James Munyala (born November 2, 1952) is a Kenyan athlete, known for running 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 ...

. Running for the

University of Texas, El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stude ...

he won three straight

NCAA Championships The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

1975–1977. His 1976 win set the

Franklin Field Franklin Field is a sports stadium in Philadelphia, United States, at the eastern edge of the University of Pennsylvania's campus. It is the home stadium for the Penn Relays, and the University of Pennsylvania's stadium for football, track and fi ...

record that stood for 32 years. He was part of the controversial beginning wave of imported, older Kenyan athletes who allowed UTEP and

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

to dominate NCAA distance running. At the time,

Craig Virgin Craig Steven Virgin (born August 2, 1955) is an American distance runner. He was born in Belleville, Illinois and grew up near Lebanon, Illinois. While in high school, Virgin won 5 state championships (two in cross country and three in track) as ...

suggested these athletes displaced opportunities for American athletes. Another star athlete mentioned was Washington State's

Henry Rono Henry Rono (born 12 February 1952, in Kapsabet) is a Kenyan retired track and field athlete who specialised in various long-distance running events. Although he never competed at the Olympics, Rono is remembered as one of the most prolific coll ...

who succeeded Munyala as NCAA Champion, with Munyala as runner-up, in 1978, blocking his attempt to win four straight. Later in 1978, Rono and Munyala went 1-2 for Kenya at both the

African Games The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union (AU) with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (AN ...

and the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

. Munyala won the Indoor Mile for UTEP in 1978 and is in the university's Hall of Fame when they ran the triple crown of the Men's

Indoor Indoor(s) may refer to: *the interior of a building *Indoor environment, in building science, traditionally includes the study of indoor thermal environment, indoor acoustic environment, indoor light environment, and indoor air quality *Built envi ...

, Outdoor and Cross Country Championships all in the same year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Munyala, James 1952 births Living people Kenyan male middle-distance runners Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male steeplechase runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1978 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Kenya African Games silver medalists for Kenya African Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1978 All-Africa Games Medallists at the 1978 Commonwealth Games