Daniel Komen

Not to be confused with Daniel Kipchirchir Komen.

Daniel Komen

Medal record
Men's Athletics
Competitor for Kenya
World Championships
Gold	1997 Athens	5,000 m

Daniel Kipngetich Komen (born May 17, 1976 in Elgeyo-Marakwet District, Kenya) is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner. Remembered for his rivalry with Haile Gebrselassie, Komen's most notable achievements came in a two-year period between 1996 and 1998, during which he broke a string of world records. Komen's 1998 indoor and 1996 outdoor records for 3,000m still stand, and he remains the only man to run back-to-back sub-four-minute miles. Komen was also the second man, after Saïd Aouita, to break both the 13-minute mark for the 5,000m and the 3½-minute mark for the 1,500m.^{[citation needed]}

Early life

Komen is from the Keiyo sub-tribe of Kalenjin people and grew up in a rural area of Kenya's Rift Valley Province. One of fourteen children, Komen began running at the age of seven as a means of getting to and from school. Komen had an exceptional junior career: at age 17, he placed second at the World Junior Cross Country Championships, and in 1994, he became the World Junior Champion in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters.

Rise to prominence

Komen first appeared in the senior ranks in 1994 when he won a place on Kenya's 10,000m team for the 1994 Commonwealth Games, later that same year helping pace Moses Kiptanui to a 5,000m record.

Two years later, Komen began to dominate the 5,000m. On September 1, 1996 in Rieti, Italy, Komen ran a spectacular world record time of 7:20.67 in the 3000 metres, breaking Noureddine Morceli's former record by 4.44 seconds.

A year later, Komen made history again. In Hechtel, Belgium, Komen became the first (and so far only) man to run two miles in under eight minutes, clocking a world record 7:58.61. Just seven months later, at an Australian athletics meet in Sydney, Komen ran another 7:58, missing his world record by 0.30 seconds.

In August 1997 he broke the 5000m world record and took two seconds off of Haile Gebrselassie's best to bring it to 12:39.74.

Only twelve days after the previous world record of 7:26.15 was set by Haile Gebrselassie, Komen broke the indoor 3,000-metre record with a time of 7:24.90, set in Budapest on February 6, 1998. This mark is still referred to as "Mount Everest" in athletics circles and has been bettered only twice outdoors, one of them being Komen's own world record. Kenenisa Bekele believes that breaking Komen's record is only "possible on a special day if the pace is good and if everything else also is perfect."

Other accolades include being the 1997 World Championships in Athletics and 1998 Commonwealth Games 5,000-meter champion. He won the 5000 metres race at the 1998 IAAF World Cup.

Out of the limelight since the late 1990s, Komen now serves as chairman of the Keiyo North Rift Athletics Association and as co-director of a private school with his wife, Joyce.

Personal records

Daniel Komen's personal records, and their place on the world ranking of all times, unless otherwise noted. All times and placings are taken from Komen's IAAF bio (as of August 2011):

Distance	Time	All-Time Rank	Date	Place
1500 Meters	3:29.46	12th	August 16, 1997	Monaco
1 Mile	3:46.38	5th	August 26, 1997	Berlin
2000 Meters	4:51.30	9th	June 5, 1998	Milano
3000 Meters (outdoor)	7:20.67	World Record	September 1, 1996	Rieti
3000 Meters (indoor)	7:24.90	World Record	February 6, 1998	Budapest
2 Miles	7:58.61	World Record	July 19, 1997	Hechtel
5000 Meters	12:39.74	3rd	August 22, 1997	Brussels
10,000 Meters	27:38.32	53*	August 30, 2002	Brussels

Achievements

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing Kenya
1994	World Junior Championships	Lisbon, Portugal	1st	5,000 m
			1st	10,000 m

Bibliography

• Tanser, Toby (2001) [1997]. Train Hard, Win Easy: The Kenyan Way (2nd ed.). Mountain View: Tafnews Press. ISBN 0-911521-60-7. 

External links

• IAAF profile for Daniel Komen
• Kimbia Athletics profile (archive.org)
• Video recording of Komen's outdoor 3,000m record

Records
Preceded by Noureddine Morceli	Men's 3000 m World Record Holder September 1, 1996 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent
Preceded by Haile Gebrselassie	Men's 5000 m World Record Holder August 22, 1997 – June 13, 1998	Succeeded by Haile Gebrselassie
Sporting positions
Preceded by Moses Kiptanui	Men's 3000 m Best Year Performance 1996	Succeeded by Haile Gebrselassie
Preceded by Haile Gebrselassie	Men's 5000 m Best Year Performance 1996 – 1997	Succeeded by Haile Gebrselassie