David Rudisha facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
David Rudisha

Rudisha at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, South Korea
Personal information
Birth name	David Lekuta Rudisha
Born	(1988-12-17) 17 December 1988 (age 36) Kilgoris, Narok County, Kenya
Height	1.90 m
Weight	76 kg
Sport
Country	Kenya
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	800 metres
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	400 m: 45.50 (Sydney 2010) 500 m: 57.69 WB (Newcastle 2016) 600 m: 1:13.10 Area Best (Birmingham 2016) 800 m: 1:40.91 WR, OR (London 2012) 1000 m: 2:19.43 (Ostrava 2017)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Kenya Olympic Games Gold 2012 London 800 m Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro 800 m World Championships Gold 2011 Daegu 800 m Gold 2015 Beijing 800 m Diamond League 2010 800 m 2011 800 m World Junior Championships Gold 2006 Beijing 800 m Commonwealth Games Silver 2014 Glasgow 800 m African Championships Gold 2008 Addis Ababa 800 m Gold 2010 Nairobi 800 m Representing Africa Continental Cup Gold 2010 Split 800 m

David Lekuta Rudisha (born 17 December 1988) is a retired Kenyan middle-distance runner. He holds the world and Olympic record in the 800 metres race. Rudisha won gold medals in the 800 m at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympic Games. In London, he set a world record with a time of 1:40.91.

He is also a two-time World champion (in 2011 and 2015). Rudisha won the Diamond League 800 m title twice (in 2010 and 2011). He is the first and only person to run the 800 m race in under 1 minute and 41 seconds. He holds the three fastest times ever recorded in this event.

Rudisha started his running career at St. Francis Kimuron High School. He won 800 m titles at the 2006 World Junior Championships. He also won the 2008 and 2010 African Championships. In 2014, he earned a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games. He also holds the world's best time in the 500 metres and the African best for the 600 metres. Rudisha won the IAAF World Athlete of the Year award in 2010.

In May 2022, Rudisha announced he was running for election in Kenya. In March 2024, he was an ambassador for the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.

Early Life and Training

David Rudisha was born on 17 December 1988 in Kilgoris, Narok County, Kenya. He attended Kimuron Secondary School in Iten. In 2005, a runner named Japheth Kimutai suggested Rudisha to James Templeton. Rudisha then joined a group of runners managed by Templeton.

Initially, David was a 400 metres runner. However, his coach, an Irishman named Colm O'Connell, encouraged him to try the 800 metres. This change proved to be a great decision for his career. In 2006, he became the world junior champion in the 800 m.

Rudisha's Running Career

Starting Out Strong

Rudisha competed at the 2009 World Athletics Championships. He reached the semi-finals in the 800 metres. In September 2009, he won the IAAF Grand Prix meeting in Rieti, Italy. He set a new African record of 1:42.01, beating a 25-year-old record. This amazing effort placed him fourth on the all-time list of fastest 800m runners.

Rudisha at the 2010 Memorial van Damme in Brussels.

In the 2010 Diamond League, he competed against Abubaker Kaki at the Bislett Games. Rudisha broke Sebastian Coe's 31-year-old meet record with a time of 1:42.04. This placed him among the top ten fastest 800 m runners ever. On 10 July, Rudisha ran the 800 m in 1:41.51 at the KBC Night of Athletics in Belgium. This new personal best made him the second-fastest 800 m runner in the world at that time.

Rudisha at the 2010 ISTAF Berlin where he set his first world record.

On 22 August 2010, Rudisha broke Wilson Kipketer's 800 m world record. He achieved a time of 1:41.09 at the ISTAF Berlin meeting in Germany. Just one week later, he broke his own record again. At the IAAF World Challenge meeting in Rieti, he lowered it to 1:41.01. Rudisha won four races in the Diamond League that year. This helped him win his first 800 m Diamond Trophy. In November, at just 21 years old, he became the youngest athlete to win the IAAF World Athlete of the Year award. He was also named Kenyan Sportsman of the Year.

Rudisha won his first major world title at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, South Korea. He won the 800 m event with a time of 1:43.91. He also won three Diamond League races that season. This secured his second straight 800 m Diamond Race title.

2012: Olympic Gold and World Record

Rudisha set a new United States 800 m record at the 2012 adidas Grand Prix in New York City. His time was 1:41.74. He secured his spot on the Kenyan Olympic team by winning the Kenyan trials. He ran a time of 1:42.12 minutes, which was the fastest ever recorded at high altitude. In his last race before the Olympics, he won at the Paris Diamond League. He set a new world-leading time of 1:41.54.

Rudisha on his way to setting a world record at the 2012 London Olympics.

On 9 August 2012, at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Rudisha won the gold medal. He led the race from start to finish. This race was called "The Greatest 800 Meter Race Ever." He became the first and only runner to break the 1 minute and 41 second barrier for the 800 m. From the beginning of the final race, Rudisha took the lead. He pulled away from the other runners after 200 metres. He finished the first lap in 49.28 seconds. By 600 metres, his lead was several meters. He kept pulling ahead until the final stretch. Second-place runner Nijel Amos gained a little ground, but the gap was too big. Rudisha crossed the finish line in a world-record time of 1:40.91.

All of Rudisha's competitors also ran incredibly fast times. The race was so fast that every runner achieved their personal best or season's best time. The silver medalist, Amos, set a new world junior record. He became only the fifth man in history to run under 1:42. The IAAF noted that it was the deepest 800 m race ever. The time set by the eighth-placed runner, Andrew Osagie, would have won gold at the three previous Olympic games.

Rudisha's record was special because he did not use pacemakers. Pacemakers are not allowed in the Olympics. The last person to win an Olympic 800 m final with a world record was Alberto Juantorena in 1976. Rudisha also became the first reigning 800 m world champion to win Olympic gold at that distance. Sebastian Coe, who held the 800 m world record for 17 years, praised Rudisha's performance. He called it "the most extraordinary piece of running I have probably ever seen."

Rudisha joked about his father's 1968 400 m relay silver medal. He said it would be good to win gold so their family would have both gold and silver. After the race, he said it was the greatest 800 m race for him. He won it in front of Sebastian Coe, who held the record for many years. Rudisha received an award for Best Male Athlete of London 2012. He also received an honor from the Kenyan government.

2013-2015: Injuries and Another World Title

Rudisha could not compete for most of the 2013 season. This included the 2013 World Championships, due to an injury.

In 2014, Rudisha won a silver medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. He finished behind Nijel Amos with a time of 1:45.48. On 5 June, he tried to break Johnny Gray's 600 m world best at the Birmingham Diamond League. He did not break the record, but he set a new personal best of 1:13.10. He finished third in his last race of the season in Zurich. He was beaten by Nijel Amos again, finishing in 1:43.96.

Rudisha after winning gold at the 2015 World Championships.

Rudisha had an injury while competing over 600 m in May 2015. However, he recovered to win at the New York City Grand Prix on 13 June. Rudisha won the 800 m with a time of 1:43.58. He then claimed his second world 800 m title at the World Championships in Beijing, China. In a strategic race, he pulled away from the other runners. He won in a time of 1:45.84.

On 5 June 2016, Rudisha tried again to break the 600 m world best at the Birmingham Diamond League. He missed the world best but set a new African best of 1:13.10. This was the second-fastest time ever. Rudisha qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics by finishing third at the Kenyan Olympic Trials. His time was 1:44.23. At the Olympics, he successfully defended his Olympic title. He won gold with a time of 1:42.15. He was the first person since Peter Snell in 1964 to win two Olympic 800 m titles in a row. His finishing time was his fastest since the 2012 Olympic final. It was also the fastest time in the world for 2016.

Later Career and Retirement

In 2017, Rudisha finished fourth at the Shanghai Diamond League meet. His time was 1:45.36. He tried the 1000 metres for the first time at the Golden Spike Ostrava. He finished fourth with a personal best time of 2:19.43. In his final race, he won the 800 m at the Gyulai István Memorial on 4 July. His time was 1:44.90.

In 2019, Rudisha was in a car accident near Keroka. His car collided with a bus, but he was not seriously hurt.

Rudisha had planned to defend his title at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. However, injuries prevented him from competing. This stopped him from becoming the first man to win three Olympic titles in a row. In December 2022, he was one of five people who survived a plane crash-landing in Kenya.

Coaching and Training

For the 2012 Olympics, Rudisha worked with Caroline Currid. She is an Irish mental performance coach. She helped him learn how to perform his best on race day.

From 2007 to at least 2012, Rudisha trained in the summer months in Tübingen, Germany. This town is a training center for many talented runners from Kenya.

Personal Life

Rudisha is a member of the Maasai ethnic group in Kenya. His father, Daniel Rudisha, was also a runner. He won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympics in the 4 × 400 m relay. His mother, Naomi, was a 400 m hurdler. David is married to Lizzy Naanyu and has two daughters. Many people describe him as a very kind person.

He is a fan of the football club Arsenal F.C..

Achievements

Rudisha at the 2011 World Championships in Daegu

International Competitions

Representing  Kenya

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
2006	World Junior Championships	Beijing, China	1st	800 m	1:47.40
			4th	4 × 400 m relay	3:05.54
2007	African Junior Championships	Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso	1st	800 m	1:46.41
2008	African Championships	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	1st	800 m	1:44.20
2009	World Athletics Final	Thessaloniki, Greece	1st	800 m	1:44.85
2010	African Championships	Nairobi, Kenya	1st	800 m	1:42.84
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	1st	800 m	1:43.91
2012	Olympic Games	London, United Kingdom	1st	800 m	1:40.91 WR
2014	Commonwealth Games	Glasgow, Scotland	2nd	800 m	1:45.48
2015	World Championships	Beijing, China	1st	800 m	1:45.84
2016	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	1st	800 m	1:42.15

Circuit Wins and Titles

• Diamond League 800 m overall winner: 2010, 2011
  • 800 metres wins, other events specified in parentheses
• 2010 (4): Doha Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix, Oslo Bislett Games, Lausanne Athletissima, Brussels Memorial Van Damme
• 2011 (4): Lausanne, Monaco Herculis, London Grand Prix, Brussels
• 2012 (3): Doha, New York Adidas Grand Prix, Paris Meeting Areva
• 2013 (2): Doha Qatar Athletic, New York
• 2014 (3): New York, Glasgow Grand Prix, Birmingham British Athletics Grand Prix (600m)
• 2015 (1): New York
• 2016 (1): Birmingham (600m)

See also

In Spanish: David Rudisha para niños