Martin Irungu Mathathi (born 25 December 1985 in

Nyahururu Nyahururu (formerly known as Thomson's Falls) is a town in Kenya, lying north east of Nakuru. The town derives its name from the Maasai word e-naiwurruwurr, meaning waterfall and/or windy or place of storms. It is located in Laikipia County. Despit ...

) 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 in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

, who competes in track,

cross country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

and

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 a ...

events. Mathathi won the bronze medal in the

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 ra ...

at the 2007 World Championships in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

. He represented his country in the same event at the 2008 Summer Olympics. He holds the 10 miles world junior record of 44:51. He trains with

PACE Sports Management PACE Sports Management is a sports management and marketing company based in Monaco and London, directed by Ricky Simms. Background KIM McDonald International management was founded in the 80's by former middle distance runner Kim McDonald. Th ...

. He was schooled at Sipili secondary school. Mathathi was the 2010 winner of the men's short race at the

Chiba Cross Country The Chiba International Cross Country is an annual cross country running competition which takes place in Chiba, Japan in mid-February. It is one of the IAAF permit meetings which serve as qualifying events for the IAAF World Cross Country Champio ...

in Japan. He won the

Sendai Half Marathon is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 designated cities. The city was founded in 1600 by the ''daimyō'' Date M ...

in a personal best time of 59:48 minutes, easily beating second placed

Mekubo Mogusu Mekubo Job Mogusu (born 25 December 1986) is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in road running, particularly the half marathon. An emigrant to Japan, he has won the Sapporo Half Marathon on three occasions and the Kagawa Marugame Ha ...

. He gained selection for the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in the ...

and came fifth for Kenya in the men's 10,000 m. That year, Mathathi set a course record for the

Great North Run The Great North Run (branded the Simplyhealth Great North Run for sponsorship purposes) is the largest half marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September. Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and Sou ...

half marathon, finishing in a time of 58 minutes 56 seconds. Two weeks later he also won the

Great Edinburgh Run The Great Edinburgh Run was an annual ten-mile road running event which took place in the city centre of Edinburgh in Scotland. The last event was in April 2017 and the organiser have no plans to reinstate the event at present. Part of the Great ...

10K in course record time. At the start of 2012 he finished second at the

meet. He won the 10,000 m at the Hyogo Relays with a world-leading time of 27:35.16 minutes, but said that he intended to miss the Olympics and focus on a

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 di ...

debut at the

Fukuoka Marathon The is an IAAF Gold Label international men's marathon race held in Fukuoka, Japan. It was previously known as the Fukuoka International Open Marathon Championship between 1947 and 2021, when it was announced the race would be discontinued on its ...

instead. He won the

Gifu Half Marathon The is an annual half marathon road running competition held in May in Gifu, Japan. First held in 2011, the race is also called the , named after Naoko Takahashi, the retired local runner who won the marathon at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and broke ...

for a second time in May and won the

Sapporo Half Marathon The was an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance which took place each July in Sapporo, Japan. First held in 1958, the race began as a full marathon competition for men under the moniker of the Hokkai Times Marathon. ...

in July. Mathathi attempted to run the fastest

debut at the

but he dropped out of the race after 38 km. He attempted to extend his undefeated streak at the Gifu Half Marathon and although he finished in 1:00:54 hours he was runner-up to world champion

Zersenay Tadese Zersenay Tadese ( Tigrinya: ዘርእሰናይ ታደሰ; born 8 February 1982) is an Eritrean long-distance track and road running athlete. He held the men's half marathon world record from 2010 to 2018. His bronze medal in the 10,000 metre ...

Achievements

Personal bests

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a sta ...

- 13:03.84 min (2004) *

- 26:59.88 min (2009) *

Half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcu ...

- 58:56 min (2011) *

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 di ...

- 2:07:16 (2013)

References

External links

* __NOTOC__ {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathathi, Martin 1985 births Living people Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male marathon runners Olympic athletes of Kenya Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics People from Rift Valley Province World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics record holders (relay) Kenyan male cross country runners