Eunice Jepkorir Kertich (born 17 February 1982) is a Kenyan

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 stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who specialises in the

steeplechase SteepleChase Records is a jazz record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time. He began recording concerts at Jazzhus Montmartre, ...

. She was the 2008 Olympic silver medalist in the event and bronze medalist at the

2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, () under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007. 200 of the IAAF's 212 member feder ...

. She is from

Eldama Ravine Eldama Ravine (sometimes known by the short form E/Ravine) is a town in Baringo County, Kenya, a few miles north of the equator, geographical coordinates 0° 30' 0" North, 35° 43' 0" East. It was established as an administrative point by Briti ...

. Her parents are farmers and she has eight siblings (four brothers and four sisters). She started serious running at the age of 15 while at high school. In 2003, she competed at some road races in Germany.IAAF, 28 August 2007:
Led by Jepkorir, Kenyans closing the gap in the women’s Steeplechase
'' She finished seventh in the long race at the 2004 World Cross Country Championships, while the Kenyan team, of which Jepkorir was a part, won the silver medal in the team competition. She won the

Parelloop Parelloop (''Pearl Run'' in English) is an annual 10 kilometres road running competition usually held in late March or early April in Brunssum, Netherlands. The inaugural edition was held in 1989. In 2009, Micah Kogo broke the List of world record ...

10K in race in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

in 2005. She finished fourteenth at the 2006 World Road Running Championships, helping the Kenyan team win the team competition. She won the 2007

Cross Internacional de la Constitución Cross Internacional de la Constitución is an annual cross country running event which is held in early December in Alcobendas, Spain. The competition was first held in 1982 and began attracting top-level elite distance runners from the 1990s onwa ...

. She beat 3000m steeplechase Kenyan record at the

Bislett Games The Bislett Games is an annual track and field meeting at the Bislett Stadium in Oslo, Norway. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. History The first international athletics meeting at Bislett ...

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

on 15 June 2007 by running 9:19.44. Two weeks later, on 2 July 2007 in Athens she ran 9:14.52, which is an African and Commonwealth record. The previous African record (9:15.04) was held by

Dorcus Inzikuru 230px Dorcus Inzikuru (born 2 February 1982 in Vurra, Arua District) is a Ugandan track and field athlete, competing in the steeplechase. She won the inaugural world title in women's 3000 m steeplechase, as well as the first Commonwealth title ...

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

. At the 2007 World Championships, she won bronze medal in 3000 m steeplechase. She won the 2007

Cursa de Bombers The Cursa de Bombers () is an annual road running race over 10 km which takes place in April in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. History and course The race was created in 1999 as a joint venture between the ''Bombers de Barcelona'' (Firemen of B ...

10K race in Barcelona and defended her title the following year. On 14 June 2008 she bettered her African record to 9:11.18 in

Huelva Huelva ( , , ) is a municipality of Spain and the capital of the Huelva (province), province of Huelva, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. Located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits betwee ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. At the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

she won silver medal by running 9:07.41, thus setting a new African record again. She failed to qualify for the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15 to 23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenbu ...

. She came second behind

Nuria Fernández Nuria Fernández Domínguez (born 16 August 1976 in Luzern, Switzerland) is a Spanish middle-distance runner. She specialises in the 1500 metres and is the Spanish record holder in the mile run and the 1500 m indoors. Career Fernández ha ...

at the 2011

Cross de San Sebastián The Cross Internacional de San Sebastián, also known as the ''Cross Internacional de Donostia'', is an annual cross country running event which is staged in late January in San Sebastián, Spain. The competition was first held in 1956 as a men's ...

in January, while her husband took the men's honours. She only competed once on the track that year, winning in Cáceres in June. She did not perform well at the 2012 Kenyan Olympic trials, finishing the race in 10:13.28 minutes and missing the Olympic team as a result. She is married to

Josphat Kiprono Menjo Josphat Kiprono Menjo (born 20 August 1979) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in track and road running. A relative latecomer to athletics, Menjo began competing around 2002 and first represented his country at the 2006 Africa ...

, another Kenyan runner.IAAF, 28 January 2008
Menjo, Jepkorir take the spoils in San Sebastián
/ref>

Personal bests

3000 metres steeplechase The 3000 metres steeplechase or 3000-meter steeplechase (usually Abbreviation, abbreviated as ) is the most common distance for the steeplechase (athletics), steeplechase in track and field. It is an obstacle race over the distance of the 3000 met ...

- 9:07.41 min (2008) *

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 sta ...

- 15:09.05 min (2004) *

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 ...

- 32:58.0 min (2003)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jepkorir, Eunice 1982 births Living people People from Rift Valley Province Kenyan female long-distance runners Kenyan female steeplechase runners Olympic athletes for Kenya Olympic silver medalists for Kenya Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships medalists Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Kenyan female cross country runners