Elijah Lagat was already 27 when he gained interest in road racing in 1992. And winning medals was not the motivation for Lagat, who would become a celebrated marathoner in the world.
A doctor had told Lagat that he had a lot of fat around his heart and that he needed to lose some weight.
He started jogging, and in 1993, felt he could compete in a marathon. He started training. That same year, he took part in the Mombasa Marathon, his first competitive race. He finished second in a time of 2:17:14.
Lagat, who died in Eldoret on Tuesday, would end up with a distinguished career both in athletics and in public service, after serving as MP for Emgwen and Chesumei constituencies.
He went for the Emgwen parliamentary seat on a KANU ticket in 2002 and lost to NARC’s Tarus. No one imagined Lagat would become a world beater. By the age of 27, most athletes are already veterans.
His family said Lagat, the former Boston Marathon champion, died after a short illness.
Lagat, who was also the 1997 Berlin Marathon champion, was admitted to hospital on Friday. He had collapsed at his Elgon View home in Eldoret and was admitted in the ICU.
“He was diagnosed with high blood pressure, but by Sunday, he had regained consciousness and was even talking, only for him to die on Monday night,” said his brother Abraham Lagat, who spoke at the hospital.
Until his death, he was a board member at the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse Authority (Nacada).
Lagat competed in various city marathons and won several prestigious races. At the 104th edition for the Boston Marathon, he triumphed after edging out Ethiopia’s Gezahegne Abera in 2:09:4. It was his first win. He took the top honours in a personal best time of 2:07:41.
Another Kenyan, Moses Tanui, finished third three seconds later. Their compatriot Catherine Ndereba took the women’s title in 2:26:11.
Lagat also featured in the 1995 Frankfurt Marathon and finished second, timing 2:12:40.
In 1996, he featured in the Rotterdam Marathon where he finished seventh (2:11:54). At the New York Marathon later, he finished 19th in a time of 2:18:35.
In 1997, Lagat took part in the Turin Marathon in Italy, finishing second in 2:09:19.
He went on to win the 1998 Prague Marathon (2:08:52) before finishing 10th at the Chicago Marathon in 2:10:33.
In 1999, Lagat had a fifth place finish during the Paris Marathon (2:08:50) and was sixth at the New York Marathon (2:09:59).
He was selected in the 2000 marathon team that represented Kenya at the Sydney Olympic Games. Unfortunately, he did not finish the race.
He had a sixth-place finish at the Madrid Marathon the same year. After that, Lagat, who was born on June 19, 1966 in Saniak, Nandi, joined politics.
Nandi governor Stephen Sang said: “Lagat was a distinguished leader with a great legacy. We shall remember him as a person who served people with dedication and humility.”
