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| Human Interest | |
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Further Personal Information | |
| Residence | Ngong, KEN |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Kenya Armed Forces: Kenya |
General Interest | |
| Injuries | She had a light knee injury after the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India. She did not make the 2009 World Championships in Berlin due to an injury. (standardmedia.co.ke, 17 Aug 2011) |
| Famous relatives | Her father was a 5000 metre runner. (iaaf.org, 01 Sep 2010) Her husband Kenneth Cheruiyot won the 2002 Rotterdam Marathon. (iaaf.org, 01 Sep 2010) She is the cousin of 1999 World Youth champion in the 3000 metres Alice Timbilil. (iaaf.org, 01 Sep 2010) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | Claudio Berardelli |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She began running from a young age. |
General Interest | |
| Other information | FAMILY She took a break from athletics for two years to attend to her maternal duties. She returned fully to athletics in 2008. After the birth of her first son in 2002, she returned to running in 2004 after making a slow comeback in 2003. (iaaf.org.org, 01 Sep 2010) ARMED FORCES She joined the Kenyan Armed Forces in 2006. Five months after giving birth to her second child, she returned to the mandatory Armed Forces training. In 2008, after winning her Beijing Olympic title, she was promoted to Corporal. (iaaf.org, 01 Sep 2010) BEIJING OLYMPICS On the eve of her 27th birthday, she won a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics. She became the second Kenyan woman to win an Olympic gold. On her return to Kenya, she was given 25 000 US dollars by the government and private corporations. A big party was thrown in honour of her and other Beijing Olympians by the parliament members in the Rift Valley region. "All my fellow athletes and all Kenyans noticed that Kenyan women can also be good middle distance runners. I received special prizes from Athletics Kenya and was promoted to Corporal by the Armed Forces. Even now, I find it hard to believe I won gold in Beijing but it is an achievement that fills me with great reward. I know that I deserved the reward for my long career and it gave me motivation to aim for more. The victory will inspire more young girls to take up athletics and believe in themselves." (iaaf.org, 01 Sep 2010) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Family | Kenneth Cheruiyot [husband], Keith Kipkoech and Klein Cheruiyot [sons] |