Moses Kiptanui

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Medal record
Men’s Athletics
Competitor for Flag of Kenya Kenya
Olympic Games
Silver 1996 Atlanta 3000 m steeplechase
World Championships
Gold 1991 Tokyo 3000 m steeplechase
Gold 1993 Stuttgart 3000 m steeplechase
Gold 1995 Gothenburg 3000 m steeplechase
Silver 1997 Athens 3000 m steeplechase

Moses Kiptanui (born October 1, 1970 in Marakwet District, Kenya) 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. Kiptanui was also the first man ever to run 3000 m steeplechase in under eight minutes.

Kiptanui emerged in 1991 as a relatively unknown athlete. He won several Grand prix races that season. He celebrated an especially spectacular victory in Zurich where he fell on the floor on the last lap but still won easily.

His victory at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo therefore came as no surprise. To the great disappointment of many observers he was not included in the Kenyan team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Kiptanui had failed to qualify at the Kenyan trials in Nairobi.

However, shortly after the Olympics he set a new world record over 3000 m in Cologne with a time of 7:28.96 min. Only three days later he also broke the 3000 m steeplechase world record in 8:02.08 in Zurich. The following year, he defended the World Championship title easily in Stuttgart. In 1995 he broke the 5000 m world record in Rome in a time of 12:55.30 min. After collecting his third World Championship gold medal in Gothenburg he also set the new 3000 m steeplechase record in Zurich in a time of 7:59.18 min.

A year later, he missed out on an Olympic gold medal again when he came second in the final in Atlanta. He was defeated by fellow Kenyan Joseph Keter. The next year, at the 1997 World Championships in Athletics in Athens, Greece, Kiptanui failed to win fourth consecutive gold medal, but took silver. The winner was Wilson Boit Kipketer, also from Kenya.

He was still active in 2001 sighting the 2002 Commonwealth Games [1], but did not compete there. After retirement, he has been a running coach.

[edit] Major achievements

[edit] References

  1. ^ BBC Sports, December 6, 2001: Record relay to start Games

[edit] External links

Records
Preceded by
Flag of Morocco Said Aouita
Men's 3,000 m World Record Holder
August 16, 1992August 2, 1994
Succeeded by
Flag of Algeria Noureddine Morceli
Preceded by
Flag of Kenya Peter Koech
Men's Steeplechase World Record Holder
August 19, 1992August 13, 1997
Succeeded by
Flag of Kenya Wilson Boit Kipketer
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Flag of Germany Dieter Baumann
Men's 3,000 m Best Year Performance
1992
Succeeded by
Flag of Algeria Noureddine Morceli
Preceded by
Flag of Algeria Noureddine Morceli
Men's 3,000 m Best Year Performance
1995
Succeeded by
Flag of Kenya Daniel Komen
Preceded by
Flag of Kenya Yobes Ondieki
Men's 5,000 m Best Year Performance
1992
Succeeded by
Flag of Kenya Ismael Kirui
Preceded by
Flag of Kenya Peter Koech
Men's 3,000 m Steeple Best Year Performance
19911995
Succeeded by
Flag of Kenya John Kosgei