Running the second fastest 10K ever
Running has been her focus since.
Her talent was evident when she qualified for the 2019 African U20 championships, where she secured the 3000m silver while still in school.
She relocated to Iten, Kenya’s famed running mecca to train as a long-distance runner. Her progression on the track, where she “feels most at home,” dazzled. Coming from the Luo tribe, Anyango is not your typical Kenyan distance runner. Unlike the Kalenjins, the Luos are believed to be built for sprinting or other physical ball sports like football.
This fact was not lost on the budding runner.
“I believe talent is universal, it’s not about where you come from. What matters is how you exploit your chances. Besides my mum, who used to run in school, I don’t really come from a family of runners,” she explained, challenging the the simplified and common perception that genetic advantage is a significant factor in Kenya’s success in athletics.
“When you have a goal, anything is possible. All that matters is discipline and putting in the work in training.”
After a series of 5000m and 10k races in 2023, during which she bettered her personal best by nearly three minutes to 31:01 on the fast circuit in Lille, the Kenyan had big aspirations for 2024.
However, starting the season with a world record was never in her plan. Anyango closed in for second in January when compatriot Agnes Ngetich became the first woman to run the 10km in under 29 minutes. Ngetich’s winning time of 28:46 not only lowered the world record by 28 seconds, but was also faster than the 10,000m world record. Anyango’s time of 28:47 also improved Ethiopian Yalemzerf Yehualaw’s world record (29.14).
“A world record? No! I was just out to improve my personal best,” she said, laughing.
“But when I saw the record-breaking pace we were running, I told myself, “I am going to hang on and push it to the end even if it means dying on the course….so I just followed her steps until the finish line.”
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