President William Ruto has honored Kenya’s first Olympic games medalist Wilson Kiprugut Chumo by renaming the Kericho Green Stadium to his name.
Speaking during the 60th Mashujaa Day celebrations held at stadium, Ruto said the legendary Kenyan sprint and middle-distance athlete deserves the honor.
“Allow me to celebrate Kiprugut Chumo, the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal by renaming this Kericho Green Stadium after him,” Ruto stated.
The renaming comes after the stadium was recently upgraded by the national government at a cost of Ksh.400 million and has a seating capacity of 10,000 people.
Moreover, the Steering Committee on National Celebrations led by Interior PS Raymond Omollo chose the Kericho Green Stadium as the perfect venue for the celebrations.
In preparations for Mashujaa celebrations, the number of gates at the stadium was increased from two to three while new seven pavilions were constructed.
Previously, there have been reports of renaming the stadium since its official opening in 2019.
The Green Stadium was constructed during Kericho’s first governor tenure Prof Paul Chepkwony’s tenure and opened for use on June 20, 2019.
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In a past press conference, Sports CS Ababu Namwamba said the upgrade of the stadium will continue after the Mashujaa Day celebrations on Friday, October 20.
Further, he said the upgrade was in memory of athletes and to allow the stadium to host all league matches.
Additionally, the CS said the stadium will be under the control of Sports Kenya.
Why Ruto Honored Chumo
Kiprugut Chumo dates to 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games 800m finals when he won a bronze medal in an African record of 1:45.9.
According to World Athletics, Kiprugut started as a 400m runner before gravitating towards the 800m race.
Kiprugut’s first major tournament was the 1958 East African Championships, where the Kenyan Army scouted him.
Further, he made an appearance at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, exiting the heats of the 400m but later finishing fifth in the 4x400m.
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A victory at the 1964 East and Central African Championships allowed him to book a spot at the Olympic games the following year where he broke the African 800m record.
Moreover, he won 400m and 800m gold at the 1965 All African Games and silver in the 880 yards at the 1966 Commonwealth Games.
He improved his African 800m record to 1:45.2 in 1967, then successfully defended his title at the 1967 and 1968 East and Central African Championships, underlining his status as the best two-lap runner on the continent.
In 1968 Olympic Games Kiprugut took silver in 1:44.5 behind Australia’s Ralph Doubell who clocked 1:44.3 to equal the world record at the time.
However, Kiprugut’s performance was the third-fastest in history at that time and an African record that stood until 1974.
He retired from competition in 1969 but continued working as a coach and fitness instructor in the Kenyan army for another five years.
On November 2, 2023, Kiprugut died at the age of 80 after a long illness.
