Kenyans who travel to different parts of the globe will agree that when they are abroad, they are constantly asked about their secret for success in athletics.
Kenya has produced many brilliant female athletes who have and continue to smash various world records in their respective disciplines. TeamKenya.co.ke looks at the best four Kenyan female runners based on their achievements.
Edna Ngeringwony Kiplagat
Edna Kiplagat is the “queen” of long-distance running in Kenya. Kiplagat who was born in 1979 has registered a podium place finish in almost all of the marathon events that she featured in, both locally and internationally.
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The mother of five is a two-time world marathon champion. She won a gold medal for Kenya at the 2011 world athletics championships in Daegu, South Korea and successfully defended her title at the 2013 edition staged in Moscow, Russia. In 2017, Kiplagat added a silver world athletics championship title to her impressive cabinet.
Apart from her stellar outings in international competitions, Kiplagat was also a force to reckon in major marathon events. Some of the major races that she has won include the New York City marathon, Boston Marathon and Los Angeles City marathon. She won the 2014 London marathon in a time of 2:20. 21. Kiplagat is also the three-time London marathon runner's up.
Kiplagat who has a personal best of 2:19.50 is one of the few Kenyan athletes who are using their fame to touch the lives of their communities. The Kenyan police officer founded the Edna Kiplagat Foundation to create breast cancer awareness.
Pamela Jelimo
One cannot speak about athletics in Kenya without mentioning the name Pamela Jelimo.
Jelimo is one of the best female athletes in Kenya’s history despite her short career. She is the first Kenyan woman to win an Olympic gold medal. Jelimo produced one of the most breathtaking performances at the 2008 Beijing Olympic to win Kenya’s first ever 800m Olympic gold medal.
Jelimo also entered Kenya's history books when she won the IAAF golden league jackpot in 2008 at the age of 18. The jackpot was worth over Ksh 100 million. She is the current record holder of both the African senior and junior records.
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The most interesting thing about the Kapsabet-based runner is that she used to compete with boys while in primary school since girls were far below her level. Also, Jelimo was raised by a single mother, since the Nandi tradition did not allow a last-born daughter to be married. The last-born daughter had to look after her parents, particularly in their old age.
Brigid Kosgei
Brigid Kosgei is one of the greatest long-distance runners that Kenya has ever produced. The mother of two has made it to the podium in eight of the nine elite marathon events that she has taken part in.
The 28-year-old is the current women’s marathon world record holder. She broke the world record at the 2019 Chicago City marathon edition reaching the tape in 2:14.04. Her time was more than one minute faster than the previous world record set by Britain’s Paula Radcliffe.
Kosgei is also the youngest ever winner of the prestigious London Marathon thanks to her 2019 spectacular performance.
Vivian Cheruiyot
Vivian Cheruiyot popularly known as the “Pocket Rocket” is without doubt one of the most successful athletes to don the Kenyan colors. The 30-year-old has had remarkable success on and off the track. She is the first Kenyan runner to win both the 10000m and 5000m titles in one world championship event.
Cheruiyot currently holds the 5000m Commonwealth Games and the national records. She had one of the best final kicks ever in athletics which was lovely to watch. The ever-smiling runner is among the few Kenyan athletes who have registered impressive results in both the marathon and track events.
In 2019, Cheruiyot bagged the London marathon title in an impressive time of 2:18:31. The Kapsabet-based athlete also boasts of a Laureus athlete of the year award which she bagged in 2012.
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