Interview: Godfrey Kiprotich

by Scott Douglas

Godfrey Kiprotich works for Kimbia Athletic Management, a company formed by Tom Ratcliffe, Dieter Hogen, and Kiprotich after the breakup of KIM, which was headed by the late Kim McDonald. ("Kimbia" is Swahili for "to run.") Kiprotich manages the company's three-house training camp in Iten, Kenya, at 8,000 feet of altitude. Among the Kimbia runners that spend significant time training in Iten are Evans Rutto, defending London and Chicago Marathon champion; Timothy Cherigat, the 2004 Boston Marathon winner; Sammy Kipketer, the world record holder for 5K on the roads; and Paul Koech, whose PRs include 26:36 for 10,000m, 44:45 for 10 miles, and 2:07:07 for the marathon.

Kiprotich is a graduate of the storied St. Patrick's High School, a boys boarding school in Iten whose alumni include seminal Kenyan running figure Mike Boit, marathon great Ibrahim Hussein, 1988 Olympic 1,500m champion Peter Rono and 800m world record holder Wilson Kipketer. Kiprotich has run 27:47 for 10,000m on the track and 1:01:01 for the half-marathon, and was fourth in the 1994 World Half-Marathon Championships. He is also known for his stellar marathon-pacing duties, including the first 19 miles of Khalid Khannouchi's world best in the 1999 Chicago Marathon.

We spoke in the front lawn of the camp's main house, which Kiprotich had just driven to in a truck newly purchased from 3,000m world record holder Daniel Komen.

MensRacing.com: When did you stop competing?
Godfrey Kiprotich: Just last year. I turned 40, but there was a big mistake — I messed up my passport. It reads 39. This didn't enable me to compete as a master. My real age is 41 — I turned 41 as of November 23rd. It's a shame — as soon as my passport says I'm 40, I'll be two years older than that.

MR: How did your passport get messed up?
GK: Because when I first got it, I didn't get it, but the [Kenyan] federation did. They messed it up. They pushed me back, they pushed back my age to enable me to compete as a junior. I didn't fill out the forms — the federation filled them out on my behalf.

MR: So how much are you running now?
GK: I'm just starting now. I want to be serious when I come back. My age shouldn't be the determining factor — I want to come back with a big bang, even though I'll be competing with guys who just turned 40 and will be fresh.

MR: Will you do marathons or shorter races?
GK: Tom [Ratcliffe] thinks I should try with shorter races first — 10Ks, 15Ks and half-marathons. Then hopefully the marathon. I don't know how it will go. It's a matter of trying. I can assure you I will push myself to the limit.

MR: Will you have to cut back on your work here?
GK: There is no doubt about that. I have to abandon everything and be like a normal athlete here, completely focused on my training. Right now I'm happy to help the guys here while I'm a normal person like you, a jogger.

MR: What is your role here now?
GK: My role is to make sure the athletes' needs are being met. I'm the manager on the ground, the one who keeps it running. I make sure the food gets bought, that the guys are eating well, that they get their massages, that they're following the training schedule, that the bills get paid, things like that. Our camp seems to be growing because we have the best athletes in the world. Tom wants professionals in our camp to make it run efficiently — an administrator with training in this area, a professional cook with a certificate, a physiotherapist with a degree, a nutritionist. All should be professionals, like the athletes.

MR: When the camp is full, how many people are here?
GK: Twenty-two among the three houses.

MR: And what non-Kenyans are part of your group, meaning what non-Kenyans are part of the new Tom Ratcliffe company?
GK: John Yuda, Bob Kennedy, Elana Meyer, people like that.

MR: Do you recruit runners here in Kenya?
GK: Yes, right now that's my job, too. We are looking not just at talent, but are looking at any individual athlete as a person. Do they have the right character?

MR: Meaning...?
GK: Meaning that they should be educated to conduct themselves in the right way. If you're not educated, we'll hire a teacher for you. I'm coordinating with Brother Colm [O'Connell of St. Patrick's High School and Tambach Teacher's College] to get teachers from Tambach to work with us part-time as needed. We are after people who will be role models in the near future. We are not only interested in whether someone is a good competitor. We want to change their lives forever, to groom them into being a better person who can make a difference in society. We do that through education, exposure to other cultures and other parts of the world, and polishing them with common sense.

MR: The three houses here, do you rent them or own them?
GK: We rent right now, but we just bought land along the escarpment. We'll be 200 meters from Kamariny Stadium. [Note: The stadium, which is a few kilometers from the center of Iten, houses a dirt track.] It's a perfect location, right by the stadium. One of the things we want to do is develop an exchange program with athletes from other countries. We want to adopt a spirit of friendship and get to learn one another's culture.

MR: You've been around Iten a long time. Have you seen evidence of money specifically from running changing the area?
GK: Big time. It has brought a lot of change to this neighborhood, and has made significant changes in the community. Look at a camp such as Lornah Kiplagat's, or Kerio View [a European-style inn that opened in Iten in 2002], or our camp. You see how these places are different from traditional Iten! And in our case, this is just a start, because we are renting, but like I told you, we'll be building. And these are just the top places.

The effects of money are everywhere. There's a lot of phenomenal talent here who look at something like what happened with [steeplechase world record holder Saif Saeed] Shaheen [formerly known as Stephen Cherono], and think, 'What the heck? This guy can change his citizenship and become a millionaire? Maybe I should train and maybe get someone's recognition, and maybe something like that will happen to me.' The town is growing because of the athletes. The new buildings up in town all belong to runners. This has created job opportunities for many people in town — the economy in Iten is doing well because of runners. It's also led to an influx of runners and inspired a lot of people to train.

MR: The number of runners here is astounding, and I mean runners, people who are training hard and fast. Do you have a rough estimate of how many good runners are here? Let's say as an arbitrary standard someone good enough to win money in a U.S. road race.
GK: I would say 500, and that's split half and half. What I mean is, maybe 250 who could travel to Europe today and make money running. And the same number who have that potential but can't get the opportunity to show it, maybe because they don't have the right manager, or they have a bad coach or no coach and their training isn't what it should be, or they lack facilities. [Note: In Kenyan running jargon, 'facilities' can mean good shoes, running gear, watches, etc.] I've witnessed them training on the track, or guys who can keep up with our guys, and I ask them what they're doing, what they're training for, and they've never been out of Iten.

MR: So they're hoping someone like you will recognize them?
GK: Absolutely. The only reason they jump in our training is that they hope to be noticed. They are as talented as any other kid, but their time hasn't come yet to be recognized. This could be the right place for a young manager to come and look for talent. For example, I know two kids who came here all the way from Kericho, three hours away. They have heard of Iten as the center of athletics. They know that if they come here, managers will see them. They just wish to get a little food and train as hard as they can and be recognized. I can assure you someday one of them will be world class, maybe even a world record holder. That is what it's like here in Iten.

MR: Do you get a lot of people latching on to your guys?
GK: No question about it. When they see Evans Rutto, Timothy Cherigat, John Kibowen, Sammy Kipketer, Paul Koech, Andrew Chebii...I'm talking big names here. Every day there are kids walking by so they can say, 'I rubbed shoulders with them.' Maybe they wish to jog with our guys, on their easy afternoon runs. Their dream is to be like them in the near future.

MR: What is the sentiment with your guys about the whole Qatari thing?
GK: I think it bothers them. You see it whenever the group interacts, if we're just sitting around like we are now, having chai. Someone will ask jokingly, 'How about if I become a Qatari tomorrow?'

They are happy to be Kenyans. They are proud to be Kenyans. They are successful as professionals and understand the money, but they also want to be close to their families. None of them have thought of adopting a different citizenship — they get to travel where they want, and they are happy with their contracts. When they see Shaheen training here, they think, 'What the heck is this where you give up your birth passport?'

MR: At world cross in March, Kenya lost the men's title for the first time since whenever, and then there was, what, one gold medal in Athens? Why do you think there's been less success at major championships lately?
GK: There are a couple of things I see. One is the method of competing. We're still in the Stone Age. We think, 'Let's sacrifice Sammy Kipketer, he will burn off the competitors from other countries, and a Kenyan will win.' That doesn't work anymore — others have noticed this tactic. The Ethiopians have monitored us and learned our tactics and are prepared for them.

Second thing, the federation seems to be letting down the athletes.

[At this point, the conversation was interrupted by a call from Daniel Komen, checking on the truck he had just sold to Kiprotich. Just another day in Iten...]

Sorry. Anyway, the federation. It's good to reward someone. Even in your own family, you have to recognize the best kind in school, to encourage him and others to strive for the best. Our federation always thinks the athletes are making big bucks, they think they're millionaires, so why should the federation do anything for them? They don't look at the fact that the guys are bringing glory to their country, that they're helping the country. I mean, Scott, you wouldn't be here if it weren't for them.

I can assure you, if you look at a country like Ethiopia, if you do something like win the Olympics, you are an overnight millionaire. You will get rewards, and you will get a street named after you. And when you see that street, it inspires you to work even harder for your beloved country.

Also, they should try to recognize past athletes. As soon as you retire, you should have a trust account you can go to in case of an emergency, like if you have a health problem. Even a small disease like malaria can wipe you out. The great Paul Kipkoech, a world champion, Richard Chelimo, a world record holder, are now dead because of malaria. The government — the federation is part of the government — the government never thought to help them out, after they've done a great service to their country as athletes.

MR: What about the other end, the developmental end?
GK: They claim they do that, but to me, they don't do much. If not for camps like Lornah's or this one or especially Brother Colm's...He is phenomenal, he nurtures talent from nowhere. These kids are full of enthusiasm and really want to be the best in the near future. This is exactly what the federation says they're doing. They have a facility in Nairobi for youths, but I wonder where the money goes. They also claim they don't have the funds to keep the setup going.

MR: Why Nairobi? There are no athletes from Nairobi.
GK: It's crazy! You're right — there are no athletes from Nairobi. They import them from Iten, Kaptagat, Nandi. And Nairobi is polluted. It's crazy to take these athletes from where they train to go there. But they say they have the facilities there — a coach, a gym, the tartan track. But it doesn't make sense.

MR: Anything else?
GK: Part of it is when you look at the athletes, the rest of the world is training in a more scientific method. Look at the Ethiopians — their trainers are European. They have a complete system — medical attention, nutrition, supervised training. When you look at the camps here, we don't have those things. You see the athletes massaging themselves. They're likely to do more harm than good, they may end their career prematurely. In the camps before the Olympics, there were so many injuries. Of course we can't do our best if we are injured. There was no one person in those camps to supervise the training, to make sure the athletes were getting exactly what they needed.

MR: Brother Colm talks about mushroom champions-people who appear suddenly, win something big, then you never hear about them again. Why do you think that happens?
GK: It's because that type of athlete grows from nowhere to the limelight. He or she may not have gone to school, but has suddenly gained money and recognition. What do they do? As soon as they get some money, they buy land, a car, a house, a tractor. They think they're set. Instead of their success making them determined to do even better, they lose motivation. They've achieved their goals.

We try to educate them. We say, 'Keep thinking about athletics. Don't invest your money in businesses. Set up a trust account.' Again, it has to do with the managers. That's why Tom Ratcliffe wants to go at it in a different fashion. The athlete should try to compete for a number of years without thinking of investments or quitting. We want to solve their personal problems, by which I mean that they're happy with their families, happy with their properties, so that they can concentrate on athletics. Moses Kiptanui is the kind of person we want our guys to be. He stayed in the sport at the highest level for a number of years because he was totally focused on athletics and because he had the best manager, the late Kim McDonald. Moses thought of the long view.

But most guys in athletics are just trying to avert poverty. Once they get a little, they think their life has changed forever. They don't think of staying with it a long time because they've already achieved what they want.

(Interview conducted December 20, 2004, posted January 17, 2005)