Sammy Wanjiru, who was laid to rest on Saturday in an emotional farewell ceremony, was a great athlete who set many records and it was unfortunate that he left so soon.
At only 24, Wanjiru had already made an indelible mark in the world athletics map, breaking records that most athletes attain at a much older age.
He won five of the six marathons he finished and his run was spectacular from beginning to finish.
He won his first marathon in Fukuoka, Japan, in 2007 clocking 2:06:39 and that became the slowest marathon he ever ran. Within a year of the win, Wanjiru became the first Kenyan to win gold in the marathon at the Olympic games posting 2:06:32 in 2008.
Wanjiru’s last marathon win in Chicago in October last year was spectacular. He engaged Ethiopia’s Tsegaye Kebede, who had won that year’s London Marathon which is considered the toughest, in an exhilarating battle of wits. He took the lead in the last 400m and did not look back.
But before the Olympic run, Wanjiru had won shorter distances. He set three world records in the half marathon before he broke into the limelight.
He set his first half-marathon record in Rotterdam in the Netherlands in 2005, another in the United Arab Emirates in 2007, and another at the City-Pier-City Loop in the Netherlands.
In the world of athletics, Wanjiru will be remembered for defying all odds to win despite his final demise and his entanglement with women. He was a great Kenyan whose achievements should inspire more.
