Kipchoge Hezekiah Keino (born 17 January 1940) is a retired Kenyan
track and field athlete. He was the chairman of the
Kenyan Olympic Committee (KOC) until 29 September 2017. A two-time
Olympicgold medalist, Keino was among the first in a long line of successful
middle and
long distance runners to come from the country and has helped and inspired many of his fellow countrymen and women to become the
athletics force that they are today. In 2000, he became an honorary member of the
International Olympic Committee (IOC).[3] In 2012, he was one of 24 athletes inducted as inaugural members of the
IAAF Hall of Fame.[4]
Early life
Keino was born in Kipsamo,
Nandi District,
Kenya. His name, Kipchoge, is a
Nandi language expression for "born near the grain storage shed".[5] His parents died when he was a youngster and he was raised by an aunt. After finishing school, he joined the
Kenya Police.[6] Before taking up
athletics, he played
rugby.[7]
Athletic career
He began his international career at the
1962 Commonwealth Games in
Perth, Western Australia where he came eleventh in the three miles. At the
1964 Summer Olympics he finished fifth in 5000 m and just missed qualification for the 1500 m final.
On 27 August 1965, Keino lowered the 3000 m
world record by over 6 seconds to 7:39.6 in his first attempt at the distance. He won two gold medals (1500 and 5000 metres) at the
inaugural All-Africa Games. Later in that year, he broke the 5000 m world record held by
Ron Clarke, clocking 13:24.2. At the
1966 Commonwealth Games in
Kingston, Jamaica, he won both the
mile run and three-mile run. In the next Commonwealth Games, Keino won the 1500 metres and was third in the 5000 metres.
With his wife,
Phyllis Keino, he has dedicated significant efforts to humanitarian work in Eldoret, Kenya. They have established the Lewa Children's Home for orphans, the
KipKeino Primary School in 1999, and the Kip Keino Secondary School in 2009.[12]
In 2007, he was made an honorary Doctor of Law by the
University of Bristol.[13] Earlier,
Egerton University in
Nakuru had awarded him an honorary degree. In July 2012, he received further recognition from the City of Bristol after the Kenyan Olympic Committee, under his presidency, made Bristol the training base for its athletes in preparation for the
London 2012 Olympics. In 2012, Kipchoge Keino was among the inductees in the IAAF[14] Hall of fame.[15] The
Bristol City Council awarded him freedom of the city, making him the first to receive this honour from Bristol since
Sir Winston Churchill[6]
On 5 August 2016, at the
Olympic opening ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Keino was awarded the first
Olympic Laurel, for outstanding service to the Olympic movement.[16]