Paris Olympics: Can Alexander Mutiso replicate his London heroics to stun the world in Paris?

Few knew about Japan-based athlete Alexander Mutiso before he bagged the London Marathon but the long distance runner was not plucked from oblivion.

Having been in Japan for close to a decade, most of his early races were in the Land of the Rising Sun after relocating from Makueni.

He will be making his Olympics debut in Paris where he will be donning the Team Kenya colours for the first time in his senior career.

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Personal life-

Born on 10 September 1996, Mutiso emerged from a humble background in Ndithini village, Makueni County.

The region is not synonymous with athletics compared to the highlands of Iten and Eldoret where most long distance runners in Kenya emanate from.

He was however inspired to pursue athletics by Patrick Makau who won a number of notable races including the Berlin Marathon twice, Frankfurt Marathon, Rotterdam Marathon and the Fukuoka Marathon.

Mutiso’s talent was spotted by his current coach Peter Muteti, then a teacher at Luani Secondary School, while still at Kiteta Boys despite being in a different school.

He was then enrolled at the Ndumbi Athletics Camp where he used to utilise his school holidays to sharpen his athletics skills.

Early career-

His first international assignment came back in 2013 when he represented Kenya in the World Youth Championships in Donetsk, Ukraine where he brought home bronze.

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He graduated to the 5000m a year later and took the same amount of time before testing the waters of 10000m.

Mutiso then transitioned to the Half Marathon in 2016 before debuting in the marathon in 2022.

Career milestone-

His career milestone has to be winning the London Marathon this year after fending off strong opposition from Ethiopian legendary long distance runner Kenenisa Bekele.

Bekele looked on course to win his first ever London Marathon title, the missing puzzle in his storied jigsaw, but Mutiso had other plans, clinching the race at the tail end.

Olympic qualification-

Mutiso qualified for the Olympics after meeting the qualification time of 2:08:10 between the set period of 1st November 2022 and 30 April 2024.

Preparation for Olympics-

Just like his compatriot, Benson Kipruto, Mutiso warmed up for the Paris Games with a victory at the prestigious London Marathon which will do him a world of good ahead of the games.

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Competition at Olympics-

Apart from stern competition from his compatriots Benson Kipruto and Eliud Kipchoge, he will also face Kenenisa Bekele and fellow Ethiopian Sisay Lemma.

Medal prospects-

Having relatively little experience in the marathon having dipped into the field in 2022, Mutiso will be content with a bronze medal in his first Olympics.