Joseph Keter is a former Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

n athlete, winner of 3000 m steeplechase at the 1996 Summer Olympics

1996 Summer Olympics

The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....

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Born in Lessos, Nandi District

Nandi District

Nandi District is an administrative district in the Rift Valley Province of Kenya. Its capital town is Kapsabet. The district has a population of 578,751 .The topography of the district is dominated by the Nandi Hills...

, Joseph Keter, an officer of Kenyan Army, had only one good season throughout his athletics career, which culminated with an Olympic gold medal.

In Atlanta

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

, the hot favourite to 3000 m steeplechase gold medal was a world record

World record

A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...

 holder Moses Kiptanui

Moses Kiptanui

Moses Kiptanui is a middle and long distance athlete mostly famous for 3,000 m steeplechase in which he was the number one ranked athlete from 1991 to 1995 and three time IAAF World Champion...

. But in the Olympic final, Kiptanui was strongly challenged by his Armed Forces' colleague Keter. The Kenyan pair reached the final water jump side by side, but then Keter slowly edged ahead to win the gold medal by 1.11 seconds.

After the Olympic Games

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

, Keter beat Kiptanui again in Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

, running his personal best 8.05.99. After that glorious season, Keter kept running for some seasons and won the IAAF Grand Prix

IAAF Grand Prix

The IAAF Grand Prix was an annual global circuit of fourteen one day athletics competitions as part of the IAAF World Athletics Tour organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations...

in 3000 m steeplechase in 1997.