PUBLISHED 10/06/2007
Daniel Njenga spent part of Thursday talking to school children as part of the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon outreach programs. He said the question that surprised him most was when the children wanted to know why he ran. Defending champion Robert Cheruiyot probably expressed part of the motivation best when he pointed out to Track & Field News writer Shawn Hartnett a bicyclist with 100 pounds of wood on his back riding up a hill in Kenya.
"That is what I would be doing if I wasn't running," Hartnett said Cheruiyot told him. Even though Cheruiyot is a wealthy man by any standards from his earnings on the road race circuit, he has not forgotten his humble beginnings or what life is like for most of his countrymen. In America it would be called a "rags to riches" story, but just one snippet from Cheruiyot's life gives a glimpse of the person, his people, and life in Kenya. Family is very important and Cheruiyot's family tale says a lot about him.
As a young boy, his father left the family. The family fell on hard times, and young Robert was out on the street. He smoked because, as he told Hartnett, cigarettes are cheaper than food and they; suppress the appetite. Running rescued him from all that. He was discovered by the Rosas, who sponsored events, such as the Discovery Kenya Half Marathon, where he won in 2002 and launched his running career. He went out onto the international running circuit, and, like most Kenyan runners invested the money he won back home.
He bought a tea plantation and brought his separated family back together. He has built housing units and charges only modest rent. The $500,000 prize Cheruiyot stands to win for being the men's champion of the World Marathon Majors circuit won't be spent on luxury items. And Cheruiyot won't have to consider a livelihood that involves cycling up hills with wood on his back.
Sunday's predicted hot, humid weather does not concern him, Cheruiyot said. "I like the heat more than the cold," he said.
