Coach Gervais Hakizimana: How man of few words shaped Kiptum’s bright career

They say if you can’t beat them, join them...

The irony is that while he never won any major titles for his country Rwanda in athletics, he helped one of the greatest nations in the sport produce a world marathon record holder.

Many came to know about coach Gervais Hakizimana after his popular athlete, Kelvin Kiptum, broke the course record in London last year, winning in a time of two hours, one minutes and 25 seconds.

The pair developed an inseparable bond both in life and death.

Hakizimana first visited Kenya in 2006, then aged 18, and pitched his camp in Kaptagat, Elgeyo Marakwet County, to prepare for the 2007 World Cross Country Championships in Mombasa, an event that could launch his international career in athletics.

Hakizimana finished 77th in the senior men’s race that was won by Eritrean Zersenay Tadese in a famous duel with Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele.

Hakizimana then represented his country Rwanda in the 10,000 metres at the All-African Games, now African Games, in Algiers, finishing 17th in a race also won by Tadese.

Hakizimana would then wrap up the year with the half marathon attempt at the World Road Running Championships in Udine, Italy, the same year where he finished 38th as Tadese, again, reigned supreme.

Hakizimana, who had made Kaptagat his second home, was forced to go back to Rwanda on the outset of the 2007 post-election violence.

He still competed in several assignments in 2008, making a return to the World Cross Country Championships in Great Britain where he failed to finish the race, and at the World Half Marathon Championships in Rio de Janeiro where he came home 45th.

Man of few words

A man of few words, Hakizimana, who is the current Rwanda national 3,000m steeplechase record holder (eight minutes, 39.05 seconds), also competed at the World Half Harathon Championships in 2009 in Great Britain, and the World Cross Country Championships in 2009, Jordan and in 2011 (Punta Umbria, Spain). 

Hakizimana made his marathon debut in 2016, at the London Marathon where he dropped out after 33 kilometres with an injury as Eliud Kipchoge retained his title. Even though Hakizimana shifted to France where he studied and worked for seven years while running too, he occasionally visited Kenya to train.

Born in Nyaruguru District, Southern Province, Rwanda, the coach knew Kiptum way back in 2009 when he was still a child in Chepsamo, Elgeyo Marakwet County.

“He used to play around with me when he was herding their animals when I came for my hill work training near their home,” said Hakizimana in a past interview. 

“He would jokingly kick me and in the long run started training with me.”

Hakizimana, who was married to Kenyan Joan Chelimo, said that Kiptum later joined him in training.

“I started sharing his training programme with him even when he was in France, something that happened to date.”

Hakizimana, 37, in most cases, opted to stay behind the scenes, sending Kiptum training programmes on telephone, especially via WhatsApp. 

Kiptum went on to run the third fastest time in the marathon on his debut with victory at the Valencia Marathon (2:01:53) on December 4, 2022. The feat made him the fastest marathon debutant. 

It’s after Kiptum won the London Marathon in April last year in a course record time of 2:01:25, the second fastest time ever in marathon, that Hakizimana came to Kaptagat to take full charge of his training, resulting in Kiptum’s world record run of 2:00:35 in Chicago last October.

“I stayed with him for two months before the London Marathon, but I relocated fully to Kaptagat after that. 

“My athlete almost withdrew from Chicago after he fell ill, leaving him weak, but I handled the situation and told him that he can’t fail in Chicago,” said Hakizimana.