Bernard Lagat

Bernard Kipchirchir Lagat (born December 12, 1974) is a Kenyan-American middle and long-distance runner.

Bernard Lagat
Lagat in 2011
Personal information
Full nameBernard Kipchirchir Lagat
NationalityKenyan-American
BornDecember 12, 1974 (1974-12-12) (age 45)
Kapsabet, Kenya
Height173 cm (5 ft 8 in)[1]
Weight58 kg (128 lb)
Sport
Country United States
 Kenya
SportAthletics/Track, Long-distance running
Event(s)800 m – Marathon
College teamWashington State Cougars
ClubNike
Turned pro1998
Coached byJames Li
Achievements and titles
World finals2001 Edmonton
1500 m,  Silver
2007 Osaka
1500 m,  Gold
5000 m,  Gold
2009 Berlin
1500 m,  Bronze
5000 m,  Silver
2011 Daegu
5000 m,  Silver
2013 Moscow
5000 m, 6th
Olympic finals2000 Sydney
1500 m,  Bronze
2004 Athens
1500 m,  Silver
2008 Beijing
1500 m, 12th
5000 m, 9th
2012 London
5000 m, 4th
2016 Rio de Janeiro
5000 m, 5th
Personal best(s)
Medal record
Men's athletics
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 0 1 1
World Championships 2 3 1
World Indoor Championships 3 2 0
Continental Cup 2 0 1
Universiade 1 0 0
Total 8 5 3
Representing  Kenya
Olympic Games
2004 Athens 1500 m
2000 Sydney 1500 m
World Championships
2001 Edmonton 1500 m
World Indoor Championships
2003 Birmingham 1500 m
2004 Budapest 3000 m
World Cup
2002 Madrid1500 m
Representing  United States
World Championships
2007 Osaka 1500 m
2007 Osaka 5000 m
2009 Berlin 5000 m
2011 Daegu 5000 m
2009 Berlin 1500 m
World Indoor Championships
2010 Doha 3000 m
2012 Istanbul 3000 m
2014 Sopot3000 m
World Cup
2010 Split3000 m
2010 Split5000 m
2014 Marrakech3000 m

Lagat was born in Kapsabet, Kenya. Prior to his change of domicile to the USA, Lagat had an extensive competitive career representing his native country.

He is the American record holder in the 1500 m and mile run indoors, as well as the 1500 m, 3000 m, and 5000 m outdoors, and is the Kenyan record holder at 1500 m outdoors. Lagat is the second fastest 1500 m runner of all time, behind Hicham El Guerrouj.

Lagat is a five-time Olympian, having competed in the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 games, and is a thirteen-time medalist in World Championships and Olympics including five gold medals. At the age of 41, he finished 5th in the finals of the 5000 m at the Rio Olympics.[2]

Lagat's long-term coach is James Li of the University of Arizona, with whom he has worked for over a decade.

Early life

Lagat was born in Kaptel village, near Kapsabet town in Nandi District of Kenya. He is a Nandi, a sub-tribe of the Kalenjin people.[3][4]

He graduated from the Kaptel High School in 1994, where he had started his athletic career. He joined Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Nairobi 1996. Later in the same year he moved to Washington State University where other Kenyan athletic greats such as Henry Rono and Michael Kosgei prospered.

In 1998, while at WSU, Lagat won three NCAA individual championships; indoor mile and 3000 m, as well as the 5000 m outdoors.

In 2000, Lagat graduated from Washington State University with a degree in management information systems.

Lagat's siblings have also competed in athletics; his older sister Mary Chepkemboi won the 3000 m at the 1984 African Championships in Athletics.[5]

Representing Kenya (2000–2004)

Lagat first represented his native Kenya at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.[6] In the 1500 m final, Morocco used team tactics to try to ensure a gold medal for heavy favorite Hicham El Guerrouj. In a very close finish, Noah Ngeny took gold, El Guerrouj won silver, and Lagat captured bronze. Lagat finished the year being ranked #3 in the world at 1500 m.

The next summer, Lagat won the silver medal, behind El Guerrouj, at the 2001 World Championships in Athletics, and later that summer, at a meet in Brussels, Lagat set the Kenyan National Record and became the second fastest individual ever at 1500 m when he ran 3:26.34, finishing second in this race behind Hicham El Guerrouj (3:26.13), in an attempt to break El Guerrouj's world record of 3:26.00. Lagat finished the year ranked #2 in the world at 1500 m.

Lagat spent most of 2002 and 2003 chasing El Guerrouj. At the 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships, he earned the silver medal at 1500 m, this time behind Driss Maazouzi of France. Lagat withdrew from the 2003 world outdoor championships after a blood test showed traces of EPO in his system. His B sample test came back negative, clearing him of any charges. He was ranked 2nd and 4th in the world at 1500 m in 2002 and 2003 respectively.

In the 3000 m at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships Lagat won his first international gold medal. Lagat was clearly overjoyed at his comeback since 2003. Throughout the spring he competed fiercely and beat his rival El Guerrouj in Zurich with a world leading time at 1500 m of 3:27.40. At the 2004 Summer Olympics Lagat seemed poised to once again defeat El Guerrouj. The final saw Lagat and El Guerrouj battling down the final 100 m, swapping the lead multiple times. El Guerrouj prevailed, with Lagat close behind, earning the silver medal, running the final lap in under 52 seconds. He was, however, ranked #1 in the world at 1500 m for the year.

Representing United States (2005–present)

Beginning of American career

In March 2005, Lagat announced that he had become a naturalized citizen of the United States in May 7, 2004. Lagat did compete for his homeland Kenya in the 2004 Summer Olympics, winning silver in the 1500 m. Even though Kenya did not allow dual citizenship at the time, he was allowed to keep his medal. Lagat became a competitor for the United States but was temporarily banned from international championship events, missing the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki.

The U.S. does allow dual citizenship and consequently races run by Lagat after May 7, 2004 could have been ratified as American records, since USATF rules only state that an athlete has to be a U.S. citizen competing in a sanctioned competition to be eligible to set a national record. However, at the 2005 USATF annual meeting, his 3:27.40 win in the 1500 meters, on August 6, 2004, in Zurich, was not ratified as an American record.

Nevertheless, Lagat owns three American records from races he had run in 2005 that were ratified by USATF. His first American records came indoors, with a 3:49.89 mile at Fayetteville, Arkansas, on February 11, 2005, during which his 1500 meters split time of 3:33.34 also established another new U.S. record, en route to a win in the event. The performance replaced records by Steve Scott, who set the previous American indoor mile record of 3:51.8 in 1981, and the previous American 1500 meter indoor record held by Jeff Atkinson, who ran 3:38.12 in 1989. Lagat's winning time of 3:29.40 at Rieti, Italy, on August 28, 2005, in the outdoor 1500 meters was ratified as his third new American record, improving upon the old record of 3:29.77, set by Sydney Maree in 1985.

Double world champion

At the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Lagat surpassed all his previous achievements by becoming the first athlete to become world champion in both the 1,500 m and 5,000 m at the same IAAF World Outdoor Championships. Similar feats were accomplished by Hicham El Guerrouj at the 2004 Olympics and Paavo Nurmi at the 1924 Olympics.[7][8]

2008 Olympics and 2009 Worlds
Bernard Lagat at the 2009 World Championships

In 2008, Lagat won both 1500 m[9][10] and 5000 m[11] runs at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, qualifying himself to compete with Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.[12] Hopes were high that his success in both these events would continue at the Olympics.[13][14] However, Lagat failed to advance beyond the semi-finals in the 1500 m run.[15][16][17] He was more successful in the 5000 m run, winning his semi-final heat to advance,[18][19] but ultimately did not medal, running to ninth-place finish in the finals.[20]

Lagat had concealed the fact that he was running with an injured Achilles tendon, a problem which hampered his training and contributed to his poor showing at the Olympics. He stated that his placings at the 2008 Beijing Games were "the biggest disappointment in my athletics career". The following season, he began with high altitude training in Flagstaff, Arizona.[21] After tying Eamonn Coghlan's record of seven wins in the Wanamaker Mile at the 2009 Millrose Games in New York, Lagat broke Coghlan's record with an 8th win at Millrose in 2010.[22] As the reigning world champion in the 1500 and 5000 meters, he automatically received qualification in the events at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics and set his sights on retaining his titles. Despite being much older than some of his competitors, Lagat's desire to win had not faded and he said "I am more motivated than ever to go to the podium in Berlin".[21] Lagat ultimately won the bronze medal in the 1500 m and the silver medal in the 5000 m.

2010 to present

Lagat set a new American record in his debut of the indoor 5000 meters at the Reebok Boston Indoor Games on February 6, 2010, with a time of 13:11.50. This beat previous record holder Galen Rupp who had set the record at 13:18.12 in 2009.[23] On June 4, 2010, Lagat broke the American Record for 5000 m with 12:54.12 on June 4, 2010 at the Bislett Games in Oslo.[24] Lagat set another area record at the Rieti IAAF Grand Prix in August: chasing down Tariku Bekele in the 3000 m. Lagat took second place with an American record of 7:29.00 – his first sub-7:30 minute time.

Lagat broke his own 5000 m American record in July at the Monaco Diamond League meet by running 12:53.60 to finish a close second behind Mo Farah who set the British 5000 m record in this race in a time of 12:53.11.[25][26][27] The 2011 World Championships in Athletics, the 5000 m final came down to a sprint finish and Lagat was beaten in the last straight by Mo Farah, leaving Lagat with his second consecutive silver medal at the world event.

Lagat (center) winning the 5000 m race at the 2016 Olympic Trials

The 2012 Millrose Games, was held for the first time at the Armory Track & Field Center and Lagat ran an American indoor record over 5000 m with a time of 13:07.15 minutes.[28] At the 2012 Olympics in London, Lagat finished fourth in the 5000 m race, crossing the line 1.33 seconds behind the leader, Mo Farah, after being tripped up when he was going into his kick by Isiah Kiplangat Koech.[29] Lagat was runner-up behind Matthew Centrowitz Jr. at the Fifth Avenue Mile that year.[30] [31] Lagat earned his 4th USATF Indoor 3000 meters title on February 22, 2014 [32][33] On June 27, Lagat, at age 39, won his seventh USA men’s 5,000 title.[34]

He made his debut at the 10,000 m on 1 May 2016 and came in first. His winning time of 27:49 seconds made an improvement for the world record in the Masters A40 category by 51 seconds.[35] [36] [37] On July 9, Lagat won the 5000 meters at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, qualifying him for his fifth Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. He entered the last lap in sixth place more than two and a half seconds behind race leader Galen Rupp. At age 41, his final lap was 52.82, the fastest of the field and more than a second faster than any in the 1500 meter final. Joining Lagat on the team were Somali born Hassan Mead and Kenyan born Paul Chelimo, making for an entirely foreign born delegation. Lagat also became the oldest runner at the Summer Olympics to represent the United States.[38] On August 20, 2016, Lagat initially claimed the 6th-place finish in the 5000 meters at the Olympics. He was moved to bronze after three runners were disqualified, but was moved back to 5th after 2 of the 3 were reinstated.[39] He outsprinted Andrew Butchart of Great Britain, who is 17 years his junior, by more than a second.

Lagat ran his final race as a professional on September 3, 2016, at the ISTAF meet in Berlin where he came in second place in the 3,000 meters.[40]

In May 2017 Lagat served as a pacer for Nike's Breaking2 attempt at achieving a sub-2-hour marathon time. Lagat also agreed to run as a pacer at a similar event, the Ineos 1:59 Challenge, in October 2019.[41]

On September 10, 2017, Lagat finished eighth in the 2017 Great North Run half marathon in 1:03:02.[42]

Lagat participated on his first marathon in New York City Marathon on 4 Nov, 2018[43] finishing 18th with a time of 2:17:20.[44]. He had a lead to the second placed finisher in his age group of 11:15 minutes.[45]

Lagat lives in Tucson, Arizona and Tübingen, Germany with his wife Gladys Tom (a Canadian of Chinese descent),[46] whom he met while they both attended Washington State University,[47][48] and their son Miika Kimutai (born in 2006) and daughter Gianna (born 2008).[49]

International competitions
Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing  Kenya
1999 Universiade Palma de Mallorca, Spain 1st 1500 m 3:40.99
2000 Olympic Games Sydney, Australia 3rd 1500 m 3:32.44
2001 World Indoor Championships Lisbon, Portugal 6th 3000 m 7:45.52
Goodwill Games Brisbane, Australia 5th Mile 3:57.10
World Championships Edmonton, Canada 2nd 1500 m 3:31.10
2002 African Championships Radès, Tunisia 1st 1500 m 3:38.11
World Cup Madrid, Spain 1st 1500 m 3:31.201
2003 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom 2nd 1500 m 3:42.62
2004 World Indoor Championships Budapest, Hungary 1st 3000 m 7:56.34
Olympic Games Athens, Greece 2nd 1500 m 3:34.30
Representing the  United States
2007 World Championships Osaka, Japan 1st 1500 m 3:34.77
1st 5000 m 13:45.87
2008 Olympic Games Beijing, China 9th 5000 m 13:26.89
2009 World Championships Berlin, Germany 3rd 1500 m 3:36.20
2nd 5000 m 13:17.33
2010 World Indoor Championships Doha, Qatar 1st 3000 m 7:37.97
Continental Cup Split, Croatia 1st 3000 m 7:54.752
1st 5000 m 13:58.232
2011 World Championships Daegu, South Korea 2nd 5000 m 13:23.64
2012 World Indoor Championships Istanbul, Turkey 1st 3000 m 7:41.44
Olympic Games London, United Kingdom 4th 5000 m 13:42.99
2013 World Championships Moscow, Russia 6th 5000 m 13:29.24
2014 World Indoor Championships Sopot, Poland 2nd 3000 m 7:55.22
2016 Olympic Games Rio, Brazil 5th 5000 m 13:06.78

1Representing Africa
2Representing the Americas

Statistics

Personal bests
DistanceMarkDateLocationNotes
1500 metres3:26.34 NRAugust 24, 2001Brussels Lagat's 1500 m PB is the Kenyan National Record. After becoming an American citizen, Lagat set an American record in the 1500 m of 3:29.30.
Mile3:47.28June 29, 2001Rome
Mile (indoor) AR3:49.89February 14, 2008Boston
3000 metres7:29.00 ARAugust 28, 2010Rieti
Two miles (indoor)8:09.49February 16, 2013New YorkThis was the North American AR until broken by Galen Rupp in January 2014
5000 metres12:53.60 ARJuly 22, 2011Monaco
10000 metres27:49.36May 1, 2016Palo AltoThis is the Masters A40 WR
Half marathon1:02:00January 14, 2018HoustonThis is the Masters A40 American record[50]
Marathon2:12:10July 6, 2019Queensland, AustraliaLikely to become Masters A40 American record[51]

Records
American records
Season Indoor Outdoor
Event Time Time
1500 m 3:33.343:29.30
Mile 3:49.89 
3000 m  7:29.00
5000 m 12:53.60
  • All of Lagat's American records are also North American Area Records.
  • His time of 3:26.34 minutes for the 1500 metres, set in 2001, remains the Kenyan and Commonwealth record for the event as well as the third-fastest of all time.
  • The 3000 and 5000 marks, set since Lagat turned 35 years of age are also Masters World records and American Masters records. Lagat also holds the currently recognized Masters World record in the 1500 at 3:32.51 set at Herculis in 2010.
  • He set the Masters World record for Age 40 at 3000 m in 7:48.33 on February 7, 2015 in Boston, and rebroke his own record in 7:37.71 on February 25, 2015 in Metz, France.[52]
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gollark: This is probably against GDPR or something.

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Bernard Lagat". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016.
  2. "IAAF: 5000 Metres Result | The XXXI Olympic Games | iaaf.org". iaaf.org. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  3. Longman, Jeré. "A Runner Dreams of Gold Under a New Flag". Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  4. "IAAF: Bernard LAGAT | Profile". iaaf.org. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  5. Powell, David (August 2, 2009). "With family as inspiration, Lagat ready to pursue elusive Olympic gold". iaaf.org. Archived from the original on August 27, 2008.
  6. Bernard Lagat (Profile). USATF. August 18, 2008
  7. El Guerrouj wins historic gold. BBC Sport. August 28, 2004
  8. With historic double, Lagat joins illustrious company Archived August 6, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. IAAF.org. September 2, 2007
  9. U.S. 2008 Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field – Men's 1500 m Results. USATF. July 6, 2008
  10. Lagat wins 1,500 m at U.S. Olympic trials. CBC Sports. July 7, 2008
  11. U.S. 2008 Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field – Men's 5000 m Results. USATF. June 30, 2008
  12. Stuczynski breaks AR; hurdlers impress as Olympic Trials conclude: Lagat completes double. USATF. July 6, 2008
  13. Lagat cautiously optimistic as double ambitions begin. IAAF. August 14, 2008
  14. Lagat eyes double. The Oregonian. August 13, 2008
  15. After a disappointment in 1,500, Lagat moves on in Olympic 5,000 meters. The Los Angeles Times. August 20, 2008
  16. Lagat fails to make Olympic 1,500 final. The Arizona Republic. August 17, 2008
  17. Lagat, Americans out after 1500 m semis Archived August 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. NBC Olympics. August 17, 2008
  18. Lagat wins 5K heat, advances to Saturday final. The Associated Press. August 20, 2008
  19. Lagat rebounds in 5,000 meters. The Arizona Republic. August 20, 2008
  20. Bekele wins 5,000, completes distance double. The Associated Press. August 23, 2008
  21. Gains, Paul (August 12, 2009). Lagat aims at defending precious World Champs double. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-13.
  22. Robinson, Joshua (January 31, 2009). Lagat Wins Mile at Millrose, Tying Coghlan’s Record. The New York Times. Retrieved on August 13, 2009.
  23. "Lagat sets American indoor record for 5,000 meters". The Washington Post, February 6, 2010.
  24. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 31, 2010. Retrieved September 26, 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  25. Lohr, Alex. (July 22, 2011) Mo Farah 1st in 5k and new British Record 12:53.11 Monaco Diamond League 2011 Archived March 27, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. FloTrack. Retrieved on 2016-08-07.
  26. Lohr, Alex. (July 22, 2011) Bernard Lagat runner-up 12:53.60 American Record and volunteer Drug test Monaco Diamond League 2011 Archived December 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. FloTrack. Retrieved on 2016-08-07.
  27. Sampaolo, Diego (August 29, 2010). Rudisha lowers 800 m World record again, 1:41.01; Carter dashes 9.78sec in Rieti – IAAF World Challenge. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-08-30.
  28. Parker, Morse (February 12, 2012). U.S. 5000 m record for Lagat in New York. IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-02-13.
  29. finished 4th. Cougcenter.com. Retrieved on August 7, 2016.
  30. Calderwood, Stuart (September 23, 2012). . IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-01-27.
  31. "Bernard Lagat prepared for Rio 2016". Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  32. "USA Track & Field – Lagat turns in fastest 3,000 m in USA Indoor Championships history on second day in Albuquerque". Usatf.org. February 22, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  33. "USATF Indoor Championships – News – In Crowded Race, Lagat Gets Fourth 3000 m Title At USA Ind Championships – RRW". Usaindoor.runnerspace.com. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  34. "Bernard Lagat, At Age 39, Wins His Seventh USA Men's 5,000 Title – Two Quick Thoughts + Lots Of Post-Race Talk". LetsRun.com. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
  35. "Bernard Lagat Debuts at 10,000 Meters and Smashes World Masters Record". runnersworld.com. May 2, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  36. "2016 Payton Jordan Invitational - info/results - 05/01/16". RunnerSpace.com. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  37. "10000 meter ALL-TIME Rankings". www.mastersathletics.net. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  38. Chavez, Chris (July 9, 2016). "41-year-old Bernard Lagat wins 5,000 meters at Olympic trials". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  39. "No medal for Bernard Lagat but plenty of class in perhaps his final Games". usatoday.com. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  40. "Bernard Lagat Has Run His Final Track Race - What an Amazing Career it Was - LetsRun.com". letsrun.com. September 6, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  41. INEOS. "Bernard Lagat". www.ineos159challenge.com. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  42. "2017 Great North Run Results - LetsRun.com". letsrun.com. September 11, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  43. "Bernard Lagat sets marathon debut". OlympicTalk. August 23, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  44. "Bernard Lagat Runs 2:17 Debut Marathon in New York City". Runner's World. November 4, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  45. "New York Road Runners Official Race Results". results.nyrr.org. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  46. "A Runner Dreams of Gold Under a New Flag". The New York Times, March 25, 2008.
  47. ESPN The Magazine: "For love of country". ESPN.com, August 2, 2007.
  48. "Sports: Bernard Lagat comes home". Washington State Magazine, February 1, 2008.
  49. "Kenyan-Born Runner Boosts U.S. Olympic Hopes". NPR, June 23, 2008.
  50. "USATF - Statistics - Records". www.usatf.org. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  51. "USATF - Statistics - Records". www.usatf.org. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  52. Gambaccini, Peter (February 26, 2015). "Bernard Lagat Lowers World Masters 3000-Meter Mark to 7:37.71 | Runner's World". Runnersworld.com. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
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