Dennis Kipruto Kimetto (born 22 January 1984) is a Kenyan

long distance runner Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music men ...

who competes in

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 ...

events. He was the world record holder in the men's marathon with a time of 2 hours 2 minutes 57 seconds, a record which he held until

Eliud Kipchoge Eliud Kipchoge ( ; born 5 November 1984) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized at the 5000 metre distance. Widely regarded as the greatest marathon runner of all time, he is the 2016 and 2020 O ...

broke it in 2018 with a time of 2:01:39.

Career

Hailing from Eldoret and part of a training group including

Geoffrey Mutai Geoffrey Kiprono Mutai (born 7 October 1981) is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in road running competitions. On 18 April 2011 at the Boston Marathon, Mutai ran the fastest marathon ever at the time in a time of 2 hours 3 minutes 2 ...

,Hutchings, Tim (2012-02-17)
Keitany wins but records blown off course in windy RAK Half Marathon
IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-02-02. Kimetto's first major win came 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 shortcut ...

section of the

Nairobi Marathon The Nairobi Marathon is an annual road running competition over the marathon distance usually held in October in Nairobi, Kenya. First held in 2003, the competition expanded and now includes a half marathon race along with the main race. It was ...

in 2011. Running as ''Dennis Koech'', he topped the podium in a time of 1:01:30. He quickly rose into the global running elite in his first outings outside of Kenya. At the

RAK Half Marathon Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon is an annual half marathon held in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. History The first event, in 2007, saw Samuel Wanjiru breaking the world record, but Wanjiru himself set a new world record only a month later in ...

he defeated a field including Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich to win the race in 60:40 minutes. His age was misreported as ten years younger, and his following run of 59:14 minutes to win the

Berlin Half Marathon The Berlin Half Marathon is a major endurance event held annually in early spring in Berlin, Germany. Besides the runner's main race, the event includes a race for inline skaters, wheelchair athletes and handbikers. All athletes use the same co ...

in April was briefly considered a world junior best. An erroneous passport was the cause of both the age difference and the ''Koech'' misnomer, his surname actually being ''Kimetto''. This was rectified in later competitions. With Kimetto's personal data corrected, he went on to break his first major record at the BIG 25 Berlin. His time of 71:18 for 25 kilometres knocked a sizeable margin off Sammy Kosgei's

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

of 71:50. After this he made the fastest marathon debut in history that September. Again in Berlin, he ran alongside

for much of the race as he recorded a time of 2:04:16, one second behind Mutai, to set the fifth fastest time ever run at that point. Some reporters observed that Kimetto stayed solidly behind the more prominent Mutai in the final section of the race and concluded that he allowed his partner to take the victory which clinched a World Marathon Majors series title for Mutai. In 2013 Kimetto set two World Marathon Majors course records, at Tokyo in 2:06:50 (since bettered) and at Chicago in 2:03:45, the fastest time ever on American soil for a record quality course. On 28 September 2014, Kimetto broke the world record at the

Berlin Marathon The Berlin Marathon (german: Berlin-Marathon, ) is a marathon event held annually on the streets of Berlin, Germany on the last weekend of September. Held annually since 1974, the event includes multiple races over the marathon distance of , inc ...

with 2:02:57 and became the first man to run under 2:03. His 5-kilometre splits were recorded as 14:42, 14:42, 14:46, 14:26, 14:32, 14:30, 14:09, 14:42. His second half of 1:01:12 was the fastest in history excluding those from the downhill and greatly wind-aided 2011 Boston Marathon. His 2015 season wasn't as impressive as he only completed the

London Marathon The London Marathon is an annual marathon held in London, United Kingdom, and is the 2nd largest annual road race in the UK, after the Great North Run in Newcastle. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically he ...

, finishing third, failing to complete the IAAF World Championships marathon in Beijing in August as well as the

Fukuoka Marathon The is an IAAF Gold Label international men's marathon race held in Fukuoka, Japan. It was previously known as the Fukuoka International Open Marathon Championship between 1947 and 2021, when it was announced the race would be discontinued on its ...

in December where he stopped at the 5-kilometre mark after dropping off the pace at 2 kilometres due to an injury. After finishing ninth at the

2016 London Marathon The 2016 London Marathon was the 36th running of the annual marathon race in London, England, which took place on Sunday, 24 April. The men's elite race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge and the women's race was won by Kenyan Jemima Sumgong. Th ...

, Kimetto removed himself from consideration for the Rio Olympics, intending instead to run in the Chicago Marathon. However, he pulled out ahead of the race, citing a stress fracture in his left leg. Kimetto's injury problems continued in 2017, with a knee injury forcing him to withdraw from the field for the Boston Marathon. He failed to finish both the Chicago Marathon in October and the Honolulu Marathon in December. At the Vienna City Marathon in April 2018 Kimetto dropped out before the 25-kilometre point. Kimetto grew up in a rural farming community. "I think what really motivates me to be a fighter is the fact that I come from a humble background," Kimetto says. "I try to really make sure that I achieve my best so that I can assist my family."Battaglia, Joe (2014-09-24
From poverty to podium
Retrieved on 2014-09-28.

Achievements

*All results regarding marathon and half marathon

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kimetto, Dennis Kipruto 1984 births Living people Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male marathon runners People from Uasin Gishu County World Athletics record holders Berlin Marathon male winners World Athletics Championships athletes for Kenya Chicago Marathon male winners Tokyo Marathon male winners Recipients of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races Best Marathon Runner Award