Silas Kipngetich Sang (born 21 August 1978) 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 stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who mainly competes in

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 ...

competitions. He is a three-time winner of the

Portugal Half Marathon Luso Portugal Half Marathon or Hyundai 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 resp ...

and set his personal best of 1:00:20 hours at the race in 2009. Hailing from

Kaptagat Kaptagat is a 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 long-d ...

in the

Rift Valley Province Rift Valley Province () of Kenya, bordering Uganda, was one of Kenya's eight provinces, before the 2013 Kenyan general election. Rift Valley Province was the largest and one of the most economically important provinces in Kenya. It was dominated ...

, he began running in international competitions in his early twenties and initially competed in track races in Finland. He was the 2005 winner of the

Lidingöloppet Lidingöloppet is an annual cross country running competition held in Lidingö, Sweden. The 30 km run has about 15,000 participants per year and the shorter races several thousands, making it the largest cross-country event in the world.IAA" ...

Swedish cross country race and also won the

Göteborgsvarvet Göteborgsvarvet () is an annual half marathon running competition in Gothenburg, Sweden (often called the Gothenburg Half Marathon in English). It is the largest annual running competition in the world in terms of entries, with its 62,000 entr ...

half marathon that year. Working with long-distance coach

El-Mostafa Nechchadi El Mostafa Nechchadi (; born 15 November 1962) is a retired Moroccan long-distance runner who specialized in the marathon. Nechchadi was a 1988 Olympian in the marathon, but did not finish the race. His personal best time was 2:10:09 hours achi ...

, he made his debut over the

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 ...

distance in 2006 at the

Madrid Marathon The Rock 'n' Roll Madrid Marathon () is an annual marathon race which takes place in Madrid, Spain, in late April. The event was first held in 1978 and has since gained IAAF Gold Label Road Race status and had over 15,000 runners participate in t ...

and came second in a time of 2:11:44 hours. It was over the half marathon that he had more success, however, as he had back-to-back victories from 2006 to 2008 in races in Malaga, Torremolinos, Seville and Albacete. His streak came to an end with a runner-up finish at the 2008 Göteborgsvarvet.. Marathon Champs. Retrieved on 2011-10-01. Sang defeated former world record holder

Paul Tergat Paul Kibii Tergat (born 17 June 1969) is a Kenyan former professional long-distance runner. He became the first Kenyan man to set the world record in the marathon in 2003, with a time of 2:04:55, and is regarded as one of the most accomplished l ...

at the 2008

and set a new course record of 1:01:26 hours. He placed eighth at the

Kenyan Cross Country Championships The Kenyan Cross Country Championships is an annual cross country running competition that serves as the national championship for Kenya. It is organised by Athletics Kenya and has permit race status from the International Association of Athletics ...

at the start of 2009 and spent much of that year competing in road races in the United States, which included top three finishes at the

Azalea Trail Run The Azalea Trail Run is an annual road running event held in late March in Mobile, Alabama which is considered one of the United States' premier road races. Runners, walkers, and wheelchair athletes from around the world and at all levels turn out ...

and

Cherry Blossom 10-Miler The Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run is an annual 10-mile (16 km) road race in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1973 originally as a precursor training run for elite runners planning to compete in the Boston Marathon, the race has evolved over the ye ...

. He returned to the Portugal Half Marathon in Lisbon and successfully defended his title with a personal best run of 1:00.20 hours, beating World Championship medallist

Emmanuel Kipchirchir Mutai Emmanuel Kipchirchir Mutai (born 12 October 1984) is a long-distance runner from Kenya, who specialises in marathons. As of January 2024 his time of 2:03:13 is now the joint 13th fastest. When he ran that time it was the 2nd fastest time ever a ...

in the process. The following March he entered the city's other race, the

Lisbon Half Marathon EDP Lisbon Half Marathon is an annual international half marathon competition which is contested every March in Lisbon, Portugal. It carries IAAF Gold Label Road Race status. The men's course record of 57:31 was set by Jacob Kiplimo in 2021, which ...

, but proved to be far off the world record pace of winner

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

, as Sang finish in twelfth. Undeterred, he signed up for the same race the following year and although Zersenay Tadese was again the winner, Sang produced one of the best performances of his career, coming third in a time of 1:00:38 hours. He ran at the 2011

Ottawa Marathon The Ottawa Race Weekend (also known as Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend for sponsorship reasons) is an annual weekend of road running events held the last weekend of May in the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The two-day running event includes sev ...

in May and set a personal best of 2:10:58 hours in spite of a five-year gap since his previous outing over the distance, taking fourth place. A third career victory at the Portugal Half Marathon came in September, as he held off challenges from

Silas Kipruto Silas Kipruto Semetei (born 26 September 1984) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specializes in the half marathon and 10K run events, with personal bests of 59:39 minutes and 27:28 minutes respectively. He finished seventh at the 2 ...

and

Lucas Rotich Lucas Kimeli Rotich (born 16 April 1990), Kapsoiyo Village, Elgeyo Marakwet County is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 metres. He won a silver medal in the 3000 metres at the 2007 World Youth Championships, the bronze ...

. He further improved his marathon best at the 2012

Nagano Marathon The Nagano Olympic Commemorative Marathon () is an annual marathon road running, road race which takes place in mid-April in Nagano, Nagano, Nagano, Japan. It is an IAAF Bronze Label Road Race competition. The Nagano Marathon has races for both el ...

, where his time of 2:09:10 was five seconds behind winner

Francis Kibiwott Francis Kibiwott Larabal (born 15 September 1978 in Kasiela, Baringo District) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes professionally in half marathon and marathon races. Kibiwott was unusual for a Kenyan runner in that he did not compete ...

.Nakamura, Ken (2012-04-15)
Kibiwott and Wangui win in Nagano
IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-04-21.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sang, Silas Kipngetich 1978 births Living people Athletes from Uasin Gishu County Kenyan male long-distance runners Kenyan male marathon runners