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Irungu Matati training in Iten
2013 Fukuoka marathon winner Martin Irungu Mathathi is back to training in the home of Champions.
fot. Irungu Mathathi in his training camp in Iten Kenya.
Mathathi is currently training in Iten. He is a long distance runner who is ambitious and focused. He has helped his company (Suzuki) in Japan in the medal hunting during the Japanese corporate championships for over 10 years not to mention representing his country in the major championships including Olympics and IAAF world championships. In the year 2012 he said he indented to Miss Olympics to prepare for his marathon debut in Fukuoka.
“I did not compete in the 2012 national trials for Olympics because then I was planning to shift to marathon, you know in athletics you can’t stick to one event for too long unless you want to retire when you are still young.”
He is one of the few developed athletes from the central Kenya and he has been traveling the world and he claims that Iten is still the leading training region in the face of the planet.
“I chose to train in Iten because here you get everything an athlete wants especially when you want to run marathon. Nyahururu where I come from is also high altitude place but I chose this place because there many training groups and you can’t compare with any other place in the world.”
Mathathi who was born 30 years ago in Nyahururu central Kenya is a good track, cross country and road runner and that is evident through his long profile of amazing performance in track, cross country as well as road race.
His profile exploded in the world of athletics in 2004 after breaking the world junior record in kosa 10 miles running an impressive time of 44.51 minutes (WJR). In 2005 he won the Chiba Ekiden relay also with a world record. His name heat the headlines in 2007 again when is won the bronze medal in 10,000m in the IAAF world championships that were held in Osaka Japan that year.
“Somehow those two world records inspired me more in my running carrier I hope the future holds more of that kind.”
With a series of wins and personal bests his next big task was during the Great North Run half marathon where he recorded 58:56 minutes (course record) to win the race setting the ground for the 2012’s 3 wins in half marathon namely Sapporo, Kobe and Gifu half marathons along with the Great Edinburgh Run 10k breaking the course record.
“I also have some course records in half marathon and ten kilometers and I hope next year if I get to run one of these majors in Europe like Berlin and London something bigger might come my way. This year things were not so good for me cause was injured but I hope that won’t happen this season”
Mathathi is regarded as one of the discipline athlete in Iten and that somehow has helped him achieve a lot in his carrier. He has been successful in professional athletics for over a decade.
“I started running in 2000 while I was in school though I was not so serious. In 2003 I was introduced to Japanese cooperates trials in Nairobi and that’s when I was taken to Japan for another trial which after I was recruited to run for Suzuki company which I still do up-to now.”
