Abel Kirui

Abel Kirui is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the marathon. Born on 6 April 1982, he began running at primary school and took the sport up seriously after winning a recruitment race for the Administration Police. He became one of the leading marathoners of his generation, winning the World Championships marathon in 2009 in Berlin and again in 2011 in Daegu, where his winning margin of more than two minutes was the largest in the event's history. He won a silver medal in the marathon at the 2012 London Olympic Games, finishing 26 seconds behind the winner. Among his city marathon results are victory at the 2008 Vienna City Marathon, second place at the 2007 Berlin Marathon and a win at the 2016 Chicago Marathon.