Interview with Vivian Cheruiyot

By Shannon Martin

Vivian Cheruiyot, 23, one of Kenya’s most gifted runners, will be competing in the 5000 meters on September 1 at the IAAF World Track and Field Championships in Osaka, Japan. Despite fierce competition particularly from Ethiopian athletes Tirunesh Dibaba, Meseret Defar, and Gelete Burka, Cheruiyot has proven to the world that she has a strong chance of medaling. On June 15, Cheruiyot ran the second-fastest time ever in the women’s 5000 meters (14 22.51) at the Bislett Games in Oslo. Other successes from Cheruiyot include winning the 3000 meters at the 2007 Golden League meet in Sheffield on July 15, winning the bronze medal in the 3000 meters at the 2006 World Track and Field Championships in Helsinki, placing eighth at the 2007 World Cross Country Championships in Mombassa, Kenya, and notching several top-five finishes at the World Junior Cross Country Championships, including a first-place finish in 2000.

Fast-women was able to connect with Cheruiyot via e-mail to learn a little more about her and her preparations for Osaka and beyond.

Fast-women.com: How did you first become involved with running?

Vivian Cheruiyot: I started running at school when I was 11 years old.

FW: I know that Cheruiyot is a common last name in Kenya; are any of the Cheruiyot professional runners relatives of yours?

VC: None of my family members are running internationally but my neighbor Albert Chepkurui runs the 10,000 meters.

FW: What are your goals for the next few years?

VC: I want to win medals at the World Championships and Olympic Games and improve my times at all distances.

FW: Do you train year round in Kenya or do you travel elsewhere for some of your training?

VC: I train in Kaptagat, Kenya and Teddington, London.

FW: Do you have training partners?

VC: In Kenya I train in the PACE Sports Management camp in Kaptagat. It is the biggest training camp in Kenya with many of the top athletes training there. My training partners include World Junior Cross Country champion Linet Masai and World Junior 3000-meter Champion Veronica Nyaruai. The camp also includes athletes like World 5000-meter Champion Ben Limo, World 10,000-meter Champion Micah Kogo, Joseph Ebuya, Shadrack Korir, Mike Kigen, and others.

FW: Tell me about the race at the Bislett Games in Oslo this past June, where you ran the second fastest 5000-meter time in world history. How did the race unfold for you? How did you feel after the race?

VC: My coach Ricky Simms and I targeted the 5000 meters in Oslo as a chance to run a fast time. I had been training in Teddington for two months prior to the race and knew I was in very good shape. I won the 5000 meters in Glasgow two weeks before in 14:44 in very wet conditions. The first lane was flooded so I ran much of the race in the second lane! The pace in Oslo was very fast with [Meseret] Defar going for the world record. My plan was to hang on to her for as long as possible and see what happened in the last two to three laps. Ricky said before the race that I could run close to 14:30 so it was nice to go faster than that. I was tired after the race but happy to set a Kenyan Record and to run the second fastest time ever.

FW: Do you have specific time or place goals for the 5000-meter race in Osaka?

VC: I would like to get a medal in Osaka; the time is not important. However the standard will be high with four Ethiopian runners including Defar and [Tirunesh] Dibaba.

FW: What type of workouts have you been doing for this track season?

VC: I do a range of workouts to help me run well from 1500 meters to 5000 meters. Examples are 10 x 400 meters or 6 x 800 meters, or 1600 meters, 1200 meters, 800 meters, 400 meters. I do longer sessions in the winter and spring when training for cross-country.

FW: Do you envision yourself ever moving up in distance?

VC: I will probably run longer distances as I get older.

FW: What are your least favorite workouts?

VC: I sometimes run fast 300-meter reps with Faith Macharia [1:58 for 800 meters]. It is hard for me to keep up with her but I need this to be able to kick on the last lap.

FW: What is your favorite workout?

VC: I like 10-12 x 400 meters with one minute recovery.

FW: What do you like to do when you are not running?

VC: I like watching movies and reading novels.

FW: You have achieved amazing results from the time you were a junior until now. What are the main factors your attribute your achievements to?

VC: I have seen a big improvement since leaving school two years ago. I now train full time which has led to my improvement. While at school I was first, second, third, fourth, and fifth at the World Junior Cross Country Championships and also went to the Olympics in 2000. I want to keep working hard now to continue my progress.

Interview conducted August 15, 2007, and posted August 21, 2007.