Sgt. Leonard Korir and Staff Sgt. Augustus Maiyo, soldier-athletes in the U.S. Army's World Class Athlete Program, respectively earned fourth and fifth place at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Marathon Trials in Atlanta, Georgia Feb. 29.
"Overall they did well, they gave it 110 percent," said WCAP running coach Cpt. Robert Cheseret. "They were all fighting out there. They never quit and did everything we asked of them."
Korir finished the race with a time of 2 hours, 10 minutes, 6 seconds at fourth place, making him an alternate for U.S.A.'s marathon team.
"Throughout the race he positioned himself well," said Cheseret. "He was right there in the top five most of the race, that's what we wanted him to do."
Cheseret mentioned that they want their Soldier-athletes to put themselves in the top 10 group at the beginning of the race because half-way through that's when everyone else starts to fall behind, leaving WCAP runners in the lead.
Korir had the fastest marathon debut ever by an American at the Amsterdam marathon Oct. 20, 2019.
Maiyo crossed the finish line at 2 hours, 10 minutes, 47 seconds coming in fifth place.
"He did amazing," said Cheseret. "He moved up in the later part of the course when others started to slow down. He ran his personal best and that's all we can ask."
Other Soldier-athletes to complete the race included Spc. Hagon Lagat, who came in 13th place, and 2nd. Lt. Elkanah Kibet, who finished 16th out of 175 runners.
The Soldiers' training leading up to the marathon included simulating the hilly course.
"Last summer we started training and tried to recreate the marathon course," said Cheseret. "In December and January we sent them to train in Kenya because it was snowy here in Colorado. We wanted consistent weather training and to emulate what the weather would be like during the trials."
Cheseret mentioned one thing they would have liked to do differently was to run the actual course in Georgia prior to the official trials.
The Solider-athletes represented the Army very well according to Cheseret.
"The Army was the only branch to put that many athletes in the trials," said Cheseret. "That speaks volumes to the work our Soldier-athletes are doing. They appreciate the support the program and chain of command gives them to train and compete at these levels."
The fact that these athletes are also Soldiers has helped them during competition, says Cheseret.
"The mental aspect of being a Soldier helps them out as athletes," said Cheseret. "In the Army we teach them to be a fighter, not to quit. It is easy to quit in a marathon but they never quit. They have the fighter background and that has helped them."
The Soldier-athletes will continue to train and compete at competitions around the world at the elite level.
To learn more about WCAP, visit www.armywcap.com
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