Micah Kogo

Home: Eldoret, Kenya
Bib: #12
Pronunciation: Mee-ka Coe-Go
Birthdate: 30 June 1986
Personal Best: 2:06:56 (Chicago, 2013)

World Marathon Majors:

13Oct13 Bank of America Chicago Marathon4th2:06:56
15Apr13 Boston Marathon2nd2:10:27

Career Highlights:

30Dec12Corrida Internationale de Houilles2nd28:23
21Oct12BUPA Great Birmingham Run1st1:00:17
16Sep12BUPA Great North Run2nd59:07
04Jul12 Atlanta Peachtree Road Race2nd27:39
14Aug11Falmouth Road Race 2nd31:41
06Aug11Beach to Beacon 10K1st27:47

03Apr11Brunssum Parelloop 1st27:15
29Mar09Brunssum Parelloop 1st27:01
17Aug08Beijing Olympic Games 10,000m3rd27:04.11
14Sep07Bruxelles Memorial Van Damme 10,000m3rd26:58.42
20May07BUPA Great Manchester Run1st 27:21
01Apr07Brunssum Parelloop 1st27:07
25Aug06Bruxelles Memorial Van Damme 10,000m1st26:35.63

Career Notes:

Micah Kogo made his marathon debut in Boston last year and challenged eventual winner Lelisa Desisa and third place finisher Gebre Gebremariam down the finish stretch. Kogo placed second by five seconds and nipped Gebremariam at the tape by one second. This past fall, Kogo improved his personal best time with a 2:06:56 third place finish in Chicago.

Highly accomplished on the roads and the track, Kogo won the bronze medal in the 10,000m at the 2008 Olympic Games and is a former 10K world record holder, having achieved that distinction with a 27:01 win at the 2009 Brunssum Parelloop. Kogo has run under 27:30 six times in both the 10,000m and the 10K. Only one man in history (Leonard Patrick Komon) has run a faster road 10K than Kogo. His fastest half marathon was recorded at the 2012 Great North Run where he finished runner-up in 59:07.

Personal Notes:

Growing up in Burnt Forest in the Rift Valley, Kogo began running to and from primary school. “In Kenya it is in our nature to run,” says Kogo. “We start running from a very young age. I was first spotted in a small race in Kenya by Sammy Rono and the coaches of PACE Sports Management and got the chance to compete abroad for the first time in 2005.”

Kogo is most proud of representing his country at international events. “Whenever you run for your country it is a special time, but to do it at the Olympics and to get a medal was good for me,” says Kogo. “In Kenya the whole country is proud of our running heritage. We celebrate as a country when people run well and bring success to our nation.” Kogo is a high school graduate and said he likes to invest in construction projects.