Gilbert Kirwa

Who is Gilbert Kirwa?

Gilbert Kipruto Kirwa is a Kenyan athlete who specialises in long-distance running and the marathon. His personal best for the marathon is 2:06:14 hours and has won races in Vienna and Frankfurt.

A Nandi from Nandi Hills, Kenya, Kirwa had no background in running when a friend, the Ugandan professional runner Nicholas Kiprono, asked him to begin training with him in 2005. Based on what he had seen in training, Jason Mbote asked if Kirwa would be a pacemaker for him at the 2008 Seoul International Marathon in South Korea. This was the first time Kirwa had left Kenya, and his first ever international competition, but he set a strong pace up to the 33 kilometre mark and athletics agent Gerard van de Veen signed him on the strength of the run.

He made his competitive debut in 2009, to much success: he won the Vienna Marathon with a time of 2:08:21, in what was he first ever attempt at the distance. He won the Hamburg Half Marathon in June with a best of 1:01:52, won the 10 km race in Wierden the following month, and took third at the Loopfestijn Voorthuizen 10 km race. Running in the Frankfurt Marathon in October, his second race at the distance, he beat the defending champion Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot and also broke the course record. His time of 2:06:14 ranked among the top-twenty fastest marathons on record. The win at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race earned the runner €95,000 in prize money and bonuses. Following this result, Kirwa stated his career ambition to challenge Haile Gebrselassie's world record.