Where Your Dreams Become
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A Class Act Richard Kiplagat
Below are Richard Kiplagat's comments from the post-race press conference where he ran 29:08 for third place. Kiplagat was a star at New York's Iona College and he continues to train with Iona coach Mick Byrne. Kiplagat, like a lot of people in Kenya, came from a very poor background in Kenya. (He talks about days of not having food in this article) Yet from his actions (he graduated in 3 years with a 3.75 GPA) and words (he thanks the NYRR, talks about how great training is in Rockefeller Park), you can tell he is very appreciative of the opportunity he has in America. Kiplagat is perhaps best known on Letsrun.com for being the guy who site visitors raised over $4000 for so his sister could have a life saving operation in Kenya. In the interview below Richard talks about how hard this year's race was due to the fast early pace ("this year was a little tougher than last year... I ran 28:41 last year and it felt much easier than this year."), he explains the Kenyan Olympic Trials system ("It's not like the Kenyan federation (does not) have a constant formula. This time they wanted to limit the number of race the athletes are competing (in). They wanted to spend more time training them"), and he expresses gratitude for what he accomplished ("I am very happy... These guys are really quick. I can not take it for granted it requires a lot of commitment") Richard Kiplagat (2:57)
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Runner's World &
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