Olympic champion’s coach a missionary Brother

In 2012, David Rudisha, a Masai warrior from Kenya, ran what many say was the greatest race in the history of the Olympics.

He led the 800m final from the front and smashed his own world record, becoming the first man ever to run under 1.41.

In interviews after the race he thanked one man above all others for his success: an Irish Catholic Missionary named Brother Colm O’Connell — a man who had been David’s coach since he first began to run.

Colm arrived in Kenya from Ireland as a missionary in 1976. He was on the stff of St Patrick’s, a boys’ school at the edge of the Rift Valley when he was asked to lend a hand on the running track.

Under Colm’s guidance, more than 20 Olympic and World Championship medal winners have emerged from this tiny school. Continue reading

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