Photo: Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil, CC BY 3.0 BR — Source
Kenyan long-distance runner and peace activist who became the first African woman to win a major marathon when she won the New York City Marathon in 1994, repeating the feat in 1995. She held world records for the 25km and 30km distances and previously held the world marathon record. Growing up as one of 25 children in a Pokot community in northwestern Kenya, she ran barefoot to school as a child. Beyond athletics, she founded the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation, organizing peace races across conflict-prone regions of East Africa, and served as chef de mission for the Refugee Olympic Team in 2016 and 2020.
Source: Olympics.com