Medal record
Shobukhova at the 2011 London Marathon
Women's athletics
Competitor for  Russia
European Championships
Silver	2006 Gothenburg	5000 m
World Indoor Championships
Silver	2006 Moscow	3000 m

Liliya Bulatovna Shobukhova (Russian: Лилия Булатoвнa Шoбухова, née Russian: Шагбaлова, Shabalova; born 13 November 1977) is a Russian long-distance runner who competes in marathon races. She previously specialized in the 3000 and 5000 metres track events.

She started her career in middle-distance running in 2001 and reached the final at both the European Indoor Championships and European Athletics Championships in 2002. She moved onto longer distances and, two years later, she represented Russia at the 2004 Athens Olympics and reached the 5000 m final. She ran at the 2005 World Championships in Athletics, but her first major successes came the following year when she won silver medals at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2006 European Athletics Championships.

Shobukhova began to compete in road races, winning the 2007 Prague Half Marathon, but she still reached the 5000 m final at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. After running in the 10,000 metres at the 2009 World Championships, she focused on road races full time. The move paid dividends for her as she won at the Chicago Marathon three times straight from 2009 to 2011, as well as the 2010 London Marathon.^[1] Her personal best time of 2:18:20 hours is the Russian record for the event and makes her the second fastest woman ever after Paula Radcliffe.

She is a former world indoor record in the 3000 m and is the current European record holder in the 3000 m and 5000 m.

Career[link]

She grew up in the town of Beloretsk in the Russian Republic of Bashkortostan.^[2]

She is a two-time national champion in the women's 5000 metres.

She ran a world indoor record at the 2006 Russian championships, running a time of 8:27.86 in the 3000 m.^[3] a few months later, she won a silver medal at the World Indoor Championships before finishing second at the European Championships. She switched to road running in 2007, winning at the Prague Half Marathon and competing at the 2007 IAAF World Road Running Championships.^[4]

In the 2008 Russian Championships held in Kazan on 19 July 2008, she set a new European 5000 m record of 14:23.75, to become the fourth fastest ever over the distance.^[5][6] She was selected to represent Russia in the women's 5000 metres at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.^[7] After the Olympics, she won the Philadelphia Distance Run and set a half marathon best of 1:10:21, beating Catherine Ndereba to the line.^[8]

In October 2009, Shobukhova was the female winner of the Chicago Marathon, finishing in a time of 2:25:56.^[9] Shobukhova was the female winner of the 2010 London Marathon, finishing in a time of 2:22:00.^[10]

She returned to Chicago to defend her title in October 2010 and she ran a very even pace. She overhauled Atsede Baysa in the second half of the race, as the Ethiopian struggled in the heat, and she went on to win for a second consecutive occasion with a Russian record of 2:20:25 for the marathon – becoming the tenth fastest ever. As a result of the win, she took the 2009-2010 World Marathon Majors jackpot of $500,000 US dollars.^[11]

She started 2011 with a Russian record performance at the London Marathon, finishing in a new personal best of 2:20:15, but she had to settle for second behind Mary Keitany of Kenya.^[12]

In October 2011 Shobukhova started the Chicago Marathon as the heavy favorite along with Ejegayehu Dibaba. After a cautious first half, she sped away to win the Chicago Marathon for the third straight time in hot weather. Her time of 2 hours, 18 minutes, and 20 seconds was a new Russian record and it made her the second fastest women's marathoner ever in history behind Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain.

One of the advantages she has over her competitors is a fast sprint finish, due to her track credentials. At the 2009 Chicago Marathon, her final 2.2 km was timed at 6 minutes and 23 seconds, a 2:49 pace. This is easily one of the fastest splits ever in women's marathoning. She also sprinted away from the field at the 2010 London Marathon to win by 13 seconds, with her final 200m timed at 33 seconds.

Achievements[link]

International competition[link]

Marathons[link]

Personal bests[link]

• 800 metres - 2:03.18 (2006)
• 1500 metres - 4:03.78 (2004)
• Mile run - 4:22.14 (2004)
• 3000 metres - 8:34.85 (2004)
• 5000 metres - 14:23.75 (2008)
• Half marathon - 1:08:55 (2011)
• Marathon - 2:18:20 (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• IAAF profile for Liliya Shobukhova

Medal record
Men's athletics
Competitor for  Kenya
Olympic Games
Silver	2004 Athens	1500 m
Bronze	2000 Sydney	1500 m
World Championships
Silver	2001 Edmonton	1500 m
World Cup
Gold	2002 Madrid	1500 m
World Indoor Championships
Gold	2004 Budapest	3000 m
Silver	2003 Birmingham	1500 m
Competitor for  United States
World Championships
Gold	2007 Osaka	1500 m
Gold	2007 Osaka	5000 m
Silver	2009 Berlin	5000 m
Silver	2011 Daegu	5000 m
Bronze	2009 Berlin	1500 m
World Indoor Championships
Gold	2010 Doha	3000 m
Gold	2012 Istanbul	3000 m
Competitor for Americas
Continental Cup
Gold	2010 Split	3000 m
Gold	2010 Split	5000 m

Bernard Kipchirchir Lagat (born December 12, 1974) is an American middle and long distance champion athlete.

Lagat was born in Kapsabet, Kenya. Prior to his change of domicile to the USA, Lagat had an extensive competitive career representing his native country.

He is the American record holder in the 1500m, mile, 3000m, and 5000m indoors, as well as the 1500m, 3000m, and 5000m outdoors, and is the Kenyan record holder at 1500m outdoors.

Lagat is a twelve time medalist in World Championships and Olympics including five gold medals.

Early life[link]

Lagat, now a Kenyan American, was born in Kaptel village, near Kapsabet town in Nandi District. He is a Nandi, sub-tribe of the Kalenjin people.

He graduated from the Kaptel High School in 1994, where he had started his athletics career. He joined Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Nairobi 1996. Later in the same year he moved to Washington State University where other Kenyan athletic greats such as Henry Rono and Michael Kosgei prospered.

In 1998, while at WSU, Lagat won three NCAA individual championships; indoor mile and 3000m, as well as the 5000m outdoors.

In 2000, Lagat graduated from Washington State University with a degree in management information systems.

A large number of Lagat's siblings have also competed in athletics; his older sister Mary Chepkemboi won the 3000 m at the 1984 African Championships in Athletics.^[1] Lagat's younger brother, Robert Cheseret, is a multi-time PAC-10 champion runner for the University of Arizona.

Representing Kenya (2000–2004)[link]

Lagat first represented his native Kenya at 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.^[2] Using team tactics, Lagat and Kenyan team mate Noah Ngeny kept heavy favorite Hicham El Guerrouj from winning gold. In a very close finish, Ngeny took gold, Guerrouj won Silver, and Lagat captured bronze. Lagat finished the year being ranked #3 in the world at 1500m.

The next summer, Lagat won the silver medal, behind Guerrouj, at the 2001 World Championships in Athletics, and later that summer, at a meeting in Brussels Lagat set the Kenyan National Record and became the second fastest individual ever at 1500m when he ran 3:26.34, finishing second in this race behind Hicham el Guerrouj (3:26.13), in what was a failed attempt to break Guerrouj's own world record of 3:26.00. Lagat finished the year being ranked #2 in the world at 1500m.

Lagat spent most of 2002 and 2003 chasing Guerrouj. At the 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships he earned the silver medal at 1500m, this time behind Driss Maazouzi of France. Lagat withdrew from the 2003 world outdoor championships after a false positive blood test showed traces of EPO in his system. His B sample test came back negative, clearing him of any charges. He was ranked 2nd and 4th in the world at 1500m in 2002 and 2003 respectively.

In the 3000m at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships Lagat won his first international gold medal. Lagat was clearly overjoyed at his comeback since 2003. Throughout the spring he competed fiercely and beat his rival Guerrouj in Zurich with a world leading time at 1500m of 3:27.40. At the 2004 Summer Olympics Lagat seemed poised to once again defeat Guerrouj. The final was a very dramatic race, with Lagat and Guerrouj battling down the final 100m, swapping the lead multiple times. It was Guerrouj that prevailed, with Lagat close behind, earning the silver medal, running the final lap in under 52 seconds. He was however ranked #1 in the world at 1500m for the year.

Representing United States[link]

Beginning of American career[link]

In March 2005, Lagat announced that he had become a naturalized citizen of the United States since May 7, 2004, despite competing for Kenya in the 2004 Summer Olympics. Since Kenya does not allow dual citizenship his silver medal in the 1500 m was at stake, but in the end he was allowed to retain it. Because of this switch of nationality, Lagat served a ban from international championship events. For this reason he missed the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki. A similar switch of nationality, in this case Kenyan to Danish, caused Wilson Kipketer to miss the 1996 Olympic Games. Today, Lagat lives in Tucson AZ and Tübingen (Germany) with his wife Gladys Tom (a Canadian of Chinese descent),^[3] whom he met while they both attended Washington State University,^[4][5] and their son Miika Kimutai (born in 2006) and daughter Gianna (born 2008).^[6]

The U.S. does allow dual citizenship and consequently races run by Lagat after May 7, 2004 could have been ratified as American records, since USATF rules only state that an athlete has to be a U.S. citizen competing in a sanctioned competition to be eligible to set a national record. However, at the 2005 USATF annual meeting, his 3:27.40 win in the 1500 meters, on August 6, 2004, in Zurich, was not ratified as an American record.

Nevertheless, Lagat owns three American records from races he had run in 2005 that were ratified by USATF. His first American records came indoors, with a 3:49.89 mile at Fayetteville, Arkansas, on February 11, 2005, during which his 1500 meters split time of 3:33.34 also established another new U.S. record, en route to a win in the event. The performance replaced records by Steve Scott, who set the previous American indoor mile record of 3:51.8 in 1981, and the previous American 1500 meter indoor record held by Jeff Atkinson, who ran 3:38.12 in 1989. Lagat's winning time of 3:29.40 at Rieti, Italy, on August 28, 2005, in the outdoor 1500 meters was ratified as his third new American record, improving upon the old record of 3:29.77, set by Sydney Maree in 1985.

Double world champion[link]

At the 2007 World Championships in Osaka Lagat surpassed all his previous achievements by becoming the first athlete to become world champion in both the 1,500 m and 5,000 m at the same IAAF World Outdoor Championships. Similar feats were accomplished by Hicham El Guerrouj at the 2004 Olympics and Paavo Nurmi at the 1924 Olympics.^[7][8]

2008 Olympics and 2009 Worlds[link]

Bernard Lagat at the 2009 World Championships

In 2008, Lagat won both 1500 m^[9][10] and 5000 m^[11] runs at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, qualifying himself to compete with Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.^[12] Hopes were high that his success in both these events would continue at the Olympics.^[13][14] However, Lagat failed to advance beyond the semi-finals in the 1500m run.^[15][16][17] He was more successful in the 5000 m run, winning his semi-final heat to advance,^[18][19] but ultimately did not medal, running to ninth place finish in the finals.^[20]

Lagat had concealed the fact that he was running with an injured Achilles tendon, a problem which hampered his training and contributed to his poor showing at the Olympics. He stated that his placings at the 2008 Beijing Games were "the biggest disappointment in my athletics career". The following season, he began with high altitude training in Flagstaff, Arizona.^[21] After tying Eamonn Coghlan's record of seven wins in the Wanamaker Mile at the 2009 Millrose Games in New York, Lagat broke Coghlan's record with an 8th win at Millrose in 2010.^[22] As the reigning world champion in the 1500 and 5000 meters, he automatically received qualification in the events at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics and set his sights on retaining his titles. Despite being much older than some of his competitors, Lagat's desire to win had not faded and he said "I am more motivated than ever to go to the podium in Berlin".^[21] Lagat ultimately won the bronze medal in the 1500m and the silver medal in the 5000 m.

2010 to present[link]

On February 6, 2010, Lagat set a new American record in his debut of the indoor 5000 meters at the Reebok Boston Indoor Games with a time of 13:11.50, beating previous record holder Galen Rupp who had set the record at 13:18.12 in 2009.^[23] On June 4, 2010, Lagat broke the American Record for 5000m with 12:54.12 at the Bislett Games in Oslo.^[24] Yet another area record came at the Rieti IAAF Grand Prix in August: chasing down Tariku Bekele in the 3000 m, he took second place with an American record of 7:29.00 – his first sub-7:30 minute time.

In July he broke his own 5000 m American record at the Monaco Diamond League meet by running 12:53.60 to finish a close second behind Mo Farah who set the British 5000m record in this race in a time of 12:53.11.^[25][26][27] At the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, the 5000 m final came down to a sprint finish and Lagat was beaten in the last straight by Mo Farah, leaving Lagat with his second consecutive silver medal at the world event.

At the 2012 Millrose Games, held for the first time at the Armory Track & Field Center, Lagat ran an American indoor record over 5000 m with a time of 13:07.15 minutes.^[28]

Achievements[link]

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Kenya
1999	Universiade	Palma de Mallorca, Spain	1st	1500 m	3:40.99
2000	Olympic Games	Sydney, Australia	3rd	1500 m	3:32.44
2001	World Indoor Championships	Lisboa, Portugal	6th	3000 m	7:45.52
	World Championships	Edmonton, Canada	2nd	1500 m	3:31.10
2002	World Cup	Madrid, Spain	1st	1500 m	3:31.20
	African Championships	Radès, Tunisia	1st	1500 m	3:38.11
2003	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham, United Kingdom	2nd	1500 m	3:42.62
2004	World Indoor Championships	Budapest, Hungary	1st	3000 m	7:56.34
	Olympic Games	Athens, Greece	2nd	1500 m	3:34.30
Representing  United States
2007	World Championships	Osaka, Japan	1st	1500 m	3:34.77
			1st	5000 m	13:45.87
2008	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	9th	5000 m	13:26.89
2009	World Championships	Berlin, Germany	3rd	1500 m	3:36.20
			2nd	5000 m	13:17.33
2010	World Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	1st	3000 m	7:37.97
	Continental Cup	Split, Croatia	1st	3000 m	7:54.75
			1st	5000 m	13:58.23
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	2nd	5000 m	13:23.64
2012	World Indoor Championships	Istanbul, Turkey	1st	3000 m	7:41.44

Statistics[link]

Personal bests[link]

• Lagat's 1500m PB is the Kenyan National Record. After becoming an American citizen, Lagat set an American record in the 1500m of 3:29.30.

Records[link]

• All of Lagat's American records are also North American Area Records.
• His time of 3:26.34 minutes for the 1500 metres, set in 2001, remains the Kenyan and Commonwealth record for the event.
• The 3000 and 5000 marks, set since Lagat turned 35 years of age are also Masters World records and American Masters records. Lagat also holds the currently recognized Masters World record in the 1500 at 3:32.51 set at Herculis in 2010.

References[link]

External links[link]

• IAAF profile for Bernard Lagat
• IAAF Focus on Athletes
• USATF Profile
• NBC Olympics Profile
• ESPN Profile
• Kenyan-Born Runner Boosts U.S. Olympic Hopes (NPR)
• Bernard Lagat on Twitter

Video links[link]

• Flotrack Video Interview of Bernard Lagat