Joseph KETER

Joseph Keter, a Kenyan Army officer, had only one outstanding season in his career, but that culminated with Olympic gold. At Atlanta, the heavy favorite for the 3,000 m steeplechase gold medal was world record holder Moses Kiptanui, but in the Olympic final, Kiptanui was strongly challenged by his Armed Forces’ colleague Keter. The Kenyan pair reached the final water jump side-by-side, but Keter then slowly pulled away to win the gold by just over a second. After the Olympic Games, Keter beat Kiptanui again in Zürich, running his personal best time of 8:05.99. After 1996 Keter kept running for several seasons, but never again reached those heights, although he won the 1997 IAAF Grand Prix in the steeplechase. He was twice ranked in the world top 10, as #1 in 1996 and #6 in 1997.

Personal Best: 3000S – 8:05.99 (1996).