Wilson Loyanae Erupe, also known as Wilson Loyanai Ekupe, (born 20 November 1988 in

Lodwar Lodwar is the largest town in north-western Kenya, located west of Lake Turkana on the A1 road. Its main industries are basket weaving and tourism. The Loima Hills lie to its west. Lodwar is the capital of Turkana County. The town has a popula ...

) is a Kenyan born

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

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

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 ...

s. He has a personal best of 2:05:13 hours for the event and has won races in

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

Gyeongju Gyeongju ( ko, 경주, ), historically known as ''Seorabeol'' ( ko, 서라벌, ), is a coastal city in the far southeastern corner of North Gyeongsang Province in South Korea. It is the second largest city by area in the province after Andong, ...

and

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. He has represented South Korea under the name Oh Joo-han, since 2018. Hailing from

in Kenya's

Turkana District Turkana County is a county in the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya. It is Kenya's largest county by land area (followed by Marsabit County), and also its northwesternmost. It is bordered by the countries of Uganda to the west; South Sudan an ...

, Loyanae began running in marathon races in his native country in 2010. That year he was sixth at the Kisumu Marathon and seventh at the Kass Marathon. The 2011 running season saw him establish himself as a marathoner of international calibre. He won the

Mombasa Marathon The Mombasa International Marathon (formerly known as the Mombasa Marathon) is an annual marathon hosted in Mombasa, Kenya. Currently sponsored by County Government of Mombasa and Safaricom Safaricom PLC is a listed Kenyan mobile network ope ...

in a time of 2:13:00 hours and stated his desire to begin competing on the

World Marathon Majors The World Marathon Majors (WMM) (known for sponsorship reasons as the Abbott World Marathon Majors) is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on six major marathon races reco ...

circuit. He ran in his first foreign race in October 2011 at South Korea's

Gyeongju International Marathon The Gyeongju International Marathon is an annual road running event over the marathon distance (42.195 km) which takes place in mid-October in Gyeongju, South Korea. It gained IAAF Silver Label Road Race status in 2010. First held in 1993, t ...

and he won with a personal best time of 2:09:23 hours. His next outing was again in South Korea, this time at the higher profile

Seoul International Marathon The Seoul International Marathon, also known as the ''Dong-A Ilbo Seoul Marathon or Seoul Marathon'' is an annual marathon race that takes place in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of two annual races over the 42.195 km classic distance in the ...

, and he managed to continue his winning streak. Beating the more favoured Kenyans, James Kipsang Kwambai and

Eliud Kiptanui Eliud Kiptanui (born 6 June 1989) is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in the marathon. He won the 2010 Prague International Marathon and has a personal best of 2:05:21 hours. He represented his country at the 2011 World Championsh ...

, he knocked almost four minutes off his best time to set a course record of 2:05:37 hours – a mark which moved him into the top 30 runners of all time. He defended his title in Gyeongju with a course record run of 2:06:46. His first race of 2013 saw him place third in the

Houston Half Marathon The Houston Marathon is an annual marathon usually held every January in Houston, Texas, United States, since 1972. With thousands of runners and spectators, it is the largest single day sporting event in the city. It is run concurrently wit ...

. Erupe tested positive for EPO in an out-of-competition test in 2012 and was banned from competing for two years in February 2013.Kenya bans three marathon runners
SBS/AAP. Retrieved on 2013-02-23. In 2016, he established a new personal best of 2:05:13 to win the Seoul International Marathon.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oh, Joohan Living people 1988 births Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male marathon runners South Korean male marathon runners People from Rift Valley Province Doping cases in athletics Kenyan sportspeople in doping cases Korean people of Kenyan descent Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for South Korea