James Kwambai
Encyclopedia
James Kipsang Kwambai is a runner from Kenya
, who specialises in marathons.
Kwambai went to the Kondabilet Primary School in Marakwet East District, but dropped out at standard seven.
He won the Marseille-Cassis Classique Internationale
in 2002, breaking the course record by over a minute. In 2006 Kwambai won the Brescia Marathon and Beijing Marathon
, which were his first two marathons. He also won the 2008 and the 2009 Saint Silvester Road Race.
He finished second at the 2008 Berlin Marathon
, where Haile Gebrselassie
set a new marathon world record. Kwambai's time was 2:05:36, that made him the seventh fastest ever marathon runner at the time. At the 2009 Rotterdam Marathon
Kwambai again finished second (behind Duncan Kibet
) in a time of 2:04:27, the third fastest ever marathon at the time. At the 2010 New York City Marathon
he completed the race in 2:11:31, which brought him fifth place. He returned to defend his title at the Saint Silvester race in São Paulo but ended up in third place behind Marílson dos Santos and Barnabas Kosgei.
His first race of 2011 was the CPC Loop Den Haag, but he was off the winning pace and came sixth in a time of one hour and one second. He was among the leaders at the 2011 London Marathon
by the 30 km mark, but dropped out of the race. In August he came second at the Rio de Janeiro Half Marathon, but was eighth at the Udine Half Marathon the following month, finishing well off his best in 1:02:06 hours. His season peaked in November when he took the title at the JoongAng Seoul Marathon
in a time of 2:08:50 hours, despite rainy conditions.
Kwambai prefers road running
over track and cross-country. His training partners include Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
, Martin Lel
, Sammy Korir
and Fred Kiprop
in Eldoret
and Italy
. Kwambai has been coached by Gabriele Rosa and Claudio Berardelli.
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...
, who specialises in marathons.
Kwambai went to the Kondabilet Primary School in Marakwet East District, but dropped out at standard seven.
He won the Marseille-Cassis Classique Internationale
Marseille-Cassis Classique Internationale
The Marseille-Cassis Classique Internationale is an annual half marathon which follows a course from Marseille to Cassis in France during the last weekend in October. First organised by the SCO Sainte-Marguerite sports club in 1979, the event has grown into a large international competition, with...
in 2002, breaking the course record by over a minute. In 2006 Kwambai won the Brescia Marathon and Beijing Marathon
Beijing Marathon
The Beijing International Marathon is an annual marathon race of 42.195 km held in October in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The race was first held in 1981 and has been held every year since. The race begins at Tiananmen Square and finishes at the National Olympic Sports Centre stadium...
, which were his first two marathons. He also won the 2008 and the 2009 Saint Silvester Road Race.
He finished second at the 2008 Berlin Marathon
Berlin Marathon
The Berlin Marathon is a major running and sporting event held annually in Berlin, Germany. The official marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers is set up as a city-wide road race where professional athletes and amateur runners jointly participate...
, where Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is an Ethiopian long-distance track and road running athlete. He won two Olympic gold medals over 10,000 metres and four World Championship titles in the event. He won the Berlin Marathon four times consecutively and also had three straight wins at the Dubai Marathon...
set a new marathon world record. Kwambai's time was 2:05:36, that made him the seventh fastest ever marathon runner at the time. At the 2009 Rotterdam Marathon
Rotterdam Marathon
The Rotterdam Marathon is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April of every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World...
Kwambai again finished second (behind Duncan Kibet
Duncan Kibet
Duncan Kibet is a runner from Kenya. He became the second fastest marathoner ever with a time of 2:04:27 hours, when he won the 2009 Rotterdam Marathon.- Career :Kibet dropped out of school in 1997 due to financial problems...
) in a time of 2:04:27, the third fastest ever marathon at the time. At the 2010 New York City Marathon
2010 New York City Marathon
The 41st New York City Marathon took place on Sunday , 2010. Sponsored by ING, the competition was the fifth World Marathon Major of 2010 and an IAAF Gold Label Road Race. A record 45,344 people were entered into the race. Ethiopian runner Gebregziabher Gebremariam won the men's race in a time of...
he completed the race in 2:11:31, which brought him fifth place. He returned to defend his title at the Saint Silvester race in São Paulo but ended up in third place behind Marílson dos Santos and Barnabas Kosgei.
His first race of 2011 was the CPC Loop Den Haag, but he was off the winning pace and came sixth in a time of one hour and one second. He was among the leaders at the 2011 London Marathon
2011 London Marathon
The 2011 London Marathon took place on Sunday, 17 April 2011. The men's elite race saw Emmanuel Mutai win in a course record time to become the fourth fastest ever over the distance. Runner-up Martin Lel sprinted to the line to beat Patrick Makau, completing a Kenyan sweep of the podium...
by the 30 km mark, but dropped out of the race. In August he came second at the Rio de Janeiro Half Marathon, but was eighth at the Udine Half Marathon the following month, finishing well off his best in 1:02:06 hours. His season peaked in November when he took the title at the JoongAng Seoul Marathon
JoongAng Seoul Marathon
The JoongAng Seoul Marathon is an annual footrace that takes place in Seoul, South Korea, usually in early November. First held in 1999, the race was established as a commemoration of Olympic marathon race which was held as part of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. It features a men's marathon elite race,...
in a time of 2:08:50 hours, despite rainy conditions.
Kwambai prefers road running
Road running
Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road . These events would be classified as long distance according to athletics terminology, with distances typically ranging from 5 kilometers to 42.2 kilometers in the marathon. They may involve large numbers of runners...
over track and cross-country. His training partners include Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
Robert "Mwafrika" Kipkoech Cheruiyot , sometimes known as Omar Ahmed, is a Kenyan marathon runner and is the former record holder and four-time winner of the Boston Marathon.- Early career :...
, Martin Lel
Martin Lel
Martin Kiptolo Lel is a Kenyan long distance and marathon runner. He won the London Marathon in 2005, 2007, and 2008, the New York City Marathon in 2003 and 2007 and the Great North Run in 2007 and 2009. His personal best time, , is 2:05:15, which he ran in the 2008 London Marathon setting a...
, Sammy Korir
Sammy Korir
Sammy Korir is a long distance runner from Kenya.In 2008 Korir became the first man to run ten marathons faster than the time of 2:09 hours, by finishing third in Dubai Marathon with a time of 2:08:34. The race was won by Haile Gebrselassie, who narrowly failed to break the world record held by...
and Fred Kiprop
Fred Kiprop
Fred Kiprop is a male long-distance runner from Kenya, who won the Amsterdam Marathon in 1999 in a time of 2:06:47.-Achievements:- References :...
in Eldoret
Eldoret
Eldoret is a town in western Kenya and the administrative centre of Uasin Gishu District of Rift Valley Province. Lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about 2100 metres above sea level at the airport to more than 2700 metres in nearby areas...
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Kwambai has been coached by Gabriele Rosa and Claudio Berardelli.
Achievements
- All results regarding marathon and half marathon
2003 San Blas Half Marathon Coamo, Puerto Rico Coamo, Puerto RicoCoamo is a municipality in Puerto Rico located in the southern region, north of Santa Isabel; south of Orocovis and Barranquitas; east of Villalba and Juana Díaz; and west of Aibonito and Salinas. Coamo is spread over 10 wards and Coamo Pueblo...2nd 1:03:29 Berlin Half Marathon Berlin Half MarathonBerlin Half Marathon is an annual half marathon race held in early Spring in Berlin, Germany. The race was first held in 1984. A total of 23,799 runners took part in the half marathon in 2010...Berlin, Germany 3rd 1:01:56 2004 Eldoret Half Marathon Eldoret EldoretEldoret is a town in western Kenya and the administrative centre of Uasin Gishu District of Rift Valley Province. Lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about 2100 metres above sea level at the airport to more than 2700 metres in nearby areas...3rd 1:01:43 San Blas Half Marathon Coamo, Puerto Rico Coamo, Puerto RicoCoamo is a municipality in Puerto Rico located in the southern region, north of Santa Isabel; south of Orocovis and Barranquitas; east of Villalba and Juana Díaz; and west of Aibonito and Salinas. Coamo is spread over 10 wards and Coamo Pueblo...2nd 1:03:18 Udine Half Marathon Udine, Italy 1st 1:00:22 2005 Bogota Half Marathon Bogotá 1st 1:03:10 Virginia Beach Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Virginia Beach, VA 2nd 1:01:05 Rome-Ostia Half Marathon Rome, Italy 1st 1:00:45 2006 Virginia Beach Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Virginia Beach, VA 1st 1:00:57 Bogota Half Marathon Bogota Half MarathonThe Bogotá International Half Marathon is an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance which takes place in Bogotá, Colombia in late July or early August. Established in 2000, it holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status, making it the first and thus far only South American...Bogotá 2nd 1:03:05 Brescia Marathon Brescia, Italy 1st 2:10:20 Beijing Marathon Beijing MarathonThe Beijing International Marathon is an annual marathon race of 42.195 km held in October in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The race was first held in 1981 and has been held every year since. The race begins at Tiananmen Square and finishes at the National Olympic Sports Centre stadium...Beijing 1st 2:10:36 2007 New York City Half Marathon New York City Half MarathonThe New York City Half Marathon is an annual half marathon road running race. It passes through famous landmarks such as Central Park and Times Square. The 5th annual race took place on March 21, 2010, with 11,604 finishers and victories by Peter Kamais and Mara Yamauchi...New York City New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...4th 1:01:03 New York City Marathon New York City MarathonThe New York City Marathon is a major annual marathon that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is one of the largest marathons in the world, with 45,103 finishers in 2010...New York City New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...5th 2:10:54 2008 Virginia Beach Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Virginia Beach, VA 1st 1:01:05 Rome-Ostia Half Marathon Rome, Italy 2nd 1:00:22 Berlin Marathon Berlin MarathonThe Berlin Marathon is a major running and sporting event held annually in Berlin, Germany. The official marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers is set up as a city-wide road race where professional athletes and amateur runners jointly participate...Berlin, Germany 2nd 2:05:36 2009 Rotterdam Half Marathon Rotterdam Half MarathonThe Rotterdam Half Marathon was an annual half marathon race over 21.1 kilometres, that was staged in Rotterdam, the Netherlands on the second Sunday in September. The event was contested from 2004 to 2009. It was discontinued in 2010 due to lacking participation.- Winners :-External links:* from...Rotterdam, Netherlands 3rd 59:09 Rotterdam Marathon Rotterdam MarathonThe Rotterdam Marathon is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April of every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World...Rotterdam, Netherlands 2nd 2:04:27 2010 Rotterdam Half Marathon Rotterdam Half MarathonThe Rotterdam Half Marathon was an annual half marathon race over 21.1 kilometres, that was staged in Rotterdam, the Netherlands on the second Sunday in September. The event was contested from 2004 to 2009. It was discontinued in 2010 due to lacking participation.- Winners :-External links:* from...Rotterdam, Netherlands 7th 1:02:08 New York City Marathon New York City MarathonThe New York City Marathon is a major annual marathon that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is one of the largest marathons in the world, with 45,103 finishers in 2010...New York City New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...5th 2:11:31 2011 CPC Loop Den Haag The Hague, Netherlands 6th 1:00:01 JoongAng Seoul Marathon JoongAng Seoul MarathonThe JoongAng Seoul Marathon is an annual footrace that takes place in Seoul, South Korea, usually in early November. First held in 1999, the race was established as a commemoration of Olympic marathon race which was held as part of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. It features a men's marathon elite race,...Seoul SeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South Korea1st 2:08:50