Samuel Wanjiru RIP

The world may have lost its greatest marathoner, who you have probably never heard of. Samuel Wanjiru died after a fall from the balcony of his home in Nyahururu, Kenya at 24. Wanjiru the first Kenyan to win a gold in the marathon, which he did in Beijing, in 2:06:32 despite 29C temperatures. Wanjiru also won London (2009, pictured), Chicago (twice) and Fukuoka, Japan. He was the youngest man, at 23, to win four of the world's major marathons and he did it in style : Wanjiru's London time of 2:05:10 suggested that he would one day own the great Haile Gebrselassie's World Record of 2:03:59. Haile 35 when he lined up in Berlin to set the standard, an age, Dear Reader, generally thought to be the peak for long-distance running. In the athletic community, the whisper that Wanjiru might have a legitimate shot at The Holy Grail : sub-2-hours. We shall miss him in London next summer.