short competition. He won a bronze in the long race in 2006. He improved upon his past performance by taking a bronze in the 2007 Pan American Games

Athletics at the 2007 Pan American Games

The athletics competition at the 2007 Pan American Games was held at the Flamengo Park and Estádio Olímpico João Havelange in Rio de Janeiro between 22 July and 29 July 2007...

.

Personal bests

• 800 metres
  800 metres
  The 800 meter race is a common track running event. It is the shortest common middle distance track event. The 800 meter is run over two laps of the track and has always been an Olympic event. During indoor track season the event is usually run on a 200 meter track, therefore requiring four laps...
  
   - 1:46.55 (2008)
• 1500 metres
  1500 metres
  The 1,500-metre run is the premier middle distance track event.Aerobic endurance is the biggest factor contributing to success in the 1500 metres but the athlete also requires significant sprint speed.In modern times, the 1,500-metre run has been run at a pace faster than the average person could...
  
   - 3:37.88 (2007)
• 3000 metres
  3000 metres
  The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and...
  
   - 7:54.69 (2008)
• 5000 metres
  5000 metres
  The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...
  
   - 13:44.24 (2011)
• 10000 metres
  10000 metres
  The 10,000 metres or 10K is a common long distance running event. As "10,000 metres" it is a track event, and appears in athletics events such as the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics; as "10K" it is a roadrace or cross country running event...
  
   - 27:32.59 (2011)

Achievements

Representing
2006	South American Championships 2006 South American Championships in Athletics The 2006 South American Championships in Athletics were held at the Estadio La Independencia in Tunja, Colombia from 29 September to 1 October. The competition represented a departure from the traditional biennial cycle of the championships, a decision taken partly as a response to the lack of...	Tunja Tunja Tunja is a city and municipality located in the central part of Colombia, in the region of "Alto Chicomocha". As of the 2005 Census it had 152,419 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Department of Boyacá and part of the subregion of the Central Boyacá Province. It is approximately 145 km... , Colombia Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...	3rd	1500 m
			2nd	5000 m
2007	South American Championships 2007 South American Championships in Athletics The 2007 South American Championships in Athletics were held at the Estádio Ícaro de Castro Mello in São Paulo, Brazil from 7 June to 9 June 2007...	São Paulo, Brazil	1st	1500 m
	Guayaquil Marathon Guayaquil Marathon The or Maratón de Guayaquil, is an annual marathon road race which takes place in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on the first Sunday of October.The race, which was first held in 2005, draws a 1000 participants mostly from Ecuador, some runners from Colombia, Peru and Venezuela run every year.The winners of...	Guayaquil, Ecuador	1st	Marathon	2:20:58
2008	Guayaquil Marathon Guayaquil Marathon The or Maratón de Guayaquil, is an annual marathon road race which takes place in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on the first Sunday of October.The race, which was first held in 2005, draws a 1000 participants mostly from Ecuador, some runners from Colombia, Peru and Venezuela run every year.The winners of...	Guayaquil, Ecuador	1st	Marathon	2:20:42
	Ibero-American Championships 2008 Ibero-American Championships The 2008 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics was an athletics competition which was held at the Estadio Tierra de Campeones in Iquique, Chile from 13–15 June...	Iquique Iquique Iquique is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Atacama Desert and the Pampa del Tamarugal. It had a population of 216,419 as of the 2002 census... , Chile	2nd	1500m
			1st	3000 m
2009	South American Championships 2009 South American Championships in Athletics The 2009 South American Championships in Athletics was the forty sixth edition of the tournament and was held between 19 and 21 June in Lima, Peru....	Lima, Peru	1st	1500 m
			1st	5000 m
2010	Continental Cup 2010 IAAF Continental Cup The 1st IAAF Continental Cup was an international track and field sporting event held under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations. Originally scheduled as the 11th IAAF World Cup in Athletics, it was renamed in 2008 when the IAAF revamped the competition format...	Split, Croatia	3rd	3000 m	7:55.52
2011	Pan American Games Athletics at the 2011 Pan American Games Athletics competitions at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara was held from October 23 to October 30 at the newly built Telmex Athletics Stadium. The racewalking and marathon events were held on the temporary Guadalajara Circuit and Route and the Pan American Marathon circuit respectively...	Guadalajara, Mexico	2nd	1500 m	3:53.45
			2nd	5000 m	14:15.74