Martin Kiptolo Lel (born 29 October 1978) is a Kenyan professional long distance and

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 ...

runner. He won the London Marathon in 2005, 2007, and 2008, the New York City Marathon in 2003 and 2007 and the Great North Run in 2007 and 2009. His personal best time, , is 2:05:15, which he ran in the 2008 London Marathon setting a course record. Lel is coached by

Claudio Berardelli Claudio is an Italian and Spanish first name. In Portuguese it is accented Cláudio. In Catalan and Occitan it is Claudi, while in Romanian it is Claudiu. Origin and history Claudius was the name of an eminent Roman gens, the most important me ...

and lives in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. Lel ran his first marathons in 2002: he failed to finish at the

Prague Marathon The Prague Marathon (also known as Prague International Marathon (PIM) and Volkswagen Prague Marathon) is an annual road marathon held in the city of Prague in the Czech Republic each May. It was founded in 1995 and has grown to become a ...

, but in his first finish he managed to claim second in the Venice Marathon. He won Lisbon Half Marathon in 2003, 2006 and 2009, was the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

ist at the

2003 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships The 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships was held on October 4, 2003 in Vilamoura, Portugal. A total of 171 athletes, 98 men and 73 women, from 49 countries took part. Detailed reports on the event and an appraisal of the results were given ...

, and won the

Portugal Half Marathon Luso Portugal Half Marathon or Luso Meia Maratona de Portugal is an annual half marathon contested every October in Lisbon, Portugal. A new, faster course was established for the race in 2010 and 25 km record holder Mary Keitany duly respo ...

in 2005. He made his Olympic debut for Kenya at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

and came fifth in the marathon. He beat Samuel Wanjiru to win the inaugural edition of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Mardi Gras Marathon in 2010. In August 2010 he ran at the Falmouth Road Race and took third place. After almost 3 years without running a marathon, he participated in the 2011 London Marathon as a replacement for Samuel Wanjiru, who was originally invited to run, but he still placed second with a time of 2:05:45, out-sprinting

Patrick Makau Patrick Makau Musyoki (born 2 March 1985) is a runner from Kenya. He is a former world record holder in the marathon—His time of 2:03:38, run at the 2011 Berlin Marathon, was the world record for two years, until it was beaten by Wilson Kipsang ...

at the finish line. He ran the 15K

Saint Silvester Road Race The Saint Silvester Road Race ( pt, Corrida Internacional de São Silvestre) is a long-distance running event, the oldest and most prestigious street race in Brazil. Regarded as the main international event in Latin American athletics, the Braz ...

at the end of the year, but was beaten into fourth place. Lel entered two races the year after: he was runner-up again at the

2012 London Marathon The 2012 London Marathon was the 32nd running of the annual marathon race in London, England, which took place on Sunday, 22 April. Both of the elite races were won by Kenyan athletes, and Ethiopia's Tsegaye Kebede was the only non-Kenyan to re ...

(finishing in 2:06:51) and was victorious at the

with a time of 61:28 minutes.Lel and Jeptoo beat the heat in Lisbon - REPORT
IAAF (2012-09-30). Retrieved on 2013-01-27. In 2011 the American Charity, Shoe4Africa, funded and opened th

in Lel's home village, Kimn'geru, to honor the athlete. His brother,

Cyprian Kimurgor Kotut Cyprian Kimurgor Kotut (born 1992) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who competes in the marathon. His best for the distance is 2:04:47 hours. He was the winner of the 2016 Paris Marathon. He also holds a half marathon best of 59:12 m ...

, followed in his footsteps as a marathon runner and won the 2016 Paris Marathon.Kenya’s Cyprian Kotut wins Paris Marathon
''Daily Nation'' (2016-04-03). Retrieved on 2016-04-03.

Competition record

International competitions

Road races

References

External links

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n°37 on '' Time''’s list of "100 Olympic Athletes To Watch" {{DEFAULTSORT:Lel, Martin 1978 births Living people People from Nandi County Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male marathon runners Olympic athletes of Kenya Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics World Athletics Half Marathon Championships winners London Marathon male winners New York City Marathon male winners