Laban Kipngetich Korir (born 30 June 1985 in
Uasin Gishu District
Uasin Gishu County is one of the 47 counties of Kenya located in the former Rift Valley Province. Eldoret has the county's largest population center as well as its administrative and commercial center. “It lies between longitudes 34 degrees 50 ...
) 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 endurance, stamina as well as mental strength.
Within e ...
who competes in
road running competitions. He is currently part of the
NN Running Team
NN Running Team is a professional running team based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 2017 by Jos Hermens, the director of Global Sports Communication. The team's title sponsor is the Dutch insurance company NN Group. The running team include ...
, an international team of elite long-distance runners managed by
Global Sports Communication
Global Sports Communication (GSC) is a sports management company based in Nijmegen, Netherlands. It primarily manages elite track-and-field athletes and distance runners, specializing in sprint events, middle-distance events, field events, and r ...
in
Nijmegen
Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...
, Netherlands.
Career
Laban Korir began competing abroad for the first time in 2008 in his early twenties. His first win came at the Setúbal Half Marathon in Portugal, and another followed at the 2009 Pombal Meia Maratona. Working with athletics manager
Jos Hermens, he gained a place at the 2011
Amsterdam Marathon and made the third-fastest
marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...
debut in history with his run of 2:06:05 hours, which was enough for second place behind
Wilson Chebet
Wilson Kwambai Chebet (born 12 July 1985, in Marakwet District) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialises in road running competitions. He has a marathon best of 2:05:27 hours.
He began competing internationally in 2005 and ...
.
In his first race of 2012 he came fifth at the
Roma-Ostia Half Marathon
The Roma-Ostia Half Marathon ( it, Roma Ostia Mezza Maratona ''or'' it, Maratonina Roma-Ostia) is an annual half marathon road running event which takes place in early March in Rome, Italy. The course begins in the EUR district of the city and f ...
, but improved his best over the distance to a time of 1:00:38 hours. He was invited to the
2012 Boston Marathon
The 2012 Boston Marathon took place in Boston, Massachusetts on Monday April 16, 2012. It was the 116th edition of the mass-participation marathon. Organized by the Boston Athletic Association, it was the first of the World Marathon Majors seri ...
and managed sixth place, although difficult running conditions left him with a slower time of 2:15:29 hours. A run at the
2012 Chicago Marathon
The 2012 Chicago Marathon was the 35th edition of the annual marathon race in Chicago, Illinois and was held on Sunday, October 7. An IAAF Gold Label Road Race, it was the fourth and final World Marathon Majors event to be held that year. Tsega ...
saw him in contention up to the halfway point, but he faded into eleventh place by the finish.
Korir then won the 2014
Toronto Waterfront Marathon with a time of 2:08:15.
On 12 April 2015, he placed sixth at the
Paris Marathon in 2:07:54. On 23 August, Korir won the Klagenfurt Half Marathon in
Austria in a time of 1:01:52. On 18 October, he attempted to retain his title at the
Toronto Waterfront Marathon, but finished third in 2:09:20.
On 3 April 2016, Korir headed back to
Paris to compete in the
Paris Marathon. He finished second in a time of 2:07:29 behind race winner, fellow Kenyan
CyBrian Kotut who clocked 2:07:11.
Laban's next marathon was on 16 October where he placed 4th in a new personal best time of 2:05:54 at the
Amsterdam Marathon.
In 2017, he placed eighth at the
Granollers Half Marathon
The Granollers Half Marathon (Catalan: ''Mitja Marató de Granollers'') is an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance (21.097 km) which takes place in February in the city of Granollers in Catalonia, Spain.
The race is ...
in 1:03:54 on 5 February. On 9 April, Korir secured a podium finish at the
Rotterdam Marathon placing third in a time of 2:06:24. His next race was on 20 August, at the Klagenfurt Half Marathon, where he placed third in 1:01:45. He returned to the Netherlands to compete at the
Amsterdam Marathon on 15 October where he finished sixth in 2:07:01.
In 2018, Korir placed fourth at the
Rotterdam Marathon in 2:05:58 on 8 April. He competed at the Klagenfurt Marathon on 26 August and finished third clocking 1:02:21. Korir returned to the
Amsterdam Marathon, where on 21 October he placed sixth in 2:06:33.
In 2019, he competed at the
Barcelona Marathon on 10 March, placing ninth in 2:09:36. The next month, Korir competed at the
Hamburg Marathon placing 12th in 2:11:26 on 28 April.
He represented
Kenya in the men's marathon at the
2019 World Championships in Athletics
The 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships () was the seventeenth edition of the biennial, global athletics competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), since renamed World Athletics. It was held betw ...
alongside Kenyan teammates
Geoffrey Kirui
Geoffrey Kipkorir Kirui (Born 16 February 1993) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in cross country running competitions, track and road races up to the marathon.
Junior career
Kirui won gold in the 10,000 metres at the 2011 African ...
,
Paul Lonyangata and
Amos Kipruto
Amos Kipruto (born 16 September 1992) is a Kenyan long-distance runner. He won the bronze medal in the men's marathon at the 2019 World Athletics Championships. Kipruto took victory at the 2022 London Marathon.
Career
In 2016, he won the Rome ...
. He competed in the
men's marathon at the
2019 World Athletics Championships
The 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships () was the seventeenth edition of the biennial, global athletics competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), since renamed World Athletics. It was held betw ...
held in
Doha, Qatar.
He finished in 11th place.
Laban recorded a time of 2:12:38.
Korir did not race in 2020.
In 2021, he lined up at the NN Mission Marathon in
Enschede
Enschede (; known as in the local Twents dialect) is a municipality and city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel and in the Twente region. The eastern parts of the urban area reaches the border of the German city of Gronau ...
, Netherlands on 18 April. Despite starting with the lead pack, Korir dropped off the pace and eventually dropped out of the race. Fellow
NN Running Team
NN Running Team is a professional running team based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 2017 by Jos Hermens, the director of Global Sports Communication. The team's title sponsor is the Dutch insurance company NN Group. The running team include ...
member Kenya's
Eliud Kipchoge won the marathon.
Laban Korir is serving as president of the
NN Running Team
NN Running Team is a professional running team based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 2017 by Jos Hermens, the director of Global Sports Communication. The team's title sponsor is the Dutch insurance company NN Group. The running team include ...
training camp in
Kaptagat
Kaptagat is a human settlement in Uasin Gishu County, in the southwestern part of Kenya. This part of the country, where the two counties of Uasin Gishu and Elgeyo Marakwet County share a border, is used by the majority of Kenyan professional l ...
, Kenya. He works welcoming new athletes and important visitors. He says, "To be a president in the camp is sometimes very difficult, but above all you need to be honest, and show good self-discipline to the other athletes so that they can follow. You need to be a good example to others."
["All the President's Men." NN Running Team, 11 May 2021]
www.nnrunningteam.com/ news/2021-05-11-all-the-presidents-men/
Accessed 15 June 2021.
Some of Korir's training partners include
Eliud Kipchoge,
Philemon Rono
Philemon Rono (born 8 February 1991), nicknamed the "baby police", is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. He holds the Canadian all-comers' record in the marathon, having run the fastest marathon ever in Canada of 2:0 ...
and
Geoffrey Kamworor.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korir, Laban
Living people
1985 births
Kenyan male long-distance runners
Kenyan male marathon runners
People from Uasin Gishu County
Sportspeople from Rift Valley Province
21st-century Kenyan people