Henry Wanyoike’s athletic star shone from way back when he was a teenager. He was considered one of the fastest in his hometown of Kikuyu as he would outrun his school mates on their three miles journey to and from school and win races regularly in secondary school competitions. This was the beginning of Wanyoike’s training. As time went by, he entertained the possibility of running becoming something more. His zeal to become a professional runner earmarked him from his fellow teenagers. At such a young age, Wanyoike was readying himself to join the elite Kenyan athletic corps that represented the country internationally in competitions.
Losing sight
However, Wanyoike’s athletic dream dimmed in 1995 when a stroke rendered him blind. He went to sleep on that 1st of May with good sight only to wake up the next day unable to see. Wanyoike was just 21 when this misfortune hit him, and he suddenly went from a vibrant young man with hopes and dreams to one plagued with desolate helplessness.
The restoration of hope
His hope was restored four years later when his doctor confirmed that he could still run with a guide and tether. With a renewed sense of strength and purpose, he embarked on learning how to run with a guide. At this time, Wanyoike had enrolled as a student at the Machakos Technical Institute for the Blind.
Hitting the road
By 2000, Wanyoike had mastered running with a guide, proving himself as a world-class non-sighted runner. With this, he earned himself a position in the national squad for the 5000 metres for the Sydney Paralympics, where he conquered the race bagging not only a gold medal but also setting a Paralympic record.
He continued his winning streak in 2004 where he added more gold medals on his laurel when he won the 5,000 and 10,000 metres Paralympic games in Athens, and the Hong Kong Marathon. In the same year, Wanyoike also emerged first among visually impaired contestants in the Boston Marathon.
Breaking world records
This wasn’t the end for Wanyoike. He transcended all these 2004 wins and rose to the pinnacle of athletic success in 2005 by breaking the visually impaired marathon world record twice in a span of one week. On April 17, he set a record of 2 hours 32 minutes 51 seconds in the London Marathon only to break it 7 days later in Hamburg, by 80 seconds. His Wetzlar and Singapore Half-Marathon wins afterwards became the cherry on top of all this cream.
In recognition of his dogged hunt for sports excellence, a star was studded on his name and Wanyoike became Kenya’s Sports Person of the Year in 2006.
For his surmounting spirit that had him reaching for hope each and every time, we celebrate Henry Wanyoike for stopping at nothing and making the world tracks his stage.
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