Kipchoge Keino
One of Kenya's greatest Olympic athletes, Kipchoge ‘Kip' Keino is also one of the world's most admired sporting heroes. His courage and determination in winning a gold and silver medal in the 1968 Olympics, despite suffering from gallstones, endeared him to sports lovers around the world. That drive and single-minded determination to succeed against the odds has today made him one of the great benefactors to underprivileged children in Kenya.
Training
Keino is best known for his training at 1,800 metres above sea level, which helped introduce high-altitude training as a technique to improve running time at any altitude. A member of the Nandi tribe, he worked as a physical training instructor in the Kenya police force before becoming an athlete.
International Career
Keino began his international running career in 1962 when he set a Kenyan record in the one mile race and at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, Western Australia where he came eleventh in the three miles race. At the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, Keino represented Kenya in their first games as an independent nation, finishing fifth in the 5,000 metres and barely missed the 1500 m final.
Later in 1964 he set two world records, at 3,000 metres with a time of 7 mins 39.6 secs and at 5,000 metres with a time of 13 mins 24.2 secs. In both 1964 and 1965, at the first and second African Games, he was champion at the 1,500 metres and 5,000 metres.On August 27, 1965, Keino lowered the 3000 m world record by over 6 seconds to 7:39.6 at his first attempt at the distance.Later in that year he broke the 5000 m world record held by Ron Clarke clocking 13:24.2. At the 1966 Commonwealth Games, Keino won the titles in both the one mile and three mile events.
Keino's most acclaimed international victory came at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, where, after having to jog a mile to the stadium because the bus from the Olympics Village was stuck in traffic, he won the 1500 metres with an Olympic record time of 3 mins 34.9 secs (defeating American great Jim Ryun in a memorable duel).
The mark stood until 1984. He also won the silver medal in the 5000 metres event despite an acute gallbladder infection. At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, West Germany, he won his second Olympic gold medal, in the 3000 metres steeplechase, and also won a silver medal in the 1500 metres.
Charity
Keino retired from the track in 1973, a Kenyan hero, but there was much still to come from this remarkable man. Kip and his wife Phyllis purchased a farm in Eldoret which they converted into an orphanage, the Kip Keino Children's Home. "We started with two children, then it went to six, then ten. Now it's up to 90. We give them shelter and love. Many of these children who lived with us as orphans have gone to university, some are doctors, and when you see them with their own families living well in society, I feel very happy," he says.
In 1987, he shared Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsmen and Sportswomen of the Year" award with seven others, characterized as "Athletes Who Care," for his work with orphans. The Keino family realised a lifelong dream in 2000 with the creation of the Kip Keino School, funded by various donations. Almost 300 children age 6-13 attend the school. His son Martin, the only one to follow in his racing footsteps, was a two-time NCAA champion and highly successful pace-setter.
Hall of fame
In 1996 Kipchoge Keino was inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame.
