Hillary Kipsang Yego (born 2 April 1992) is a Kenyan

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires endurance, stamina as well as mental strength. Within e ...

who competes in the

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

. He has a personal best of 8:03.57 minutes for the event. He was the gold medallist at the

2009 World Youth Championships in Athletics The 2009 World Youth Championships in Athletics is the sixth edition of the IAAF World Youth Championships in Athletics. They were held at Brixen-Bressanone Sport Arena in Bressanone, Italy from 8–12 July 2009. Athletes had to be aged 16 or 1 ...

Career

He began training alongside

Edwin Soi Edwin Cheruiyot Soi (born 3 March 1986) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialises in the 3000 and 5000 metres. He is a two-time Olympian for Kenya. His earliest honours were team gold medals with Kenya at the IAAF World Cro ...

and made his breakthrough in the 2009 season. After finishing second to Peter Lagat in the

2000 metres steeplechase The 2000 meter steeplechase is a rarely run senior athletics and a standard youth athletics event for the steeplechase in track and field. The event is part of the athletics programme for boys and girls at the IAAF World Youth Championships in At ...

at the national youth trials he was chosen for the

. There he beat his Kenyan rival in the final stretch of the race, winning the gold medal in a time of 5:25.33 minutes in spite of his poor

hurdling Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...

technique. Yego attempted to gain qualification for the senior event at the Kenyan World trials

3000 metres steeplechase The 3000 metres steeplechase or 3000-meter steeplechase (usually abbreviated as ) is the most common distance for the steeplechase in track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, a ...

race, but finished in ninth place. A third-place finish at the national junior trials the following year meant he missed a berth for the steeplechase at the

2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics was an international athletics competition for athletes under the age of 20 which was held at the Moncton Stadium in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada from 19 to 25 July 2010. A total of 44 athletics ...

.Hillary Yego
Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 2013-08-24. He ran on the European circuit for the first time that year and set a best of 8:19.50 minutes for third at the

KBC Night of Athletics The KBC Night of Athletics ( nl, Nacht van de Atletiek) is an annual athletics event at the Stadium De Veen in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. It is officially presented and sponsored by the KBC Bank KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel ban ...

.Hillary Yego
IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-08-24. Yego had his first season as a senior athlete in 2011 and he performed on the major

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

circuits. He set a meet record at the

Colorful Daegu Championships Meeting The Colorful Daegu Championships Meeting was an annual track and field competition at the Daegu Stadium in Daegu, South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part o ...

in May then gained his first top three placing at an

IAAF Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fourteen of the best invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF) one-day mee ...

race in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

with a personal best of 8:07.71 minutes. He was runner-up at the

Golden Spike Ostrava Golden Spike ( cz, Zlatá tretra) is an annual athletics event at the Městský Stadion in Ostrava- Vítkovice, Czech Republic as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. It was first organized in 1961. The history of the meeting was interru ...

meet and won at the

Hanžeković Memorial Hanžeković Memorial ( hr, Hanžekovićev memorijal) is an athletics event at the Sportski Park Mladost athletic stadium in Zagreb, Croatia as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. It was first organized in 1951. ''Hanžek'' (which is the ...

, but was out of the top three at other Diamond League races. He ranked eighth in the world in the steeplechase that year. He experimented with

road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ac ...

events, running 1:02:26 for the half marathon in 2011 and 2:19:21 hours for the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

in 2012, but his skills were better suited to the steeplechase. He failed to make the 2012 Olympic team at the Kenyan Trials and did not make the top three at any

2012 IAAF Diamond League The 2012 IAAF Diamond League (also known as the 2012 Samsung Diamond League for sponsorship purposes) was the third edition of the Diamond League, an annual series of fourteen one-day track and field meetings. The series began on 11 May in Doha, Q ...

meet. Yego returned his focus to just the steeplechase in 2013. He was third in Shanghai with a personal best of 8:03.57 minutes and was victorious at the

IAAF World Challenge Beijing IAAF World Challenge Beijing is an annual track and field competition held in Beijing, China, in May. First held in 2013, it takes place at the Beijing National Stadium, the venue for the Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics. It is part of the ...

with a meet record. He was third at the Bislett Games but again missed out on the major championship after an eleventh-place finish at the Kenyan World Trials. Yego had his first major victory at the

DN Galan BAUHAUS-galan, formerly known as DN-Galan is an annual, international athletics meeting that takes place at the Olympic Stadium in Stockholm. Previously it was one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events until 2010, and has since been part of th ...

in August 2013. He won the race ahead of the best steeplechasers of his generation: Paul Kipsiele Koech,

Brimin Kiprop Kipruto Brimin Kipruto (born 31 July 1985) is a Kenyan professional middle distance runner who specialises in the 3000 metres steeplechase. He was born in Korkitony, Keiyo District. He holds a personal best of 7:53.64 minutes which is the ...

Ezekiel Kemboi Ezekiel Kemboi Cheboi (born 25 May 1982) is a Kenyan professional athlete, winner of the 3000 metres steeplechase at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2009 World Championships, the 2011 World Championships, the 2012 Summer Olympics, the 2013 W ...

and

Conseslus Kipruto Conseslus Kipruto (born 8 December 1994) is a Kenyan middle-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase. He was the 2016 Rio Olympic champion in the event. At the World Athletics Championships, Kipruto won gold medals in 20 ...

. He became eligible to compete internationally for Turkey in February 2020. As is common with Turkish transfers, he changed his name, becoming known as Hilal Yego.Transfers of allegiance - Decisions of the World Athletics Nationality Review Panel in 2020 (as of 8 May 2020)
World Athletics (2020-05-08). Retrieved 2020-05-30.

Personal bests

: 8:03.57 min (2013) *

(youth): 5:25.33 min (2009) *

3000 metres The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000m shoul ...

: 7:53.18 min (2010) * Half marathon: 1:02:26 hours (2011) *

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

: 2:19:21 hours (2012)

International competitions

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yego, Hillary Kipsang Living people 1992 births Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male steeplechase runners Kenyan male marathon runners Turkish male long-distance runners Turkish male steeplechase runners Turkish male marathon runners Turkish people of Kenyan descent Place of birth missing (living people)