Profile: Stephen Kiprotich

DOB: Febuary 27, 1989 (Kapchorwa)

Race: Marathon

Personal best: 2:07:20 last year in Enschede.

STEPHEN Kiprotich run the race of his life to become only the second Ugandan to win Olympic Gold. John Akii-Bua won the 400m hurdles in the 1972 Games in Munich to bag the first ever gold.

Kiprotich was born on 27 February 1989 and is long-distance runner, born in Kapchorwa. He is now the 2012 Olympic Marathon champion after stunning a field with a host of Kenyans and Ethiopians.

At the age of seventeen he moved to Eldoret, Kenya to pursue his career as a long distance runner. He is the youngest of seven children.

He finished 9th in the 13th IAAF world athletics championship in Daegu last year and was 6th in the 2010 Africa championships in Nairobi.

This year alone Kiprotich had four international exposures in the marathon, 30km and half marathon with three events in Tokyo and the other in Manchester to given him enough preparation for the Olympics.

Kiprotich’s win puts the 23yr old in an elite group of Ugandan athletes who have tasted Olympic success. 

Uganda’s other Olympic medalists are boxers Eridad Mukwanga (silver, 1968), Leo Rwabwogo (bronze, 1969 and silver, 1972), John Mugabi (silver, 1980) and middle distance runner Davis Kamoga (bronze, 1996).