Nancy Jebet Langat (born 22 August 1981) is a Kenyan middle distance runner who specialises in the 1,500 metres. She won 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 b ...

in the 1,500 m at the

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

, in a personal best time of 4:00.23. She also competed at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

and the 2005 World Championships, without reaching the finals. In her younger days, she mainly competed in the

800 metres The 800 metres, or 800 meters (American and British English spelling differences#-re.2C -er, US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of a ...

, and was successful as a junior. Langat's gold at the 2008 Summer Olympics in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

made her only the second Kenyan woman to win an Olympic gold. The first one was Pamela Jelimo, who won the 800 m at the same Olympics. At the 2009 World Championships, Langat did not advance past the semifinals, but finished the season with a win at the World Athletics Final. In 2010 Langat won the

Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fifteen invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics one-day meet competitions. The inaugural season was ...

1500 m. She was undefeated in all races against the best runners in the world. He performance at the

2010 IAAF Continental Cup The 1st IAAF Continental Cup was an international track and field sporting event held under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations. Originally scheduled as the 11th IAAF World Cup in Athletics, it was renamed in 200 ...

was controversial, as she attempted to pull back Hind Dehiba as the two duelled in the final straight. Langat fell and finished last. She claimed an 800/1500 m middle distance double at the

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth that was held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 201 ...

, however, and was chosen as the Kenyan Sportswoman of the Year in December. Langat had less success on the 2011 Diamond League circuit: on her two appearances, at the

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual Track and field, track and field event normally held at the Stadio Olimpico, Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 deat ...

and Prefontaine Classic, she came fifth both times. She topped the podium in the 1500 m at the 2011 Military World Games, but was eliminated in the semi-finals at 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 ...

. She suffered a knee injury in 2012 and missed the opportunity to defend her Olympic title.

Personal life

Nancy Langat is married to

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), 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 ...

runner

Kenneth Cheruiyot Kenneth Cheruiyot (born August 2, 1974) is an athlete from Kenya who specialises in long-distance running. He is most famous for winning the Rotterdam Marathon in 2000. He finished second in the event in 2001 and 2002. In 2002 he fell to the ground ...

. Her oldest son turned six on the day that she won Olympic Gold. She was recruited by

Kenya Air Force The Kenya Air Force (KAF) or is the national aerial warfare service branch of the Republic of Kenya. The main airbase operating fighters is Laikipia Air Base in Nanyuki, while Moi Air Base in Eastleigh, Nairobi is the headquarters. Other ba ...

and is based at the Moi Air Base in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

. Her father Joseph Langat was an international level long-distance runner.

Achievements

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Langat, Nancy 1981 births Living people Kenyan female middle-distance runners Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Kenya Olympic gold medalists for Kenya Athletes (track and field) at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Kenya Commonwealth Games athletes for Kenya Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Kenyan female cross country runners Diamond League winners IAAF World Athletics Final winners Medallists at the 2010 Commonwealth Games 21st-century Kenyan sportswomen Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics