Secrets From The Savannah

A Three-Time Comrades Finisher Makes A Pilgrimige To The Home Of The World’s Fastest Athletes To Conquer His Own Demons....

- Cuan Walker

IITEN – A TINY FARMING VILLAGE , 32 km from Eldoret – is regarded on the elite circuit as the ‘Home of Champions’. In fact, those exact words are displayed on a structure that spans the road on the outskirts of the village – you’ll see it as you drive in.

Most Kenyan world-record holders and championship medallists are either based in Iten, or have trained there. The same goes for the likes of Mo Farah, Paula Radcliffe, and many other top international athletes, who have all attended training camps in Iten.

My third trip there was different to the others: I was battling to recover from a stress fracture in my hip, but I also wanted to train for a Comrades finish. Even so, just knowing I was sharing the same routes with some of the best runners in the world gave me a motivational boost like none I’d ever felt before. I began to understand why the world’s greatest runners come here in their droves.

Environment

Sitting at just over 2 400m above sea level, Iten’s soft, red-clay dirt roads (and agreeable climate) make it an ideal training ground for runners who want to boost their performance – especially the Europeans, who make the village their base each and every year.