Wilfred Bungei

Wilfred Kipkemboi Bungei (born 24 July 1980) is a Kenyan retired Middle-distance runner, who won the 800 m gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Quotes Winning a gold medal in the Olympics is like winning an Emmy award, or winning a Nobel prize, For a sports person this is the highest prize that you can get whatever your sport. A medal in the Olympics is the best. I just saw the line and saw the screen and saw that I was going to cross the line before anybody, I was like ‘Wow, it is there’. I knew that when I came here I had a slower time compared with the guys who are running very well. At those camps we harmonised our training and I knew that if I ran my best at least I was going to get something. I thought the best thing to do is just to go there and if I find myself in the front I should just relax and not panic. I didn’t want to plan the race, because if you plan a race and it doesn’t work for you then you will think that you are going to lose it. The best thing is just to take it the way it comes. Experience plays a big part in what any athlete does, When you look at the likes of Hicham El Guerrouj, he failed in 96, failed in 2000, but in 2004 he got something. Kaki came here as a favourite but the boy is still very young and I believe he was not able to handle the pressure he put on himself. I know what he underwent because I went through it myself in 2004 when I started as favourite. It cost me, and it’s the same for him. Two 800 metres winners from the same town, It’s great for us. It’s difficult to explain, but there must be something there. I am very relaxed now, I can go back to my family, spend a few days with them and then think about doing a few races in Europe. Italy is my second home, Ihave trained there for the last ten years, I have an Italian coach, I have an apartment in Verona. If I was able to divide this medal into two, I would have one half for Kenya, and one half for Italy. If it was possible to split it half-and-half I would do it. Patience, perseverence lands Bungei elusive gold, August 24 2008 Having achieved one of the best achievements that every sports man or woman aspire to, I will approach my remaining years in my career much more relaxed. There is not as much pressure now, and at the end of the day, I think this will improve my performance. You always focus on something and put yourself under a lot of pressure. But when you’ve achieved what you wanted to achieve, the focus now is to try to run fast. I was feeling good, but I didn’t run good, I arrived there a little bit tired. When we left for Beijing, I said that I expected a better performance than Athens, where we had one gold. Little did I know that we would surpass the record in terms of medals. I was proud as being the captain, being able to steer the team to be so successful. It will be a high hurdle for the team for the next Olympics. Concerning the Kenyan trials that we have to do, there’s always a lot of mental torture, and I think it’s just going to be a little too difficult. But that is always subject to change. A lot will depend on how I feel before the World championships. My goal next year is to try for the African record,” Sammy Koskei’s 1:42.28 which a few weeks ago celebrated it’s 24th Anniversary. Bungei came close in Rieti in 2002, clocking 1:42.34. I missed it by just .05 seconds. And I know I can still achieve it now. That will really be my main focus. With Olympic quest finally behind him, Bungei's focus now is on more fast times - Brussels, ÅF Golden League, September 04 2008 I want to translate my success in athletics to leadership,” the famous runner said. "There are a lot of similarities between the two. One thing I am learning in politics, and the need for discipline and putting in hard work, which I did in athletics. The challenge, though, is unlike athletics where you trained and then competed against others, the terrain of politics is very unpredictable. In 2008, when I returned as the captain of Kenya's Olympic team, many people asked me if I would ever think of going into politics, and I said, ‘Heck no!’, So I never thought I would join. But it reached a point when my constituents came to me and said, 'we think you can represent us well,' and it’s been a roller coaster ride since then, but one I have enjoyed. I was in athletics and never touched alcohol, save for the occasional glass of wine. But then when I retired, there was a vacuum and that was when I hit the bottle and my life hit rock bottom. It almost cost me my life, but after six weeks of a program, I learned there's more to life. I have realized there are many youth who have resorted to alcohol due to unemployment, and I want to be an inspiration to them. Kenya’s ex-Olympic champion vies for political seat to fight doping,June 28 2018 External links Category:Olympic gold medalists Category:Sportspeople from Kenya Category:Track and field athletes Category:1980 births Category:Living people