Running News Daily

Kenyan Ruth Chepng'etich, is the world champ that trains without coach

Ruth Chepng’etich kept postponing the interview but it was quite understandable considering the Covid-19 contagion in the country.

There have been no sporting activities in the country since March this year after the government instituted measures to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus following the first case in the country.

By Saturday, Kenya had reported 35,969 cases with 22,771 recoveries and 619 deaths from the disease.

We checked into Vapor ground, Ngong, Kajiado County, where she had directed us and found her warming down after her morning workout in readiness for the delayed London Marathon due on October 4.

The diminutive athlete was alone.

On a normal day, Vapor ground could be teeming with elite and the not so serious athletes going through their paces.

Though well-kept, the place looked like a ghost arena...thanks to Covid-19 restrictions on social gatherings and social distancing.

Only a handful of athletes were working out separately at the venue but observing strict Covid-19 guidelines.

Well, many top athletes whether in athletics or other sporting disciplines can barely perform without the input of a coach.

They will go to greater lengths to hire or take along their coaches to major championships so that they reap the benefits of the “second eyes” to the maximum.  

Majority of professional athletes have made it big after aping or getting inspired either by family members or friends, who were great sportsmen or women in a particular event.

However, there are always unique cases where some sportsmen and women are self-made right. Some have gone on to perform well at the highest level without a coach.

Chepng’etich is one of them.

The only time she had a coach, briefly, was when she was still in Kericho before shifting her base to Ngong in Kajiado County in 2015, a move that would toss her into a roller coaster of athletics achievements.

She has never thought about engaging a coach since setting foot in Ngong, an area that has produced some of Kenya’s top athletes like World 5,000m champion Hellen Obiri.

It would sound strange but self-coaching and group training are what have unleashed the best in the 26-year-old Chepng’etich and the best is yet to come through.

Within four years of moving to Ngong, she already has a world title and is ranked the fourth fastest women in marathon history, an accomplishment most female athletes can just but dream about.