World 800m silver medallist Emmanuel Wanyonyi set to sit his secondary school final exams

Kenyan middle-distance runner Emmanuel Wanyonyi competes men s 800 m during Golden Spike, international athletic meet of Continental Tour - Gold category in Ostrava, Czech Republic, May 31, 2022.

ATHLETICS World 800m silver medallist Emmanuel Wanyonyi set to sit his secondary school final exams

Joel Omotto 17:30 - 25.10.2023

Teenage track sensation and world 800m silver medallist Emmanuel Wanyonyi is hoping to excel in academics as he sits his KCSE exams after a highly-successful 2023 track season

World 800m silver medallist Emmanuel Wanyonyi is among close to one million candidates currently sitting the Kenya National Secondary School Examinations (KCSE) which started on October 23.

Oral practical exams, which include French, German, Arabic, Kenya Sign Language, and music, started this week and will end on Friday, giving way to the written exams for common subjects will begin with Chemistry on November 6 and with Agriculture on November 23.

It means Wanyonyi, who has spent most of 2023 juggling between academics and athletics, is a busy man as he seeks to ensure he excels in academics just like he has on track.

The 19-year-old is a student at Kosirai Secondary School in Nandi County and as a Form Four student, he has already achieved more than some dream of in their lifetime.

“It is challenging to do both [school and athletics] because now you see I am here yet the others are in school, I am sitting my exams this year and I am glad it’s my final year,” Wanyonyi told Capital Sports after winning silver at this year’s World Championships in Budapest, Hungary in August.

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Wanyonyi, who has a personal best of 1:43.27, clocked 1:44.53 to finish second behind Canada’s Marco Arop for silver in Budapest, announcing his arrival on the grand stage after winning gold over the distance at the 2021 World U20 Championships.

The teenager started the year by winning gold in mixed relays at the 2023 World Cross-Country Championships in Bathurst, Australia in February before defending his Kip Keino Classic title in Nairobi in May.

He then began his Diamond League campaign with a win in Rabat, Morocco at the end of May before another win in Paris, France in early June.

Wanyonyi would return to the Diamond League again in Xiamen, China when he won again at the start of September, setting the stage for the Diamond League final, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon when he got his revenge on Arop by winning the Diamond Trophy in a time of 1:42.80 to close his track season in style.