![]() Kimeli in 2013 | |
Personal information | |
---|---|
Nationality | Kenyan-Belgian |
Born | Uasin Gishu County, Kenya [1] | 9 March 1994
Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
Weight | 59 kg (130 lb) [1] |
Sport | |
Country | Belgium |
Sport | Athletics |
Event(s) | Middle-, Long-distance running |
Coached by | Tim Moriau (–2024) [2] |
Medal record |
Isaac Kimeli (born 9 March 1994 [3] in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya) is a Kenyan born Belgian middle- and long-distance runner.
Kimeli won one Diamond League meeting, securing victory in the 5000 m at the 2019 Memorial Van Damme in Brussels (promotional event) with a personal best of 13:13.02. [3]
When Kimeli was four years old, his mother migrated from their home county of Uasin Gishu in Kenya to Belgium to work as a nurse. Kimeli was left in the care of his grand-parents for ten years. At age 15 he was finally reunited with this mother in Belgium. It was there that his PE teachers encouraged him to join a track club. [4]
In 2011, Kimeli competed in his first international competition at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Trabzon, Turkey. [4]
Two years later, Kimeli won his first international medal by winning a silver at the junior 2013 European Cross Country Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. [5] This was soon followed by a gold medal at the Under-23 2016 European Cross Country Championships in Chia, Italy, [6] and 2 silver medals (one individual, one team) and a bronze at the senior level 2018, [7] 2019 [8] and 2022 European Cross Country Championships [9] resp. He picked up another silver medal with the Belgium men's team at the 2024 European Cross Country Championships in Antalya, Turkey. [10]
On the track, Kimeli earned a silver in the 5000 metres at the 2015 European Athletics U23 Championships and in the 3000 metres at the 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships. [11]
Kimeli represented Belgium at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan resp. Paris, France, his best result a 8th place in the final of the men's 5000 metres in Paris. [12]