John stephen akhwari birthplace

He however continued running, finishing last among the 57 competitors who completed the race 75 had started. Akhwari finished in , when there were only a few thousand people left in the stadium, and the sun had set. While competing in the marathon in Mexico City, Akhwari cramped up due to the high altitude of the city.

John stephen akhwari interview

He had not trained at such an altitude back in his country. At the 19 kilometer point during the 42 km race, there was jockeying for position between some runners and he was hit. He fell badly wounding his knee and dislocated that joint plus his shoulder hit hard against the pavement. A television crew was sent out from the medal ceremony when word was received that there was one more runner about to finish.

As he finally crossed the finish line a cheer came from the small crowd. When interviewed later and asked why he continued running, he said, "My country did not send me 5, miles to start the race. They sent me 5, miles to finish the race. He finished first in the African Marathon Championships before the Olympics. He finished fifth in the marathon at the Commonwealth Games where he ran a time.

In those same Games he ran a in the 10, meter race and was only about 30 seconds behind the leaders. He ran marathons in the range on a regular basis both before and after the Olympics. He was surely a world class runner for most of the s and s. Post-Athletic They are farmers and work very hard in the fields. Once in a while the world beckons him back.