Eldoret

Eldoret
Eldoret
Basic data
county	Uasin Gishu County
Residents	475,716 pop.
Coordinates	0 ° 31 ′  N , 35 ° 17 ′  E Coordinates: 0 ° 31 ′  N , 35 ° 17 ′  E
Eldoret

Eldoret is a city in western Kenya , about 360 kilometers south of Lodwar and with 475,716 inhabitants (as of 2019; as of the 2009 census: 247,500) the fifth largest city in Kenya. Eldoret is the capital of Uasin Gishu County and a Catholic diocese .

history

The name of the city comes from the Maasai word "Eldoret", which means "stony river" and refers to the river bed of the Sosiani , which is very rocky near Eldoret.

Originally the area of ​​the city was settled by the Sirikwa , later by the Maasai and at the beginning of the colonial period by the Nandi .

The place itself was created in 1910 with the opening of a post office on a farm, the settlement was called simply Farm 64 or just 64 by the white settlers . Willy van Aardt bought the farm and officially renamed the place Eldoret in 1912.

Many of the original settlers in the place were Afrikaans- speaking South Africans who had come to Kenya from South Africa in 1908 . Little by little, many European and Asian settlers came to the city.

With the connection to the rail network between Mombasa and Uganda in 1924, a great economic boom began for the city. Running water was installed throughout the city in 1928 and an electric generator installed in 1933. In the 1920s, a school building based on the design of the British architect Herbert Baker was built in the village .

After Kenya gained independence in the 1960s, the first president of the country, Jomo Kenyatta, had many landless Kikuyu from central Kenya settle in the Rift Valley.

Today, Eldoret is the fastest growing city in Kenya and the birthplace of many Kenyan running stars like Kipchoge Keino . Julius Sang and Lucas Sang , both 400-meter runners , died in Eldoret in 2004 and 2008, respectively. Ex-President Daniel arap Moi has expanded the city considerably and, for example, had the Eldoret International Airport built.

Since the presidential elections in Kenya at the end of December 2007, the city's name has also been linked to a massacre: At least 30 people were burned to death on New Year's Day when supporters of the defeated opposition candidate Raila Odinga set fire to a free church near Eldoret. Most of them had sought protection from marauding militias in the building, because they belonged to the Kikuyu ethnic group like the re-elected President Mwai Kibaki . Eldoret, like the whole of western Kenya, is a stronghold of Raila Odinga. This speaks of electoral fraud and is therefore in line with international election observers.

Moi University

The Moi University in Eldoret in 1984 as the second oldest public university in the country after the University of Nairobi , founded during the tenure of the second president of Kenya, Daniel arap Moi , whose name it bears. Her focus is on science and technology. In the first year it consisted only of the forestry department, which was spun off from the University of Nairobi, with 83 students. In 1996, Moi University opened the School of Medicine, the second institution of its kind in Kenya. Moi University is spread over eight campuses and consists of two constituent colleges . The number of students is over 31,000. It is headed by Chancellor Miriam Were (since September 19, 2013) and Vice-Chancellor (Rector) Richard K. Mibey (since September 2006).

Sports

The town of Eldoret is known for its numerous track and field competitions, especially the national long distance sighting competitions . These competitions are an annual opportunity for runners to qualify and show themselves for the Kenyan national team or for international races. They take place in cross-country , 10-km road and half marathons . Many national and international top athletes, especially medium and long-distance runners, take part in the Eldoret competitions. The Eldoret Discovery Half Marathon (January / February) took place for the 28th time in 2019. The national cross-country championships (Discovery Cross Country Championships) have been held in Eldoret for 29 years. The 10 km sighting road race (Discovery 10km road race) will be held again in Eldoret after four years in Nyahururu (there as a half marathon) in 2020.

Also known is the New KCC / Athletics Kenya weekend track and field , which is held in the Eldoret Municipal Stadium . Other running events include the Eldoret City Marathon (April, since 2002), the Kass Marathon (November), which has been held since 2003 , the Great Tuskys 10Km Road Race (since 1996), the Ziwa Famers Road Race (since 1991) and the Bishop Korir Memorial Cross Country in November. The Family Bank Half Marathon , which took place for the thirteenth time in October 2019 with 1,500 finishers, not only attracts the national elite of runners, but also amateur athletes.

Climate table

Eldoret
Climate diagram
J F. M. A. M. J J A. S. O N D.     36   25th 9     42   26th 10     66   26th 11     154   24 12     121   24 11     94   23 9     162   22nd 10     175   22nd 10     82   23 9     49   24 10     57   23 11     44   24 10 Temperature in ° C ,  precipitation in mm Source: Kenya Meteorological Department, data: 1961–1990

Average monthly temperatures and rainfall for Eldoret Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Max. Temperature ( ° C ) 25.0 25.8 25.8 24.1 23.6 22.9 21.8 21.9 23.3 23.9 23.2 23.6 O 23.7 Min. Temperature (° C) 9.4 9.6 10.6 11.8 10.8 9.3 9.8 9.6 9.0 10.2 10.8 9.9 O 10.1 Precipitation ( mm ) 36 42 66 154 121 94 162 175 82 49 57 44 Σ 1,082 Rainy days ( d ) 4th 5 6th 13 12 9 17th 16 8th 8th 8th 4th Σ 110 Source: Kenya Meteorological Department, data: 1961–1990

sons and daughters of the town

• Bill Schermbrucker (* 1938), Canadian writer and university professor of Kenyan origin
• Mike Boit (* 1949), middle-distance runner and university professor
• Ibrahim Hussein (* 1958), Kenyan long-distance runner, athletics coach, businessman; older brother of Mbarak Kipkorir Hussein
• David Kitur (* 1962), Kenyan sprinter (400 m), brother of Samson Kitur
• Mbarak Kipkorir Hussein (* 1965), American long-distance runner of Kenyan origin; younger brother of Ibrahim Hussein
• Samson Kitur (* 1966; † 2003 in Ziwa), Kenyan sprinter (400 m), brother of David Kitur
• Simon Biwott (* 1970), former Kenyan marathon runner
• Philip Boit (* 1971), cross-country skier
• Viola Bor Chepketing (* 1979), Kenyan long-distance runner
• Nicholas Kimeli (* 1998), Kenyan long-distance runner
• Brian Ombiji (* 1982), football player
• Juliana Rotich (* 1977), IT expert and manager
• Polat Kemboi Arıkan , maiden name Paul Kipkosgei Kemboi, (* 1990), Turkish long-distance runner of Kenyan origin
• Geoffrey Kamworor (* 1992), Kenyan long-distance runner, half marathon world record 2019
• Asbel Kiprop (* 1989), Kenyan middle and long distance runner .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Eldoret (Kenya)
2. ↑ Old Cambrian Society: Central / Highlands School - Eldoret . on www.oldcambrians.com (English)
3. ↑ assistnews.net  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ^ The Moi University Act 1984 Revised Edition 2009 (1985) Published by the National Council for Law Reporting with the Authority of the Attorney General
5. ↑ UHURU appoints another LUHYA female loyalist to head Moi University AFTER Degree Award . In: Kenya Today . September 19, 2013. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
6. ↑ An overview of Kenyan running events can be found in the calendar on The Kenyan Athlete , accessed: March 29, 2020. [1]
7. ^ Report on Discovery 10km road race returns to Eldoret after four years on the return of the race to Eldoret, accessed: March 29, 2020.
8. ↑ Kenya Meteorological Department: Climatic Information Eldoret. World Meteorological Organization, accessed October 27, 2012 . 

Web links

Commons : Eldoret  - collection of images, videos and audio files