Daniel Komen
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Athletics | ||
Competitor for  Kenya |
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| World Championships | ||
| Gold | 1997 Athens | 5,000 m |
Daniel Kipngetich Komen (born May 17, 1976 in Elgeyo-Marakwet District, Kenya)[1] 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.[1] 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.[1] 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]
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[edit] 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.[1] One of fourteen children,[2] Komen began running at the age of seven as a means of getting to and from school.[1] 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.
[edit] 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.[3]
Two years later, Komen began to dominate the 5,000m.[4] 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.[5] 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"[6] 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."[7]
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.[8]
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.[1]
[edit] 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[update]):
| 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[9] | Hechtel |
| 5000 Meters | 12:39.74 | 3rd | August 22, 1997 | Brussels |
| 10,000 Meters | 27:38.32 | 532* | August 30, 2002 | Brussels |
[edit] Achievements
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing Kenya |
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| 1994 | World Junior Championships | Lisbon, Portugal | 1st | 5,000 m |
| 1st | 10,000 m | |||
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d e f Matt Fitzgerald (March 2011 issue). "What Ever Happened To Daniel Komen?". Competitor Magazine. http://running.competitor.com/2011/05/features/what-ever-happened-to-daniel-komen_27486. Komen is rumoured to be three years older than officially recognised.
- ^ Tanser (2001), p. 186.
- ^ Tanser (2001), p. 185. Komen himself set a world junior record of 12:56.15 as Kiptanui's pace-maker.
- ^ Tanser (2001), p. 185.
- ^ See here for Komen's lap splits: Professor Tom Michalik. "THE EIGHT MINUTE TWO-MILE!!". Personal web page. http://faculty.randolphcollege.edu/tmichalik/8min.htm. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
- ^ "Bekele to hit the boards for the first time in Stuttgart". IAAF. January 29, 2004. http://www.iaaf.org/news/printer,newsid=23938.htmx. Retrieved August 13, 2011. See paragraph 12 of the article.
- ^ "Bekele gunning for 3000 WR, while Swedish stars share the spotlight - Stockholm preview". IAAF.org. February 20, 2007. http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=37669.html. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
- ^ gbrathletics.com: IAAF WORLD CUP IN ATHLETICS
- ^ World Records and Best Performances
[edit] Bibliography
- Tanser, Toby (2001) [1997]. Train Hard, Win Easy: The Kenyan Way (2nd ed.). Mountain View: Tafnews Press. ISBN 0-911521-60-7.
[edit] 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 |
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