Inside foundation formed to honour Agnes Tirop in war on gender violence

The world woke up to the shocking news of the murder of 2015 World Cross Country champion Agnes Jebet Tirop on October 13 last year.

The athlete’s star had just started shining. She was found murdered allegedly by her estranged husband, Ibrahim Rotich, at their home in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet. He was later arrested in Mombasa while on the run and charged.

For starters, Tirop was a middle- and a long-distance runner and had just broken the record in the 10km road race two weeks before she met her death.

She also participated in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in Japan where she represented Kenya in the 5,000m race, finishing fourth in a race won by Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan.

What followed her death was a public outcry on gender-based violence (GBV) as it emerged that many sportspeople are going through tough times in their relationships across the country.

Tirop’s case also came into the limelight because she was an international athlete, but there are many other women going through the same problems, though in silence.

After her burial in Kapnyamisa village, Mosoriot, Nandi County, some of her close friends saw it wise to start a foundation that would keep her dreams alive.

That is how Tirop’s Angels Foundation was birthed, with her father, Vincent Tirop, as one of the executive members. It was created out of the realisation that a number of athletes were facing challenges but, due to fear of victimisation, could not speak up.

Memorial Cross Country

Athletics Kenya also, in her honour, requested the World Cross Country Tour in Eldoret to be named after her, to which World Athletics agreed. On February 12, Agnes Tirop Memorial Cross Country Tour was held successfully, with the women’s 10km senior race held last as one way of honouring Tirop.

Joan Jepkorir, the vice chair of the foundation, told Sunday Nation they have a long-term solution, especially for athletes who will be facing challenges. They plan to reach those affected across the country.

According to Jepkorir, since the foundation is still young, they are targeting the up-and-coming athletes to make sure that when they are at the right age to have a family, they will have tips on how to handle such situations and always speak out whenever there is a problem. Both male and female athletes are involved.

With enough support, the foundation will also be setting up a safe haven for athletes who will be running away from GBV.

They will be protected as they continue training. “The foundation is now up and running and we shall be organising various events. Our target is to start by visiting camps for the young up-and-coming athletes because we saw that we need to give them career advice while still at a tender age,” said Jepkorir.

“This will help the young generation have knowledge of what to expect in life; we shall be saving a generation from ills that are happening now, especially within the sporting fraternity,” she added.

Some of the topics they will be talking about include how to cope with mental illnesses, GBV, and HIV/Aids  that come up in the course of their relationships.

Viola Lagat, a marathoner who was second at last year’s New York edition and the trust chair of the foundation, said they wanted to start small from the community before spreading their message to other counties.

She said they have received overwhelming support from various stakeholders since registering the foundation last month.

“The support has been good and we have many people who want to partner with us. They are just waiting for our website to be launched—which should be in a few days. A company has signed an agreement with us for the next four years and we are happy because the message is now coming out clear,” said Lagat.

Lagat is among athletes who will be competing at this years’ Boston Marathon and just like last year when she dedicated the race to Tirop, this year she is ready to do the same in honour of the fallen hero.

Hurdles

During the memorial race, the foundation set up a tent that young athletes visited to share some of their challenges. Many of them need of training gear.

According to Joan Jelimo, the vice-secretary of the foundation, there is good talent, but many athletes lack proper training gear and this makes some coaches take advantage of them.

“During the Memorial Agnes Tirop World Cross Country Tour, athletes from as far as Nyahururu visited our stand and we came to know that there is a big problem in terms of training gear. We are in discussion with our sponsor, Adidas, so that they can also donate shoes and other facilities,” said Jelimo.

Jelimo says they faced opposition in the early days of the foundation as some people wrongly thought it was anti-marriage.

“When we started the foundation, we met a lot of opposition because many thought that we were discouraging marriages.

“But we managed to teach them slowly by slowly on our mission and we are happy that they have come to understand that gender-based violence also touches on men and not just women,” explained Jelimo.

She said that she wanted to honour a friend she had known for many years since their days in the junior category, despite taking different paths when they grew up.

Caroline Jepkosgei, a road race athlete who is also eyeing to shift to marathon, said her interaction with Tirop was minimal, but she was on the forefront of organising a group to seek the way forward for ending GBV and other problems that were turning ugly.

Shoulder to lean on

Jepkosgei said that because the foundation is up and running, the officials will be reaching out to various people who are suffering in silence to offer help where they can.

“We want to start with the younger generation because they can change easily and our target is getting in touch with those in school and the ones who have just finished high school education. This will now give us a clear path because we want to bring everyone on board and make sure they get help in future,” said Jepkosgei, a mother of one who is also the foundation’s secretary.

Women’s marathon record holder Mary Keitany, who is the treasurer of the foundation, for her part, said the foundation is one of a kind within the athletics fraternity and she expects many people to benefit going forward.

“The mission here is to create awareness to the athletes and even the community of the need to come out and speak; and have the self-drive to pursue their dreams to have a bright future. We are happy because the foundation has taken off and we shall be able to support other people across the country,” said Keitany.

They are in the process of also meeting with Adidas runners to seek professional assistance in running the foundation. Currently, they only have lawyers and there is a need to have counsellors who will be able to handle victims who need help.

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