Hellen Obiri

Hellen Onsando Obiri (born 13 December 1989) is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner.

She is the only woman to have won world titles in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country.

However, she lost interest in the sport and stopped running altogether in 2006 and 2007 to focus on her studies.

She only re-engaged with athletics to join the military.

Obiri set a personal best time of 4:07.59 in the heats but fell in the final, bringing pre-event favourite Morgan Uceny down with her, and finished 10th.

She later said, "After Daegu I went back to Kenya and started training seriously."

In 2009, Obiri graduated from Kenya Defence Forces Recruit Training School in Eldoret.

Her first major race was at the 2010 Kenya Armed Forces Cross Country Championships, where she finished 32nd.

She placed fifth after some training the following year.

She is a member of the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF).

Hellen Obiri gained her first international experience at the 2011 Military World Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she won the bronze medal for the 800 metres and placed fourth in the 1500 metres.

She debuted in the World Championships in Athletics held in 2011 in Daegu, South Korea the following month, competing at the latter distance.

She won the 3,000 metres race at the 2012 World Indoor Championships, claimed silver in 2014, and placed fourth in 2018.

In 2012, the 22-year-old took her first global title at the Istanbul World Indoor Championships, clocking 8:37.16 over the 3000 metres.

This became the turning point of her career.

That same year, she debuted in the Olympics at the London Games, finishing initially 12th and last in the 1500 m final, upgraded to eighth after subsequent doping disqualifications.

Obiri also took world bronze for the 1,500 metres in 2013 and silver in the 10,000 m in 2022.

On 1 June 2013, Obiri won her first Diamond League race with 1500 m victory in USA's Eugene, setting a new personal best and meet record of 3:58.58.

She earned bronze in the event at the World Championships in Athletics held in August in Moscow.

Obiri then earned the silver medal in the 3000 m at the 2014 World Indoor Championships in Sopot, Poland, behind multiple world record-holder Genzebe Dibaba.

On 9 May that year at the Doha Diamond League, she set an African record in the outdoor event with a time of 8:20.68, improving her personal best by more than 13 seconds.

In August, she added 1500 m title at the African Championships.

She is married to Tom Nyaundi, a former runner, and they have a daughter, Tania 'Blessing' Macheche, born in May 2015 through caesarean section.

Obiri resumed racing within seven months.

Obiri is a two-time Olympic 5,000 metres silver medallist from the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she also placed fourth over the 10,000 metres.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Obiri competed in the 5000 metres and earned the silver medal in a time of 14:29.77, behind compatriot Vivian Cheruiyot in an Olympic record of 14:26.17 and ahead of Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana who ran 14:33.59.

She is a two-time world champion after winning the 5,000 m in 2017 and again in 2019, when she set a new championship record.

Obiri was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine in 2017.

Hailing from Kisii in south-western Kenya, Obiri was the fourth child in a family of six children.

At age 14, she was recruited as a 200 and 400 metres sprinter to attend Riruta Central Secondary School in Nairobi.

Obiri represented Kenya at the 2017 World Championships in London in the same event and won the gold medal with a time of 14:34.86, ahead of Ayana and Sifan Hassan.

2018 saw her take two more gold medals in the 5000 m events, at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and at the African Championships.

She is the 2019 World Cross Country champion.

Obiri triumphed in the 2023 Boston Marathon, her second marathon race.

She places fifth in the half marathon on the world all-time list.

Obiri is the former Kenyan national record holder for the mile and the 5000 metres.

Both those records were only recently broken by Faith Kipyegon on her way to setting the current mile World Record of 4:07.64 set in Monaco on 21 July 2023.

Kipyegon is also the national 5000 metre record holder, by reason of being the immediate former 5000 metre World Record holder with a time of 14:05.20 set in Paris France on June 9 2023.

In March 2019, Obiri won the senior women's race at the World Cross Country Championship held in Aarhus, Denmark, beating on a 10.2 km course second-placed Dera Dida by two seconds with a time of 36:14.

After she posted best female times of the year in the 5000 metres in 2017 and 2018, Obiri successfully defended her title at the Doha World Championships in October, setting a championship record of 14:26.72 in the process.