Famous Track And Field Athletes from Kenya
Abel Mutai
Age: 35Abel Kiprop Mutai (born 2 October 1988) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase.He was born in Nandi. He won the gold medal at the 2005 World Youth Championships, a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, seventh at the 2013 World Championship and finished ninth at the 2009 World Athletics Final.As well as these, he won the 2000 m steeplechase at the 2007 African Junior championship. He suffered an Achilles tendon injury which kept him out of competition for all of 2010.His personal best times are 8:05.16 minutes in the 3000 metres, achieved in June 2006 in Lisbon; and 8:01.67 minutes in the 3000 metres steeplechase, achieved in May 2012 in Rome.Alphas Kishoyian
Age: 29Alphas Leken Kishoyian is a Kenyan sprinter. Kishoyian won a silver medal in the 400 metres at the 2011 World Youth Championships in Athletics, losing to Arman Hall. He also won a silver medal in the 400 m at the 2011 Commonwealth Youth Games, losing to Clovis Asong.Anderson Mureta Mutegi
Age: 37Anderson Mureta Mutegi is an athlete.Anthony Chemut
Age: 31Anthony Chemut is a Kenyan middle distance runner that specialises in the 800 metres. He was part of the Kenyan team for the 2012 Summer Olympics.- Age: 34Asbel Kiprop (born 30 June 1989) is a Kenyan middle-distance runner, who specialises in the 1500 metres. He was awarded the 1500 m gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics after the original winner, Rashid Ramzi, tested positive for doping. Kiprop has won three World Championship titles in the event, in 2011, 2013 and 2015. Kiprop failed his own doping test in November 2017 and received a four-year doping ban.He won his first major title at the 2007 All-Africa Games, taking the 1500 m gold medal, and also won the event at the 2010 African Championships in Athletics, improving upon a bronze medal performance from 2008. His personal best for the distance is 3:26.69.
Bedan Karoki
Age: 33Bedan Karoki Muchiri is an athlete.Boniface Mucheru
Age: 32Boniface Mucheru Tumuti is a Kenyan athlete competing in the 400 metres and 400 metres hurdles. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the Men's 400 metres hurdles.Boniface Ontuga Mweresa
Age: 30Boniface Ontuga Mweresa is a track and field athlete.- Age: 38Brimin Kipruto (born 31 July 1985) is a Kenyan middle distance runner who specialises in the 3000 metres steeplechase. He was born in Korkitony, Keiyo District. He holds a personal best of 7:53.64 minutes which is the second fastest time ever run, and the African Record. His personal best is only .01 of a second behind the world record of former county mate Saif Saaeed Shaheen, who switched national affiliation to Qatar after growing up as Stephen Cherono in the Keiyo District. He won a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics at the age of nineteen and improved to win the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics four years later. A World Championships bronze medallist in 2005, he took his first global title in the steeplechase with a win at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics.
Cherono Koech
Age: 31Cherono Koech is an athlete.- Age: 35David Lekuta Rudisha, MBS (born 17 December 1988) is a Kenyan middle-distance runner. He is the 2012 and 2016 Olympic champion, 2-time World Champion (2011 and 2015), and world record holder in the 800 metres. Rudisha is the first and only person to ever run under 1:41 for the event, and he holds the three fastest, six of the eight fastest, and half of the twenty fastest times ever run in this event. He also holds the world's best time in the 500m, with a time of 57.69, and the African record for the 600m, with a time of 1:13.10. Rudisha has won a record 3 consecutive Track & Field Athlete of the Year awards (tied with Carl Lewis), and also won the IAAF World Athlete of the Year award in 2010.
- Age: 38Edwin Cheruiyot Soi (born 3 March 1986 in Kericho) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the 3000 and 5000 metres. He is a two-time Olympian for Kenya. His earliest honours were team gold medals with Kenya at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in 2006 and 2007. Soi has had his success on the track – he was the 5000 m bronze medallist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was highly successful at the IAAF World Athletics Final, taking three gold and three silver medals from 2006 to 2008. He became the continental champion on the track at the 2010 African Championships in Athletics and was the 3000 m bronze medallist at the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships. Soi has won numerous 10K road races in his career; he has won three times consecutively at the BOclassic, Memorial Peppe Greco and Giro Media Blenio races, and has had four straight wins at the Giro al Sas. His personal best for the distance is 27:46 minutes.
Eunice Sum
Age: 36Eunice Sum is a track and field athlete.- Age: 41Ezekiel Kemboi Cheboi (born 25 May 1982) is a Kenyan athlete, winner of the 3000 metres steeplechase at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2009 World Championships, the 2011 World Championships, the 2012 Summer Olympics, the 2013 World Championships and the 2015 World Championships. His 3000 m steeplechase best of 7:55.76 set at Monaco in 2011 places him as the sixth fastest of all time. This time is also the fastest non-winning time in history. He is one of only four men to have won both Olympic and World golds in the event, along with Reuben Kosgei, Brimin Kipruto and Conseslus Kipruto. He is the only multiple gold medalist in both. He is the only athlete to have won four world championships in the steeplechase (which he won consecutively), and only the second athlete to win two Olympic titles in the event (after Volmari Iso-Hollo).More Ezekiel Kemboi
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Faith Chepngetich Kipyegon
Age: 30Faith Chepngetich Kipyegon is an athlete.Hellen Onsando Obiri
Age: 34Hellen Onsando Obiri is a Kenyan middle-distance runner. She won 3000 metres distance at 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. Obiri was 11th in 1500 m at 2011 World Championships in Daegu, South Korea.Isiah Koech
Age: 30Isiah Kiplangat Koech (born 19 December 1993) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the 5000 metres. At the 2009 World Youth Championships in Athletics in Brixen, Italy, Koech won a gold medal over 3000 metres, setting a new world youth leading time with 7:51.51.He also took part in the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, finishing fourth in the junior men's race. On 11 February 2011, Koech became just the fourth man to run the 5000 m indoor under 13 minutes when he clinched victory in 12 min 53.29 sec at the PSD Bank Meeting in Düsseldorf. He then ran a world junior indoor best for the 3000 m at the Indoor Flanders Meeting a few days later, running a time of 7:37.50 minutes Koech controlled the junior race at the Kenyan Cross Country Championships and took first place, earning a spot for the Junior World Cross.Despite being a provisional favourite for the junior race at the 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, he ended the race in tenth place, although he did help Kenya to the team title alongside Geoffrey Kipsang and Patrick Mutunga Mwikya. Moving into the senior ranks, he ran over 5000 m at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics and closely finished behind the medallists to place fourth overall. In December, he returned to cross country and won the Lotto Cross Cup Brussels by a margin of over half a minute.At the 2012 Kenyan Olympic trials he ran the fastest ever 5000 m time in Kenya to win the race and guarantee his first Olympic selection.- Age: 45Janet Cherobon-Bawcom is an American distance runner. She grew up in Kenya, before attending college in the United States. In college she won three Division II national championships and was named an All-American eight times. She became eligible to compete for the United States in 2011. In 2012, she made the U.S. Olympic team in the 10,000 meters and placed 12th.
- Age: 40Janeth Jepkosgei Busienei (born 13 December 1983) is a Kenyan middle distance runner and former world champion.
Joy Nakhumicha Sakari
Age: 37Joy Nakhumicha Sakari is a track and field athlete.Joyce Chepkirui
Age: 35Joyce Chepkirui is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in road running events. She established herself as a half marathon runner, winning races in Granollers, Bogotá and Gothenburg. She set a best of 1:06:19 hours to win the 2014 Prague Half Marathon. She also competes in 10K road races and her personal best of 30:38 minutes makes her fifth fastest woman ever. Chepkirui began competing in cross country running in 2012 and won the Kenyan and African titles. She also competes on the track over 1500 metres and was the silver medallist at the 2011 All-Africa Games.- Age: 35Julius Kiplagat Yego is a Kenyan track and field athlete who competes in the javelin throw. He is the Kenyan record holder for the event with a personal best of 85.40 metres. He was third at the 2010 African Championships in Athletics and became the first Kenyan to win the javelin title at the All-Africa Games in 2011.More Julius Yego
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Lydia Rotich
Age: 35Lydia Chebet Rotich (born 8 August 1988, Keiyo District, Rift Valley Province) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase. She finished fifth at the 2009 World Athletics Final and fourth at the 2011 World Championships. Her personal best time is 9:18.03 minutes, achieved in June 2010 in Oslo. She competed at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics. In the 2012 Summer Olympics she finished seventh with a time of 9:42.03 in Round One, Heat Two. In the 2016 Summer Olympics she finished fifth in Round One, Heat One; which lead to her competing in the final where she came thirteenth with a time of 9:29.90. She works as a police traffic officer. Her uncle Fred Chesengor is a physiotherapist for the Kenyan national team, particularly the Paralympic team.She competed in the 5000 m at the 2005 National Secondary Schools competition but did not perform well. She switched to the steeplechase hoping to do better. In 2006, she reached the final of the National Secondary Schools competition in the steeplechase, but did not make the Kenyan team for the World Juniors.She missed the second half of 2007 due to malaria.In 2008 she won the Kenyan trials for the 16th CAA Africa Athletics Championships, beating Ruth Bosibori. Unfortunately, when she travelled to Addis Ababa for the African Athletics Championships, she had a massive allergic reaction, preventing her from competing. That year, she also broke the 10 minute barrier for the first time. However, she missed out on selection for the 2008 Olympics at the Kenyan national trials.She came third in 2009 Kenyan championships, and second at the 2010 Kenyan championships.More Lydia Rotich- Dig Deeper...List of Famous Police Officers
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Mark Mutai
Age: 46Mark Kiprotich Mutai (born 23 March 1978), also spelled Muttai, is a runner from Kenya, who specializes in 400 metres. He is a Commonwealth Games gold medallist. He competed at the 2009 world championships in Berlin, Germany, but did not advance from the heats. In 2010 he was part of the Kenyan 4x400 metres relay team that won gold at the 2010 African Championships in Athletics. In the individual event he was fourth, despite recording the same time as bronze medallist Gary Kikaya of DR Congo.Mutai was part of the African 4x400 metres relay team that finished third at the 2010 IAAF Continental Cup. He won 400 metres gold medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. He is affiliated to Kenyan Armed Forces.Maureen Jelagat Maiyo
Age: 38Maureen Jelagat Maiyo is an athlete.Mercy Wanjiku
Age: 37Mercy Wanjiku Njoroge (born 10 June 1986) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the steeplechase. She finished fourth in 3000 metres steeplechase at the 2004 World Junior Championships as well as in the junior race at the 2005 World Cross Country Championships. She claimed the steeplechase title at the 2005 African Junior Athletics Championships. Moving into the senior ranks, at the 2006 World Cross Country Championships she finished twelfth in the long race, helping the Kenyans to the silver medal in the team competition. She was fifth in the steeplechase at both the 2007 All-Africa Games and 2008 African Championships in Athletics. Njoroge won the silver medal in the steeplechase behind Milcah Chemos Cheywa at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. She opened her 2011 season with an indoor 3000 m best of 8:50.32 minutes to win at the Sparkassen Cup.She is based at the PACE Sports Management training camp in Kaptagat.- Age: 38Milcah Chemos Cheywa (born 24 February 1986 in Bugaa, Mount Elgon District) is a runner from Kenya who specialises in 3000 metres steeplechase. She is African record holder at the distance and is the gold medalist of the 2013 World Championships in Athletics.More Milcah Cheywa
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- Age: 37Moses Ndiema Masai (born 1 June 1986 in Kapsogom, Mount Elgon District) is a Kenyan runner who specializes in the 10,000 metres. Masai is from Bugaa village, four kilometres from Kapsokwony town. Born to John Barasa Masai and Leonida Cherop, he is the first born out of ten children. He started running while at Kapsogom Primary School. Later he joined Bishop Okiring Secondary School. At the 2005 Kenyan Sports Personality of the Year awards he won the most promising sportsman category. He won a bronze medal at the 2007 IAAF World Athletics Final in the 5000 m. He ran in the 2008 Summer Olympics and managed to finish in fourth position in the 10,000 metres final, narrowly missing out on a medal. His younger sister, Linet Masai, won the women's 10,000 metres gold at the 2009 World Championships, while he won bronze over the same distance. Other siblings Dennis, Ndiema and Magdaline are also runners. Their father John Barasa Masai is also a former runner, while Ben Jipcho, a legendary athlete, is their distant uncle.Moses Masai won the 2009 New Year's Eve San Silvestre Vallecana race. He took the World's Best 10K title at the 2010 race in Puerto Rico, scoring a new course record of 27:19 and picking up a bonus for his fast time. He signed up for the Dam tot Damloop in September 2010 and was a close runner-up to John Mwangangi, finishing a second behind his compatriot. He made only three appearances in 2011, running at the FBK Games, Prefontaine Classic and the World's Best 10K, but finished outside the top five on each occasion.In spite of his low-profile in prior seasons, he gained a place on the Kenyan Olympic team by coming second at the 10,000 m trials at 2012 Prefontaine Classic. Unfortunately, at the Olympics themselves, he could only manage a twelfth-placed finish.Masai trains with PACE Sports Management. He is married to Doris Changeywo and the couple has a daughter. He is not to be confused with another Kenyan runner named Moses Masai, known for running marathons and road races in Central Europe.
Nixon Chepseba
Age: 33Nixon Kiplimo Chepseba is a Kenyan middle distance runner who specialises in the 1500 metres. He was the 2011 Diamond League series winner of that event and has a personal best of 3:29.90 minutes. Chepseba gained his first international selection for the 2009 African Junior Athletics Championships via a trial event at Nyayo National Stadium. At the competitions he took the silver medal in the 1500 m behind fellow Kenyan James Magut. He made his European debut later that year, winning at the Antwerp Gala and setting a meet record of 2:18.61 min for the 1000 m at the Athletics Bridge in Slovakia. He trains in Kaptagat. He moved up to the senior ranks the year after and ran an indoor best of 3:35.82 min for the 1500 m in Leipzig in February 2010. Another personal best came at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in his first Diamond League appearance. He also ran at the Golden Gala and Memorial van Damme meetings that year and finished his season with a personal best run of 3:32.42 min for third at the Rieti Meeting. Chepseba established himself as a top level competitor during the 2011 indoor season.- Age: 34Pamela Jelimo (born 5 December 1989) is a Kenyan middle-distance runner, specialising in the 800 metres. She won the gold medal in this event at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing at the age of 18. She is the first Kenyan woman to win an Olympic gold medal and also the first Kenyan to win the Golden League Jackpot. She holds both the 800 m world junior record and the senior African record over the same distance. Jelimo is also one of the youngest women to win an Olympic gold medal for Kenya.
