Sabastian Sawe, the first man to run an official marathon in under two hours, has returned as a hero to his home village in Kenya. Hugged, cheered, and adorned with garlands, the 31-year-old record-breaker was welcomed by friends, family, and local officials at Eldoret airport on Thursday.
Historic Achievement Celebrated
Sawe stunned the world last weekend when he clocked 1 hour 59 minutes and 30 seconds at the London Marathon, breaking the previous world record by 65 seconds. He arrived in a Kenyan military plane normally reserved for special operations to his home region of western Kenya.
Waiting on the runway at a small airport perched on an escarpment 2,150 metres above sea level, his wife Lydia Sawe trembled with anxious excitement, clutching a huge bouquet of orange roses. As the plane touched down and the door opened, Sawe locked eyes with his wife and made a beeline for her arms. 'Congratulations, darling,' she whispered in his ear, tears streaming down her face.
Emotional Homecoming
Sawe signed a visitor book in the VIP lounge at Eldoret airport and hugged a line of ecstatic friends and locals. He was given a wreath made from the sinendet plant, which symbolises victory within his Kalenjin ethnic group, and his wife fed him fermented milk from a gourd to celebrate his win.
'The victory that took place last Sunday was not just my victory, it was a victory for all of us,' he said in Kiswahili, addressing the jubilant local community gathered at the airport entrance. 'I'm so happy to be home and welcomed this much, I'm so grateful,' he told the Guardian.
Running Culture in Eldoret
Famous runners are nothing new to this high-altitude part of Kenya. In the towns and villages around Eldoret, in the Great Rift Valley, life revolves around farming crops, tending to livestock, and nurturing the next generation of world record-breaking distance runners. Every day, the red dirt roads that weave between modest homesteads and maize fields are pounded by the trainers of thousands of hopeful, driven young runners.
People living and training at altitude produce more red blood cells to deal with the lower-oxygen environment, which can boost oxygen delivery to muscles when competing at lower altitudes, resulting in better endurance and performance.
Family Pride
Sawe's grandmother, Vivian Kimaru, who competed in the 1972 Munich Olympics in the 1500 and 800 metres, reaching the semi-finals, said: 'I'm so proud' of her grandson. The celebrations continued at Sawe's parents' home in Ndonyongaria village, where guests sat under marquees and women danced on grass between bursts of torrential rain, with traditional music booming from a sound system. After speeches and prayers, mounds of rice, sauteed cabbage, beef stew, and chapati were served.
Presidential Recognition
Sawe's victory was followed by days of rushing around, including a chaotic welcome at Nairobi's international airport on Wednesday night. At a lavish event at the presidential residence, President William Ruto, who is also from Eldoret and of the Kalenjin community, said Sawe's achievement was 'not merely a sporting triumph, it is a defining moment in the story of human endurance.'
Ruto presented Sawe with two cheques totalling 8 million shillings (£46,000), one for winning the race and the other for breaking the world record. Sawe also received car number plates showing his record time. In return, Sawe gave the president one of his racing shoes with '1.59.30' written in marker pen on the sole.
Running as a Route Out of Poverty
Running is not a hobby or pastime in and around Eldoret; it is seen as a route to wealth often unattainable by other means. Runners are spurred on by a desire for a better life through sponsorship deals, race wins, and athletics scholarships at foreign universities and prestigious academies.
Emmy Biwott, 45, director of Uasin Gishu county government primary school, who came to the airport to welcome Sawe, said athletes were 'our cash crop.' In the area, '90% of those people who are doing well are athletes,' she said.
Toby Tanser, author of books on Kenyan running and founder of Shoe4Africa, a running and Aids awareness charity, said money was the motivation behind the region's running success. Six of the 10 fastest male marathoners in history and four of the fastest female marathoners have come from Kenya. In Sawe's village, Tanser said: 'You'll not see a single fun runner, a charity runner or just running for health. People around here run for a way out of poverty. Nearly every famous Kenyan runner has come from a village setting.'
Future Prospects
Away from the crowd, in the living room of her parents-in-law, Lydia sat with close family and friends. How would life change for her family, which includes three sons? 'I can't even imagine,' she said. 'It will be so strange,' she said of the future. 'We will be [going] somewhere. I will be someone.'
