Joseph Kimani (September 1, 1972 – November 1, 2012) was 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 competed over

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 ...

on the track and 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 ru ...

competitions. In his native country, he was commonly referred to as "KK" for Kimani Karanja. In other parts of the world, he was king of the road. He was the Superstar of most road races in the 1990s. He won 11 of the 13 road races in one season and finished second in 2 of them.

Track career

Kimani finished 6th in the

10000 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 ...

at the

1995 World Championships in Athletics The 5th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held at the Ullevi, Ullevi Stadium, Gothenburg, Sweden on 5–13 August 1995. This edition featured 1804 athletes from ...

Road running career

In 1996 at the

Peachtree Road Race The Peachtree Road Race (branded AJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is a series of two 10-kilometer runs held annually in Atlanta, once during the first weekend of January and the other on Independence Day. They are held on the sa ...

Kimani set the world record

10k run The 10K run is a long-distance road running competition over a distance of . Also referred to as the 10K road race, 10 km, or simply 10K, it is one of the most common types of road running event, alongside the shorter 5K and longer half ...

at 27:04. Kimani finished 21st at the 1998 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and 4th at the

2000 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships The 9th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships was held on November 12, 2000, in the city of Veracruz, Mexico. A total of 182 athletes, 121 men and 61 women, from 52 countries took part. Detailed reports on the event and an appraisal of the results ...

. In 1996, Kimani won the 10 kilometre

Vancouver Sun Run The Vancouver Sun Run, owned by Run Vancouver Holdings ULC and sponsored by ''The Vancouver Sun'' newspaper, is a 10-kilometre road running event held in Vancouver every year on the third (sometimes the fourth) Sunday in April since 1985. It is ...

with a record breaking time of 27:31.

Death

Kimani died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

on November 1, 2012.

References

External links

* 1972 births Kenyan male long-distance runners 2012 deaths World Athletics Championships athletes for Kenya Kenyan male cross country runners Australian Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Kenyan sportsmen 21st-century Kenyan sportsmen {{Kenya-bio-stub