Want to give birth to an Olympic champion…? Have your baby on February 27 like Kiprotich

If you want your child to become Uganda’s next Olympic hero, then have your baby on February 27.

For that is the day four of the Pearl of Africa’s most successful ever athlete was born – Stephen Kiprotich.

Kiprotich, champion at the London Games five years ago, turns 28 years old today.

It was the first gold medal for Uganda since the legendary John Akii-Bua world record performance at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games gave the country her first ever medal.

Stephen Kiprotich was born on February 27, 1989 in Kapchorwa District of Uganda near the Uganda-Kenya border. The youngest of seven children, his parents James Kiptui and Cheptum Kokop of Cheptiyal village, Kapchorwa were subsistence farmers. As a child, young Stephen suffered from an undiagnosed illness which forced him to miss three years of elementary school.

Prior to that illness, Stephen’s interest in running had been aroused by the sight of national marathon champion Francis Musani who used to jog near their home in the morning. By the time Stephen was in Kaminy Primary School, he got encouragement to run from one of his teachers who was in charge of sports.

Stephen began his secondary school education in 2002 at Kapchorwa Secondary School, after his return and completion of elementary school in 2001. After being lapped at a race in which he represented his school, Stephen felt discouraged and decided to give up running to concentrate on his education.

In 2006, Stephen resumed training after returning to Sebei College for his A-levels. He had switched to Sebei College back in 2003 where he completed his O-level education. He came 5th in the 8km junior race after making his debut at the National Cross Country Championships. The performance earned him a ticket to the 34th World Cross Country Championships in Fukuoka, Japan where he placed 24th with a time of 25:02.

By the end of the year, Stephen shocked his parents and parents when he announced his decision to school for athletics. He moved to Eldoret, Kenya where he trained for the marathon with Eliud Kipchoge. On May 31, 2007 Stephen Kiprotich won his first national title in the 10,000m with a time of 28:42:54.

At the 2012 London Olympic Games, Stephen Kiprotich beat a strong Kenya contingent of runners to the gold medal in the marathon with a time of 2:08:11. The following year at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, he became the second person after Ethiopian athlete Gezahegne Abera to win the marathon gold medal following his Olympic victory.

Stephen Kiprotich won silver the Tokyo Marathon in 2015, running a personal best and new Ugandan national record of 2:06:33.

Kiprotich was Uganda’s hope for an Olympic medal in the Rio 2016 but finished a distant 14th, some four minutes and 48 seconds after winner, Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya.

Because of his participation at the 2017 World Cross-country Championships due March 26 in Kololo, Stephen Kiprotich has had to follow a unique schedule this year.