Hellen Onsando Obiri (born 13 December 1989) is a Kenyan middle- and

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 ...

. She is a two-time Olympic

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stan ...

silver medallist from the 2016 Rio and

2020 Tokyo Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

, where she also placed fourth over the

10,000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The race ...

. She is a two-time world champion after winning the 5000m in 2017 and again in 2019, when she set a new championship record. Obiri also took bronze for the 1500 metres in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

and silver in the 10,000m in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

. She won the 3000 metres race at the 2012 World Indoor Championships, claimed silver in 2014, and placed fourth in 2018. She holds the Kenyan national records for the

mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of distance; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...

, 3000 metres both out and indoors, and 5000 metres events. Obiri won the women's race at the 2019 World Cross Country Championship. She places fifth in the

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcu ...

on the world all-time list. She was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by

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magazine in 2017.

Career

Obiri gained her first international experience at the 2011 Military World Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she won the bronze medal for the

800 metres The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of an outdoor (400-metre) track and has been an Olympic event since t ...

and placed fourth in the 1500 metres. In 2012, she took her first global title competing at the World Indoor Championships held in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

, clocking 8:37.16 over the 3000 metres. After bronze for the 1500m event at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, Obiri earned the silver medal in the 3000m at the World Indoor Championships in

Sopot Sopot is a seaside resort city in Pomerelia on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000. It is located in Pomeranian Voivodeship, and has the status of the county, being the smallest ci ...

a year later. She finished behind only multiple world record-holder

Genzebe Dibaba Genzebe Dibaba Keneni ( Oromo: ''Ganzabee Dibaabaa Qananii''; Amharic: ገንዘቤ ዲባባ ቀነኒ; born 8 February 1991) is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. A 1500 metres 2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist, she won a gold med ...

. In 2014, she added 1500m title from the

African Championships An African Championship is a top level international sports competition between African athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. List of Championships ;Athletics *African Championships in Ath ...

. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Obiri competed in the

and earned the silver medal in a time of 14:29.77, behind compatriot

Vivian Cheruiyot Vivian Jepkemoi Cheruiyot (born 11 September 1983) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in track and cross country running. She represented Kenya at the Summer Olympics in 2000, 2008, 2012, and 2016, winning a silver medal at the 5 ...

in an Olympic record of 14:26.17 and ahead of Ethiopia's

Almaz Ayana Almaz Ayana Eba ( om, Almaaz Ayyanaa Eebbaa; am, አልማዝ አያና ኤባ, born 21 November 1991) is an Ethiopian female long-distance runner. She won the gold medal in the 10,000 metres and bronze for the 5000 metres at the 2016 Rio Oly ...

who ran 14:33.59. Obiri represented Kenya at the 2017 World Championships in London and won the gold medal for the 5000m event ahead of

and

Sifan Hassan Sifan Hassan ( om, Siifan Hassan; born 1 January 1993) is an Ethiopian-born Dutch middle- and long-distance runner. She completed an unprecedented triple at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics winning gold medals in both the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres, ...

. In March 2019, Obiri won the women's senior race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championship. The event took place in Aarhus, Denmark. She won the 10.2 km race in a time of 36:14. After she posted best times of the year in the 5000 metres in 2017 and 2018, Obiri won the

event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of e ...

at the Doha World Championships in October, setting a championship record of 14:26.72 in the process.

Margaret Kipkemboi Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi (born 9 February 1993) is a Kenyan long-distance runner. She won the silver medal for the 5000 metres at the 2019 World Championships, and a bronze in the 10,000 metres at the 2022 World Championships. Kipkemboi took ...

and

Konstanze Klosterhalfen Konstanze "Koko" Klosterhalfen (born 18 February 1997) is a German middle- and long-distance runner. She is the 2019 World Championship bronze medallist and 2022 European champion in the 5000 metres, becoming the first German winner of the ev ...

finished second and third, respectively. Obiri represented Kenya at the

in both the women's

and

events. She won the silver medal at the former in a time of 14:38.36, finishing behind only Hassan who ran 14:36.79;

Gudaf Tsegay Gudaf Tsegay Desta (born 23 January 1997) is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. She is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist in the women's 5000 metres. At the World Athletics Championships, she won a bronze for the 1500 metres i ...

took bronze in 14:38.87. Obiri placed fourth in the 10,000m final in a personal best behind Hassan, Kalkidan Gezahegne and

Letesenbet Gidey Letesenbet Gidey (Tigrinya: ለተሰንበት ግደይ, born 20 March 1998) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who holds three world records plus one world best. A 10,000 metres 2020 Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist, at the World Athletics ...

. At the 2022 World Championships in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

, she competed only in the 10,000m event and was beaten to gold by Letesenbet Gidey in a very close finish (the top 3 were only separated by 0.13 s). Letensebet clocked 30:09.94, Obiri achieved personal best of 30:10.02, while her third-placed compatriot Margaret Kipkemboi was third in 30:10.07. She capped her fine 2022 season (64:22 at RAK half in February; wins at Istanbul Half Marathon, Great Manchester Run and

Great North Run The Great North Run (branded the Simplyhealth Great North Run for sponsorship purposes) is the largest half marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September. Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and South ...

) in November debuting in 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 ...

at the

New York City Marathon The New York City Marathon (currently branded TCS New York City Marathon after its headline sponsor (commercial), sponsor) is an annual Marathon (sport), marathon () that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest mar ...

, where she placed sixth.

Achievements

International competitions

Circuit wins and titles

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 ...

champion (2) (5000 m): Diamond blue

2017,

2018 **

(1) – 1500m: Eugene Prefontaine Classic ( ) ** 2014 –

Doha Diamond League The Doha Diamond League is an annual one-day track and field meeting held at the Suheim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar. It is part of the Diamond League – the top level international circuit for the sport. It is typically held in May as the ...

(3000m), Eugene (1500m, MR) ** 2016 – Eugene (5000m, PB), Monaco Herculis (3000m) ** 2017 – Shanghai Diamond League (5000m, WL PB), Rome Golden Gala (5000m, WL ),

London Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Di ...

(Mile MR NR), Monaco (3000m, WL), Brussels Memorial Van Damme (5000m) ** 2018 (2) – 5000m: Rabat Meeting International,

Weltklasse Zürich Weltklasse Zürich ( en, World Class Zurich) is an annual, invitation-only, world-class track and field meeting at the Letzigrund in Zürich, Switzerland, generally held at the end of August or beginning of September. Previously one of the IAAF ...

** 2019 – Doha (3000m, WL), London (5000m, WL MR) **

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

– Monaco (5000m, WL MR), Doha (3000m, WL) **

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(1) – 5000m: Oslo Bislett Games

National championships

Kenyan Athletics Championships The Kenyan Athletics Championships is an annual track and field meeting which serves as Kenya's national championships for the sport. Athletics Kenya, the country's governing body for athletics organises the event. The championships is usually hel ...

** 1500 metres: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 **

: 2018

Personal bests

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Obiri, Hellen Onsando 1989 births Living people Kenyan female middle-distance runners Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Kenya Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Olympic silver medalists for Kenya Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics World Athletics record holders (relay) World Athletics Championships athletes for Kenya World Athletics Championships medalists People from Kisii County Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Kenya World Athletics Championships winners African Championships in Athletics winners Diamond League winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics 20th-century Kenyan women 21st-century Kenyan women World Athletics Cross Country Championships winners