Kenyan long-distance runner Edwin Kurgat has put his academic ambitions on hold, stepping away from his Master’s degree programme at Iowa State University in the United States to concentrate fully on his athletics career. The 30-year-old, who is based in the US, has made the deliberate choice to prioritise the track over the classroom as he looks to push his competitive career to greater heights.
Kurgat, who impressed on the world stage at the Paris Olympics last year by finishing seventh in the men’s 5000m, was candid about his reasoning. “I tried to stop a little bit, to just focus on the athletics side,” he explained. “Athletics is not easy, so right now I’m focusing on running.” His decision reflects the difficult balancing act many elite athletes face when pursuing both professional and academic ambitions at the same time.
Despite stepping back from his studies, Kurgat’s academic record remains a point of pride. He already holds an undergraduate degree in industrial engineering and was working towards a postgraduate qualification in the same field at Iowa State University. On the track, his achievements are equally noteworthy — he claimed the 2019 NCAA Cross Country title and placed seventh in the 10,000m at the Tokyo World Championships.
What distinguishes Kurgat from many of his peers is his approach to racing. Rather than simply chasing fast times or running himself into the ground, he credits his American coaching setup for instilling in him the value of tactical, intelligent competition. The lessons he has absorbed centre on learning to “race smart” rather than to merely “race hard” — a mindset shift he believes has been central to his continued growth as an athlete.
Kurgat is also a vocal advocate for modernising how Kenyan athletes prepare for competition. He believes the country’s athletics community should embrace more scientific training methods, including routine blood testing and proper nutritional supplementation. In his view, adopting such approaches would help develop more well-rounded distance runners who can sustain peak performance across longer careers.
On the competition front, Kurgat will carry the Kenyan flag in the men’s 10,000m at the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. He will not be alone in that challenge — teammates Ismael Kipkurui and Daniel Ebenyo Simiu are also set to line up in the same event, ensuring a formidable Kenyan presence in one of the country’s most celebrated athletics disciplines.
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