The Ethiopian team's coaches reported four members of the team missing to police just before 1 a.m. Saturday. They told an officer that Zeyituna Mohammed had signed a contract with Nike on Friday, and that Dureti Edao had signed a contract with Adidas the same day, according to the report. Both women are 18-year-old runners.
Nike declined to comment on Mohammed's contract. As of Thursday evening, an Adidas spokeswoman did not have any more details about Edao's relationship with the company.
The police report only details the hours leading up to the runners' disappearance. It remains unclear how police found the athletes, or how long they plan to stay in the U.S.
The coaches also told police they believed the four runners -- Mohammad; Edao; Amanuel Abebe Atibeha, a 17-year-old boy; and Meaza Kebede, an 18-year-old woman -- were planning to defect to the U.S., and were mostly likely destined for Portland or Washington to get help from Ethiopian communities there.
Earlier that day, Edao told the coaches she needed to send a copy of her passport to the Adidas contract manager to finalize the agreement, according to the report. Then, they gave her a key to the room where the team's passports were kept.
Other members of the Ethiopian team later saw the four running with their bags and then hop into a white sedan, according to the report. None of the other team members were able to identify the driver.
Coaches later said the four athletes' passports were missing and that the women's rooms, in a UO dormitory, were emptied of belongings.
The runners have since turned up safe. Mohammed was found to be staying with an acquaintance in Washington. Edao, Atibeha and Meaza Kebede were found staying with an acquaintance or acquaintances in Beaverton.
Because all are safe and in the U.S. legally, UO police have closed their case.
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