Paul Kipngetich Tanui
Encyclopedia
Paul Kipngetich Tanui is a Kenya
n long distance runner.
Hailing from Nakuru
, Kenya, he began competing in major domestic cross country
races in the 2007–2008 season: in two of the junior races at the KCB/Athletics Kenya Cross Country meetings he made the top eight, and he went on to finish in sixth in the junior race at the Kenya National Cross Country Championships in 2008. He competed on the track at the provincial level in June and ran a time of 14:19.76 for second place in the 5000 metres
behind Evans Mayoyo.
Tanui improved further the following season, finishing fourth in the junior race in Meru
, winning at the Nyanza
South Provincial Championships, then taking second place in the junior race at the 2009 Kenya Championships, behind John Kemboi. This gave him automatic selection for the Kenyan team at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
. He came close to making the podium but ended up in fourth despite recording the same time as bronze medallist Moses Kibet. Despite not reaching the top three, he managed to help the Kenyan junior men to the team gold that year.
After moving to Fukuoka
, Japan
in mid-2009 to improve his running, the 2010 season proved to be another step up for Tanui. At the beginning of the year he took part in the New Year Ekiden for the Kyudenko Corporation, where he ran the fastest in his stage. Competing in the men's senior race at the Kenya Championships for the first time, Tanui surprised his competitors with a significant victory. He defeated a number of established runners to win the men's title by a margin of over thirty seconds. With former champions Kenenisa Bekele
and Zersenay Tadese not competing at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
, Tanui was suggested as a tentative favourite for the competition. He failed to carry over his strong domestic form to the world stage, but the 19-year-old still managed to reach the top ten in his first attempt at the senior level, finishing eighth and helping Kenya to the team gold.
Seventh place at the 2011 Kenyan trials meant that he was not selected for the world event, but a dispute between Leonard Komon
and Athletics Kenya
saw Tanui drafted in as a late replacement. He went on to finish the 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
as his nation's best performer by taking the silver medal
, two seconds behind race winner Imane Merga
. Tanui also led the Kenyans to the team gold medal. A third place finish at the Trofeo Alàsport
meet behind Merga and Caleb Ndiku brought his cross country season to a close.
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 long distance runner.
Hailing from Nakuru
Nakuru
Nakuru, the provincial capital of Kenya's Rift Valley province, with roughly 300,000 inhabitants, and currently the fourth largest urban centre in the country, lies about 1850 m above sea level...
, Kenya, he began competing in major domestic cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
races in the 2007–2008 season: in two of the junior races at the KCB/Athletics Kenya Cross Country meetings he made the top eight, and he went on to finish in sixth in the junior race at the Kenya National Cross Country Championships in 2008. He competed on the track at the provincial level in June and ran a time of 14:19.76 for second place in the 5000 metres
5000 metres
The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...
behind Evans Mayoyo.
Tanui improved further the following season, finishing fourth in the junior race in Meru
Meru, Kenya
-Transport:The City of Meru is linked to Nairobi by a paved road, whether from the south around the east side of Mount Kenya, via Embu, or from the northwest around the west and north side of Mount Kenya, via Nanyuki and Timau....
, winning at the Nyanza
Nyanza Province
Nyanza Province of Kenya, is one of Kenya's eight administrative provinces. It is located in the southwest part of Kenya around Lake Victoria. Nyanza includes part of the eastern edge of Lake Victoria and is inhabited predominantly by the Luo. There are also Bantu-speaking tribes such as the...
South Provincial Championships, then taking second place in the junior race at the 2009 Kenya Championships, behind John Kemboi. This gave him automatic selection for the Kenyan team at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 37th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Al Bisharat Golf Course at Amman, Jordan on 28 March 2009. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...
. He came close to making the podium but ended up in fourth despite recording the same time as bronze medallist Moses Kibet. Despite not reaching the top three, he managed to help the Kenyan junior men to the team gold that year.
After moving to Fukuoka
Fukuoka
Fukuoka most often refers to the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture.It can also refer to:-Locations:* Fukuoka, Gifu, a town in Gifu Prefecture, Japan* Fukuoka, Toyama, a town in Toyama Prefecture, Japan...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in mid-2009 to improve his running, the 2010 season proved to be another step up for Tanui. At the beginning of the year he took part in the New Year Ekiden for the Kyudenko Corporation, where he ran the fastest in his stage. Competing in the men's senior race at the Kenya Championships for the first time, Tanui surprised his competitors with a significant victory. He defeated a number of established runners to win the men's title by a margin of over thirty seconds. With former champions Kenenisa Bekele
Kenenisa Bekele
Kenenisa Bekele is an Ethiopian long-distance runner, who holds the world record and Olympic record in both the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres events...
and Zersenay Tadese not competing at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held at Myślęcinek Park in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 28 March 2010. It was the first time in over twenty years that Poland hosted the annual championships, having previously held them in Warsaw in 1987. Kenyan runners dominated the competition, taking...
, Tanui was suggested as a tentative favourite for the competition. He failed to carry over his strong domestic form to the world stage, but the 19-year-old still managed to reach the top ten in his first attempt at the senior level, finishing eighth and helping Kenya to the team gold.
Seventh place at the 2011 Kenyan trials meant that he was not selected for the world event, but a dispute between Leonard Komon
Leonard Komon
Leonard Patrick Komon is a Kenyan long-distance runner and the current world record holder in the 10 kilometres and 15 km road races....
and Athletics Kenya
Athletics Kenya
Athletics Kenya is the governing body for the sport of athletics in Kenya. It is a member of the IAAF and Confederation of African Athletics. AK organises athletics competitions held in Kenya. It also sends Kenyan teams to international championships. Isaiah Kiplagat is the current chairman of...
saw Tanui drafted in as a late replacement. He went on to finish the 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in Punta Umbría, Spain on 20 March 2011.-Preparation:The United States had expressed an interest in hosting the competition, but Punta Umbria was chosen as the host at the IAAF Council Meeting in November 2009...
as his nation's best performer by taking the silver medal
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
, two seconds behind race winner Imane Merga
Imane Merga
Imane Merga Jida is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 and 10,000 metres. He won his first world title at the 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships...
. Tanui also led the Kenyans to the team gold medal. A third place finish at the Trofeo Alàsport
Trofeo Alasport
The Trofeo Alasport, also known as the Cross di Alà dei Sardi, is an annual cross country running competition which takes place in March in Alà dei Sardi on the Italian island of Sardinia. Unusually for a high-profile cross country event, it has often been held after the IAAF World Cross Country...
meet behind Merga and Caleb Ndiku brought his cross country season to a close.
Personal bests
| Event | Time (m Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... :s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5000 m | 13:37.15 | Fukuoka Fukuoka Fukuoka most often refers to the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture.It can also refer to:-Locations:* Fukuoka, Gifu, a town in Gifu Prefecture, Japan* Fukuoka, Toyama, a town in Toyama Prefecture, Japan... , Japan |
7 November 2009 |
| 10,000 m | 26:50.63 | Eugene Eugene, Oregon Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S... , United States |
3 June 2011 |
- All information taken from IAAF profile.
Competition record
| 2009 | World Cross Country Championships 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 37th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Al Bisharat Golf Course at Amman, Jordan on 28 March 2009. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition... |
Amman Amman Amman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost... , Jordan |
4th | Junior race | Individual |
| 1st | Junior race | Team | |||
| 2010 | World Cross Country Championships 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held at Myślęcinek Park in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 28 March 2010. It was the first time in over twenty years that Poland hosted the annual championships, having previously held them in Warsaw in 1987. Kenyan runners dominated the competition, taking... |
Bydgoszcz, Poland | 6th | Senior race | Individual |
| 1st | Senior race | Team | |||
| 2011 | World Cross Country Championships 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2011 IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in Punta Umbría, Spain on 20 March 2011.-Preparation:The United States had expressed an interest in hosting the competition, but Punta Umbria was chosen as the host at the IAAF Council Meeting in November 2009... |
Punta Umbria Punta Umbría Punta Umbría is a town and municipality in the province of Huelva, part of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia.The Punta in its name comes from the long point going out to the sea from the beach.... , Spain |
2nd | Senior race | Individual |
| 1st | Senior race | Team |