Grace Momanyi
Encyclopedia
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
n long distance runner of the Kisii
Kisii people
The Kisii is a community of Bantu speakers who inhabit the two counties in Nyanza Province, Western Kenya...
tribe.
She won the 2000 and 2005 10K races at the Ottawa Marathon, setting a course record in her second victory. In 2006 she moved to Japan to represt local Dauhatsu athletics team, but was mostly out of action due to injuries. She came back on September 2007 and won couple of local races. She won Kenyan National Cross country championship in 2008.
At the 2008 World Cross Country Championships
2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Holyrood Park at Edinburgh, Scotland on 30 March 2008. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...
she finished tenth in the individual race, however this was not enough to be a part of the Kenyan team, who won silver medals in the team competition. At the 2008 African Championships in Athletics
2008 African Championships in Athletics
The 16th African Championships in Athletics was held in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, from April 30 to May 4, 2008. The competition venue was the Addis Ababa Stadium. It is the largest Athletics event held in Ethiopia to date...
she finished third in the 5000 metres
5000 metres
The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...
race. She was announced as the joint winner of the inaugural World 10K Bangalore
World 10K Bangalore
The World 10K Bangalore is an annual 10 kilometres road running competition which takes place in Bangalore, India. The competition was first held in 2008 and usually takes place in late May...
race, finishing with exactly the same time (32:02) as Elvan Abeylegesse
Elvan Abeylegesse
Elvan Abeylegesse is an Ethiopian-born Turkish middle and long distance track and field athlete, running in the disciplines of 1500 m, 3000 m and 5000 m, but also 10000 m, 2 miles and cross country...
.
Momanyi was selected to represent Kenya at the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
in Beijing. She was the national flagbearer
2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...
of the Kenyan team
Kenya at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Kenya competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, People's Republic of China from August 8 to August 24, 2008. Kenya won a toal of 14 medals, 6 of the gold, its best ever performance at the Olympics....
at the opening ceremony
2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...
. She was to participate the women's 10,000 metres. However, she did not compete as she was replaced by reserve Peninah Arusei
Peninah Arusei
Penninah Arusei Jerop is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in road running competitions, especially the half marathon. She has represented Kenya at the Olympics, having competed in the 10,000 metres race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics...
athlete under controversial circumstances. She did much to make up for her Olympic disappointment, setting a 5000 m best at the Memorial Van Damme
Memorial Van Damme
Memorial van Damme is an annual athletics event at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium that takes place in late August or early September...
meeting and going on to win the Great Yorkshire Run
Great Yorkshire Run
The Great Yorkshire Run is an annual road-race event run in Sheffield City Centre. It is a part of the Great Run series of events, and as such is linked with the Great North Run...
10K race in 32:44 just two days later.
The following year she did get the opportunity to represent Kenya at global level, running in the 10,000 m at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
2009 World Championships in Athletics
The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate....
. Momanyi was fourth in a close finish, running a personal best of 30:52.25. She was Kenya's second ebst athlete in the race after event winner Linet Masai
Linet Masai
Linet Chepkwemoi Masai is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in track and cross country running events...
but managed to beat Meseret Defar
Meseret Defar
Meseret Defar is a female long-distance runner from Ethiopia who competes chiefly in the 3000 metres and 5000 metres events. She has won medals at top-tier international competitions including Olympic and World Championship gold medals over 5000 metres...
, one of the pre-race favourites. Momanyi won the 2009 and 2010 editions of the Würzburger Residenzlauf 10 km race. She returned to the Bangalore 10K in May 2010, but could not repeat her past victory and instead finished in third place.
She took to the track for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Athletics at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
The athletics competition at the 2010 Commonwealth Games was held in New Delhi, India between 6 and 14 October. The track and field events took place between 6–12 October at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium while the marathon contests were held on a street course running through the city on 14...
in New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
and emerged as the 10,000 m Commonwealth champion, succeeding her compatriot Lucy Kabuu. Back on the road, she ran in the Great South Run
Great South Run
The Bupa Great South Run is an annual 10 miles road running race which takes place in Portsmouth, United Kingdom. Launched in 1990, it is part of the Great Run series created by former British athlete Brendan Foster...
in October and topped the podium. She saw her performance in the ten-mile race as a stepping-stone to a future in road events: "This was a good result and very important as eventually I will be moving to the marathon".
She claimed fourth place at the World's Best 10K in February 2011, but reached the podium at the Lisbon Half Marathon
Lisbon Half Marathon
First held in 1991, the race has consistently delivered fast winning times. However, many of these times have been unratifiable for record purposes due to factors including: the course being too short , excessive tailwinds, as well as there being an excessive drop in altitude, which boosted...
the following month by taking third in a personal best of 1:08:41. She was among the favourites for the Great Manchester Run
Great Manchester Run
The Bupa Great Manchester Run is an annual 10 kilometre run through the streets in Manchester city centre, which was established in 2003. Usually held in mid-May, it is among the largest and most prestigious mass participation runs in the United Kingdom...
in May and took third place.
She is coached by Timothy Momanyi. She lives in Kisii
Kisii, Kenya
Kisii town, located south-western Kenya, is the main urban and commercial centre in Gusii Highlands. A vibrant town, the Kisii municipality has a population of about 83,000, according to 2008 estimates. However, it has a large dependent metropolitan population of over 100,000 residents, as per the...
. She has a child.
Achievements
| 2008 | World Cross Country Championships 2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Holyrood Park at Edinburgh, Scotland on 30 March 2008. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition... |
Edinburgh Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area... , Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... |
10th | Senior race |
| African Championships 2008 African Championships in Athletics The 16th African Championships in Athletics was held in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, from April 30 to May 4, 2008. The competition venue was the Addis Ababa Stadium. It is the largest Athletics event held in Ethiopia to date... |
Addis Ababa Addis Ababa Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia... , Ethiopia Ethiopia Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2... |
3rd | 5000 m | |
| World Athletics Final 2008 IAAF World Athletics Final The 6th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart, Germany on September 13 and September 14, 2008.A number of road races also took place on the second day of competition. There were seven different starting points around the Stuttgart area and the distances varied... |
Stuttgart Stuttgart Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million .... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
7th | 5000 m | |
| 2009 | World Championships 2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate.... |
Berlin Berlin Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
4th | 10,000 m 2009 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 10,000 metres The women's 10,000 metres at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on 15 August. The Ethiopian team was particularly strong in the event, with two-time World Champion Tirunesh Dibaba, 5000 metres World Champion Meseret Defar, and African record holder Meselech... |
| World Athletics Final 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final The 7th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki, Greece on September 12 and September 13, 2009. The competition represented the culmination of the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Tour, a selection of athletics meetings which began on September 20, 2008 at the... |
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace... , Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
8th | 5000 m 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final results These are the results of the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final, which took place in Thessaloniki, Greece on 12 and 13 September.The year's top seven athletes, based on their points ranking of the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Tour, qualified to compete in each event, with an extra four athletes selected... |
|
| 2010 | Commonwealth Games Athletics at the 2010 Commonwealth Games The athletics competition at the 2010 Commonwealth Games was held in New Delhi, India between 6 and 14 October. The track and field events took place between 6–12 October at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium while the marathon contests were held on a street course running through the city on 14... |
New Delhi New Delhi New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is... , India |
1st | 10,000 m Athletics at the 2010 Commonwealth Games – Women's 10,000 metres The Women's 10000 metres at the 2010 Commonwealth Games as part of the athletics programme was held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday 8 October 2010.There was just a final held.-Records:-Final:-External links:*... |
Personal bests
- 3000 metres3000 metresThe 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and...
- 8:56.37 min (2009) - 5000 metres5000 metresThe 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event...
- 14:50.77 min (2009) - 10000 metres10000 metresThe 10,000 metres or 10K is a common long distance running event. As "10,000 metres" it is a track event, and appears in athletics events such as the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics; as "10K" it is a roadrace or cross country running event...
- 30:52.25 min (2009) - Half marathonHalf marathonA half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a...
- 1:08:41 hrs (2011)