- David Rudisha was the first Kenyan runner to win the award in 2010 after breaking the 800m world record twice.
- Rudisha was also the youngest athlete ever in history to receive the trophy.
- Faith Kipyegon was named the world athlete of the year in 2023 thanks to breath-taking performances that saw her set two world records.
Kenyans have dominated the competitive athletics world for many years, especially since the start of the 21st century.
From the likes of steeplechase legend Ezekiel Kemboi to the ever-green Vivian Cheruiyot, these athletes have flown the country’s flag higher in numerous international championships.
However, despite their prowess in different tracks and roads in various regions of the world, very few of them have had the chance to bag the prestigious world athlete of the year award.
Interestingly, only three Kenyan athletes have clinched the crown since the inauguration of the awards by the world governing body in 1988.
SportPesa Blog takes a look at these special athletes and the achievements that made them to be named the best in the world.
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David Rudisha
Retired middle distance runner David Lekuta Rudisha was the first Kenyan and the youngest (aged 21) person in history to lay hands on the world athlete of the year award.
Rudisha won the prestigious trophy in 2010 after posting some outstanding performances that saw him lower the 800m world record twice.
The St. Francis Kimuron Secondary School alumni broke Wilson Kipketer’s 13-year-old record for the first time on August 22, 2010 at the ISTAF Berlin Meeting in Germany, when he produced a monstrous performance to cross the finishing line in 1:41:09.
One week later, Rudisha lowered his own world record to 1:41:01 at the IAAF World Challenge event that was staged in Rieti, Italy.
The athlete, who hails from Narok County, went on to become the first ever human being to run a 800m race in under 1:41:00 when he powered to victory at the 2012 London Olympic Games in a time of 1:40:91.
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Eliud Kipchoge
Eliud Kipchoge is the only Kenyan speedster to have won the world athlete of the year award on two occasions
The 40-year-old was named the best male athlete in the world in 2018 and 2019 after winning several Abbott world marathon majors titles and setting a new world record.
In 2018, the athlete who is part of the Global Sports Communications agency, bagged the London and Berlin Marathon titles. In Berlin, he set a new world record of 2:01:39, lowering the previous mark by 78 seconds.
Kipchoge continued with his great form in 2019 that saw him become the first person to run a marathon in under two hours at the unofficial INEOS 159 Challenge. In addition, he won the London Marathon title in a course record time of 2:02:37.
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Faith Kipyegon
1500m specialist Faith Kipyegon is the only woman in the rich history of Kenyan athletics to have ever bagged the world athlete of the year award.
The athlete, who won her first international race running barefoot, was voted the best in the universe by athletics stakeholders in 2023.
Some of the achievements that made her lift the reward include breaking the 1500m and 5000m world records and winning two titles at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
Although she also posted excellent performances this season, including lowering her 1500m world record, Kipyegon was not shortlisted for the final.
The decision was not received well by most of her die-hard fans, who had backed her to receive the reward for the second season in a row.
Finally, Kipketer, who has been mentioned above, also won the award in the 1997 season after switching his allegiance to Denmark.
Should the talented runner have competed for his motherland when he was at the peak of his career, Kenya could pride itself with five world athlete of the year awards at the moment.
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