Raymond Kipkorir Yator (born 7 April 1981) is a Kenyan former

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 ...

athlete. He was a former world junior record holder and world junior champion for the steeplechase. His personal best of 8:03.74 minutes ranks him with the all-time top 25 for the event. He was a finalist at the

2001 World Championships in Athletics The 8th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada between 3 August and 12 August and was the first time the event ...

Career

Yator grew up in Kendur, a small village in

Elgeyo-Marakwet County Elgeyo-Marakwet County is one of Kenya's 47 counties. Elgeyo Marakwet County is located in the former Rift Valley Province. Its capital and largest town is Iten. It borders the counties of West Pokot to the north, Baringo County to the east, s ...

, and attended St Peters Marakwet Boys High School. He began to train with high level runners

Reuben Kosgei Reuben Seroney Kosgei (born 2 August 1979 in Kapcherop, Kenya), is a middle and long distance athlete mostly famous for 3000 m steeplechase in which he became the youngest ever winner of an Olympic gold medal in the event when at th ...

Bernard Barmasai Bernard Barmasai (born 6 May 1974 in Keiyo) is an athlete from Kenya. He specialised in steeplechase running but is nowadays a marathoner. He set the new 3000 metres steeplechase world record of 7:55.72 on 24 August 1997 in Cologne. The record wa ...

and

Patrick Sang Patrick Sang (born 11 April 1964) is a Kenyan running coach and retired steeplechase runner. Sang won three silver medals in major 3000 m steeplechase competitions: *1991 World Championships in Athletics * 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics * ...

.Minshull, Phil (2000-10-20)
Kosgei leaves a legacy
IAAF. Retrieved on 2016-04-10. After running a time of 8:15.31 minutes at the

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 G ...

in 1999 at the age of eighteen he took a gold medal at the

1999 African Junior Athletics Championships The 1999 African Junior Athletics Championships was the fourth edition of the biennial, continental athletics tournament for African athletes aged 19 years or younger. It was held in Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note ...

in a championships record. He proved himself to be among the world elite at the 2000

Herculis The Herculis is an annual track and field meet at Stade Louis II in Fontvieille, Monaco. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Diamond League. World records Over the course of its history, five world reco ...

meet, setting a time of 8:03.74 minutes. This was a world junior record, ranked him as the fourth fastest in the world that year and moved into the world's all-time top ten for the distance at the point. Although he was disappointed not to make the Olympic team that year, the teenager took the gold medal at the

2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2000 World Junior Championships in Athletics were held in Santiago, Chile between 17 and 22 October 2000. Results Men Women Medal table Participation According to an unofficial count through an unofficial result list, 1122 athle ...

in a championship record of 8:16.34 minutes. He was sombre in victory in spite of having a fifteen-second winning margin. Good performances followed in his first senior season, with his best being 8:09.20 minutes at the

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual track and field event normally held at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 death of Italian sprinting legend Pie ...

meeting. However, he was unable to match this form at neither the

2001 IAAF Grand Prix Final The 2001 IAAF Grand Prix Final was the seventeenth edition of the season-ending competition for the IAAF Grand Prix track and field circuit, organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations. It was held on 9 September at the O ...

, where he was eighth in 8:20.87,Raymond Yator
IAAF. Retrieved on 2016-04-10. nor the

2001 Goodwill Games The 2001 Goodwill Games was the fifth and final edition of the international multi-sport event. The competition was held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia from 29 August to 9 September 2001. A total around 1300 athletes took part in 14 sportin ...

, where he was seventh in 8:27.19 minutes. His performances declined in 2003, with his best being 8:30.69 minutes and he did not compete in 2003. He returned to action in 2004 with an improved 8:15.20 minutes, which brought him back within the world top twenty for the season.senior outdoor 2004 3000 Metres Steeplechase men
IAAF. Retrieved on 2016-04-10. However, his career was disrupted that year by the onset of

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

. His dedication to training waned and he remained in his village, spending his racing winnings on alcohol with locals. Ten years later he expressed an interest to return to running, with a focus on 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 ...

, though he lacked the facilities and support network to restart his career. His younger brother

Albert Yator Albert Kiptoo Yator (6 September 1993 – 5 February 2011) was a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialised in the steeplechase. Born in Iten, he was the brother of a former world junior record holder, Raymond Yator. He won his firs ...

followed in his footsteps and won a world junior steeplechase medal in 2010, but died of malaria in 2011 before getting the chance to explore a senior career.Kibor, Fred (2014-04-17)
Raymond Yator set a world record in athletics but alcohol cut his rise short
''Kenya Standard''. Retrieved on 2016-04-10.

International competitions

References

External links

*
All-Athletics profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yator, Raymond Living people 1981 births People from Elgeyo-Marakwet County Kenyan male steeplechase runners World Athletics Championships athletes for Kenya Competitors at the 2001 Goodwill Games