Kenneth Mburu Mungara
Kenneth Mburu Mungara, also known as Kennedy Mburu, (born 7 September 1973 in Limuru)[1] is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in the marathon.
He won his first major international marathon in 2008, completing the Prague Marathon in 2:11:06, one minute ahead of second-placed Eliah Sang.[2] Four months later he won the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, upsetting the race favourites John Kelai and Tariku Jufar, and edging out Peter Kiprotich for the victory in 2:11:01.[3]
In January the following year, he won the Mumbai Marathon and his time of 2:11:51 was the fastest ever on Indian soil, beating Shivnath Singh's record which had stood since 1978.[4] He managed a third-place finish at the 2009 Prague Marathon,[5] but he was hampered by a knee injury. He recovered in time for the 2009 Toronto Waterfront Marathon and defended his title, finishing in a time of 2:08:31 and breaking the Canadian all-comers' record. He was pleased with, but surprised by, the achievement, stating that he did not believe his manager when he said Mungara could run 2:08. He received a total of 55,000 Canadian dollars in winner's prize money and performance bonuses.[6]
He returned to the Prague Marathon in 2010 but could not repeat his past performances and finished in 2:10:53 for seventh place.[7] He maintained his reputation at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, however, improving his Canadian all-comers record to 2:07:57 for his third consecutive win of the event. When asked whether he was considering one of the large American marathons the following year, Mungara admitted he had already promised to return to Toronto for a fourth attempt.[8] He won at the Singapore Marathon in December, taking the first prize of US$50,000.[9] He achieved a fourth straight win at the 2011 Toronto Marathon, although the finish was close between Mungara and Abdullah Dawit as both recorded the same finishing time of 2:09:51 hours.[10][11] At the 2011 Prague Marathon he was runner-up to Benson Barus but still managed a personal best run of 2:07:36 hours.[12]
He did not perform well in the 2012 season, running 2:15:59 at the Paris Marathon and then 2:16:53 at the JoongAng Seoul Marathon, finishing far behind the winner on both occasions.[13] He was ever slower (2:17:40) at the Singapore Marathon, but was fourth and only twenty seconds behind the leader at that race.[14] Almost a year passed until his next outing, where he returned to form with a winning run of 2:11:40 hours at the Nairobi Marathon.[15]
Achievements
- All results regarding marathon, unless stated otherwise
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  Kenya |
||||
| 2007 | Cologne Marathon | Cologne, Germany | 4th | 2:11:36 |
| 2007 | Mombasa Marathon | Mombasa, Kenya | 2nd | 2:10:13 |
| 2008 | Tiberias Marathon | Tiberias, Israel | 2nd | 2:10:37 |
| 2008 | Prague Marathon | Prague, Czech Republic | 1st | 2:11:06 |
| 2008 | Toronto Waterfront Marathon | Toronto, Canada | 1st | 2:11:01 |
| 2009 | Mumbai Marathon | Mumbai, India | 1st | 2:11:51 |
| 2009 | Prague Marathon | Prague, Czech Republic | 3rd | 2:10:29 |
| 2009 | Toronto Waterfront Marathon | Toronto, Canada | 1st | 2:08:32 |
| 2010 | Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon | Beppu, Japan | 5th | 2:11:05 |
| 2010 | Toronto Waterfront Marathon | Toronto, Canada | 1st | 2:07:57 |
| 2010 | Singapore Marathon | Singapore, Republic of Singapore | 1st | 2:14:06 |
| 2011 | Toronto Waterfront Marathon | Toronto, Canada | 1st | 2:09:49 |
| 2011 | Prague Marathon | Prague, Czech Republic | 2nd | 2:07:36 |
| 2013 | Nairobi Marathon | Nairobi, Kenya | 1st | 2:11:40 |
Personal bests
| Event | Time (h:m:s) | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marathon | 2:07:36 | Prague, Czech Republic | 8 May 2011 |
- All information taken from IAAF profile.
References
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- Kenneth Mburu Mungara profile at IAAF
- ↑ Kenneth Mungara. IAC. Retrieved on 2013-11-02.
- ↑ Prague International Marathon (2008-05-11). Mungara, Yulamanova take Prague Marathon titles. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-09-28.
- ↑ Gains, Paul (2008-09-28). Seboka Breaks Course Record at Toronto Marathon. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-09-28.
- ↑ Murali Krishnan, Ram. (2009-01-18). Mungara and Kebebush take Mumbai Marathon titles . IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-09-28.
- ↑ Ivuti clocks 2:07:48 course record in Prague. IAAF (2009-05-10). Retrieved on 2009-09-28.
- ↑ Gains, Paul (2009-09-27). Mungara Defends in Toronto with Canadian All Comers Record. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-09-28.
- ↑ Butcher, Pat (2010-05-09). Massive breakthrough for Kiptanui - 2:05:39 in Prague. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-05-22.
- ↑ Gains, Paul (2010-09-26). Mungara and Cherop take Toronto Marathon titles as Canadian All-Comers records tumble. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-09-26.
- ↑ Mungara and Kosgei prevail at Singapore Marathon. IAAF (2010-12-05). Retrieved on 2010-12-07.
- ↑ Note: Mungara's finishing time for the 2011 Toronto Marathon was later rounded down by two seconds to 2:09:51.
- ↑ Gains, Paul (2011-10-16). Mungara claims fourth Toronto Marathon title. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-10-17.
- ↑ Edwards, Andy (2011-02-08). Cheromei smashes women’s Prague Marathon course record - UPDATED. IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-03-02.
- ↑ Kurdyumova, Yelena & Porada, Sergey (2012-11-04). Kwambai defends, clocks 2:05:50 course record in Seoul. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-11-02.
- ↑ December 2012. AIMS. Retrieved on 2013-11-02.
- ↑ October 2013. AIMS. Retrieved on 2013-11-02.
