Tegla Loroupe has shattered many records in her time, most notably her feat, in 1994, when she became the first African woman to win the New York Marathon.

But it is in her newfound role as a charity worker and peace activist in her rural Pokot that she has earned idol status in her community.

The imposing photographs that line the Perkau Princess Hotel sum up the lady.

There she is, her face contorted in a mixture of joy and exhaustion — captured at the moment she breasted the tape to become the first ever African woman to win the New York Marathon.

A more compassionate side is in evidence as she is seen cuddling a baby found abandoned after a raid on a Manyatta in the Pokot area, where cattle rustling is rife.

And, in several other images, she strikes a regal pose in photographs with a succession of global heavyweights including Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and the late Dr. John Garang de Mabior.

Tegla Loroupe is not your average athlete. She is many things to many people.

But it is in her newfound role as philanthropist and peace-maker extraordinaire that the slight 32 year old is making waves.

She is the first Kenyan to have been awarded the prestigious Georg von Opel Award for her active involvement in humanitarian projects locally and abroad.

Loroupe is in good company in the roll of past recipients, which includes German national football team coach Jurgen Klinsmann and tennis player Michael Stich.

Loroupe has also been designated an "Athlete of Social Responsibility" and has been making waves in her native Pokot community for her ground breaking work in healing the divisions between the pastoral communities in the area.

'Business acumen'

We set out to find out what drives the Princess of Perkau, as she is lovingly referred to by her neighbours, a week ago.

And there was hardly a better place to start in our quest than at the Perkau hotel.

An imposing establishment in the sleepy rural idyll of Pokot, it is the only place where you are guaranteed the trappings of urban life — satellite TV, cold beer and hot showers.

Perkau is Pokot for ‘home’. The hotel was named after Loroupe’s

The locals say the 30 room hotel stands as a monument to Loroupe’s generosity.

It is the point at which she hosts the large delegations that flock to see her whenever she is in town.

Loroupe, however, is typically forthright when she discusses the reasons she set up the hotel.

"I wanted to test my business acumen," she says of the hotel, which is an addition to the ever changing skyline of this sleepy town.

It is not the only giant building that has come up to change the face of Kapenguria.

Rental houses have sprung up all around the area, shops are stocking goods that the best money can buy while new schools and hospitals are gradually being put up.

It’s all a result of the millions of shillings pumped into the zone by the talented athletes that have emerged from the area.

Susan Chepkemei, a runner up in this year’s New York Marathon, is another who has put money into several real estate interests there.

"It is not just about the money," says Loroupe. "We think we have a responsibility to invest back into our community."

A few statistics cast the responsibility borne by famous athletes from the area in sharp relief.

The entire community boasts only three doctors, two lawyers and only a few civil servants.

Girl-child education

Through her aggressive work in social work in the last few years, Loroupe has more than made up for the low number of high profile officials from the area.

The twin issues that have dominated her crusade are the drive to promote education of the girl child and the quest to put an end to cattle rustling.

Seven kilometers from Kapenguria town, one of Loroupe’s dreams is taking shape in the form of a sprawling campus for a primary school christened the Tegla Loroupe Academy.

With phase one of the school near completion, the Sh300 million plus complex will cater for orphans and other destitute children who have been afflicted by cattle rustling in the horn of Africa.

Teachers, staff and pupils will be housed at the school, which stands on a four-acre plot.

The first batch of students will be admitted at the end of the year with the construction of the secondary section commencing in mid 2006.

When complete, the facility will have a medium size swimming pool, dormitories, an all-purpose hall and gymnasium, playgrounds (for all sports) and a training camp for budding athletes.

Says Loroupe: "We want girls to come and learn. They should not be married off or circumcised."

"This is the beginning of a new dream. We have to cultivate a new culture of exposing children to better things like education. Schools in this region have fewer girls because most of them are being married off in exchange for cattle. This has to stop."

In an area often torn by poisonous inter-ethnic strife, it is the beauty of Loroupe’s dream school that it will cater for pupils from a cross-section of communities including Pokots, Markwets, Turkana and Karamojong from Uganda.

"The school will provide education and also develop the student’s physique, with state of the art gym and sports facilities," says project caretaker Jackson Kemoi.

'Sense of duty'

It has been a long journey to glory for Loroupe.

She grew up in a family of 24 children. Her father had four wives. She spent her childhood working fields and looking after younger brothers and sisters.

At the age of seven she started to go to school: a barefoot run of 10 kilometres every morning. At school she became aware of her potential as an athlete when she beat others at school races who were several years older than her.

Her mother was the sole supporter of her quest to pursue a career as an athlete.

An athletics federation official warned her not to consider athletics as a profession, because she was "too thin."

But after winning a prestigious cross country race, in 1988, things changed.

She was nominated for the junior world championships, finishing 28th.

In 1994, Loroupe ran her first major marathon in New York and won. As a consequence she was idolized by many young people across the continent.

She went on to win almost all of the major marathons in the world. During the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, she suffered from food poisoning.

Nevertheless she fought through the 10,000 metres and the marathon race, a feat she later stated she achieved out of a sense of duty to all the people taking her as a bearer of hope back home.

Says Loroupe: "I grew up with my father knowing that I had to get married and bring up children. Sport gave me a window of opportunity to do something else."

'Humble beginnings'

Loroupe is trying to fulfill her mission through her ground breaking work.

Every day, she receives up to 10 delegations at her plush home in Kapenguria, where her passion for the farm life shines through.

She rears cows, donkeys and goats on a 10-acre farm. Several well fed dogs top up her domestic collection of animals.

"Milking the cows is my specialty. I enjoy it just as a reminder of my childhood. I sometimes fetch firewood and carry luggage on my back," she adds.

She is also a good cook and insists on preparing her special delicacy of ugali, mursik (fermented milk) and boiled beans for visitors.

"There is no way an African woman like me can forget domestic chores. When I look at myself, the first thing I know is that I am a simple village girl from humble beginnings" she says.

Her mother, Prisca Loroupe, is the custodian of her belongings on the farm when she is away globetrotting to raise funds for her foundation.

The bond between mother and daughter is visibly strong. At 60, Loroupe’s mother has traversed the globe to be with her daughter during some of her great marathon victories.

It is when discussing the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation, however, that she appears most comfortable.

"How can anyone succeed in the face of the challenges girls here grow up facing? The parents want cows and property from marriage. The boys on the other hand want to inherit everything. Only education can help us," she says.

Another avenue she hopes can help solve some of the problems the community grapples with is sport.

Yesterday, Lorupe presided over an annual race meeting which she hopes will serve as a catalyst to unite her people.

And so, what does the future hold for her? "Every morning when I wake up, I beseech God to help me touch another soul. I have simply reached where I am because of God’s grace," she says.

And will she fulfill her father’s wish to settle down and have a family?

"Destiny will decide my future," she offers, as we close on the religious note that dominates any interview with Tegla Lorupe, the indefatigable princess of Perkau.

This article was culled from The East African Standard. Originally published on Sunday 20/11/05