Abraham Chepkirwok facts for kids
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| Born | 18 November 1988 (age 36) |
Abraham Chepkirwok (born 18 November 1988) is a talented Ugandan middle-distance runner. He is best known for running the 800 metres race. Abraham holds the Ugandan record for this distance. His fastest time is 1 minute and 43.72 seconds, which he achieved in July 2008. He won a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships in 2006. He also competed in the Olympic Games in 2008.
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Early Career and Junior Success
Abraham Chepkirwok was born in Kapchorwa, Uganda. He started showing great promise in running from a young age.
Becoming a Junior Star
By June 2006, Abraham was already making headlines. He ran the 800 metres in 1 minute and 45.0 seconds. This was the fastest time in the world for junior athletes that season. Junior athletes are runners who are 19 years old or younger.
World Junior Championships Medal
Later in 2006, Abraham competed at the 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics in Beijing, China. He ran a strong race and even led for part of it. He eventually won the bronze medal, finishing third. Two Kenyan runners passed him near the end of the race.
Breaking Records and International Races
Abraham continued to improve his running times. He set new records and competed in many big races around the world.
Setting Indoor Records
During the 2006–07 indoor season, Abraham set a new Ugandan indoor record. He ran the 800 metres in 1 minute and 46.91 seconds in Stuttgart, Germany.
Major Competitions in 2007
In 2007, Abraham had a very busy and successful year.
- He won the IAAF Grand Prix races in Dakar and Hengelo.
- He finished third in other major races like the Super Grand Prix in Doha.
- In July 2007, he set a new personal best time of 1 minute and 44.78 seconds. This happened at a Grand Prix event in Athens.
World Championships Finalist
Abraham competed at the All-Africa Games and finished fifth. Then, he went to the 2007 World Championships in Athletics. He made it all the way to the final race. It was a very close finish, with all eight runners finishing within a few seconds of each other. Abraham finished fourth, just barely missing a bronze medal. He was only 0.02 seconds behind the third-place runner.
Olympic Dreams and National Records
Abraham continued to train hard and compete at the highest levels of athletics.
2008 Season Highlights
The 2008 season was another strong one for Abraham.
- He finished second in Doha and won the ISTAF Golden League meet in Berlin.
- He also won a Super Grand Prix event in London.
- In Madrid, he set his personal best time of 1 minute and 43.72 seconds. This time also became the new Ugandan national record for the 800 metres.
Competing at the Olympics
Abraham was the only middle-distance runner from Uganda at the 2008 Olympic Games. He competed in the 800 metres competition. While he ran well, he did not reach the final round. He finished the season with a second-place finish at the World Athletics Final.
Later Achievements
In early 2009, Abraham was considered for the Ugandan Athlete of the Year award. He finished as the second runner-up. In February 2009, he set another national indoor record. He ran the 1000 metres in 2 minutes and 18.18 seconds in Stuttgart.
Abraham Chepkirwok is managed by PACE Sports Management. His coach is Ricky Simms.
