The Long Distance Run for Peace in Kenya with Tegla Loroupe
published on 19 June 2024
Facing banditry, livestock theft and inter-communal conflict, especially over water and land, the community in West Pokot County in northwest Kenya needed help. So when world famous marathon runner Tegla Loroupe set up a peace foundation and an academy using sport as a vehicle for peace, people could see that change was afoot.
Tegla Loroupe was born in 1973 into a poor family of pastors, in northwest Kenya. She went on to overcome countless hurdles and became one of the greatest long-distance and marathon runners in Kenyan history.
“When I was younger, West Pokot County was affected by many conflicts,” she said. “When I used to run, I’d see the effects, like population displacement, and I was subject to the stereotypes of people who said that nothing good would come out of a region affected by banditry.”
Winning the prestigious New York City Marathon in 1994 and 1995 made Tegla Loroupe realize the human and social power of sport: “I realized that sport was a way to bring people together. When people meet for a match, you can create a dialogue and try to resolve conflicts. I also realized that many conflicts are caused by a lack of education and culture.”
So, Tegla Loroupe decided to set up the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation. In 2012, she also set up a school, the Tegla Loroupe Education & Peace Center in Kapenguria, which promotes sporting excellence, youth education, and peace.
Sport as a tool for peace
Joyce Achieng, a professional football coach, splits her week between Nairobi and Kapenguria in the west of the country.
When she met the ambassador Tegla Loroupe at a leadership workshop, she felt conflicted. She wanted to volunteer some of her time, though she was worried about her safety. “But I saw a lot of hidden talent, children full of potential, and a welcoming community, so I decided to get involved,” says Joyce Achieng.
She is now responsible for training 40 girls and 80 boys at the academy.
Most of the children who attend this school have themselves experienced inter-community conflicts. Sport is a way of uniting them and offering them new opportunities.
The Tegla Loroupe Peace Academy’s program to strengthen athlete excellence is financed by AFD and supported by Play International, the Diambars Institute and Save the Dream. It aims to revitalize the academy’s sports training in athletics, football, basketball and volleyball, while promoting peacebuilding and environmental conservation.
Indeed, the students benefit from workshops on conflict resolution and environmental conservation to help them live in harmony with each other, but also with nature. “We also learn about farming here. Our school is full of trees and we also grow vegetables,” says Princess Rehema, 13, a student at the school for 2 years (in photo above).
An effect reaching beyond the academy
Denzel Okodoi, 14 (photo below), is a goalkeeper in the academy’s football team. He comes from Talau Village, which is 12 km away and also gets caught up in tensions and open conflict. The skills he has learned now go well beyond the classroom walls: “My favorite lesson is on conflict resolution, because I learn how to defuse disagreements both at home and in the entire community.”
At the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation, students are never separated on the basis of their origin or their community: everyone is welcome. This mix pays off, as it helps deconstruct stereotypes, which are often due to ignorance about others. “These interactions with students from other communities really help our children. They grow up knowing that peace is very important,” says Alice Cherop, a parent and member of a community.
Photos: © Kang-Chun Cheng / AFD
Follow the event live online: Sport for SD (sport-for-sd.org)
