Collins Kipruto

Collins is from Nyahururu, Kenya where he is a Kenya Wildlife Service officer in addition to his athletics career.^[2]

At the 2019 Penn Relays, Kipruto anchored the winning Kenyan sprint medley relay team with a 1:47.16 split.^[4][5] This performance led to him qualifying for the 2019 IAAF World Relays, where he competed in the new mixed 2 × 2 × 400 m relay with women's teammate Eglay Nafuna Nalyanya. The team finished 4th across the line, but was later disqualified due to Nalyanya accidentally stepping inside the track.^[6]

Kipruto was a regular on the 2020 World Athletics Indoor Tour series, which concluded in February 2020. By virtue of winning the 800 m at the Copernicus Cup, Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, and the Villa de Madrid Indoor Meeting, Kipruto was the overall Tour winner in the 800 m category.^[1]

In March 2021, Kipruto criticised Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta's COVID-19 policies requiring athletes to train alone, saying that they would negatively affect his preparations for international competitions.^[7]

At the February 2022 Meeting de l’Eure, Kipruto held off Noah Kibet to win the 800 m in a meeting record of 1:47.05.^[8] With the 2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships qualifying standard achieved, Kipruto was targeting a podium finish, stating that he knew a win would not be easy considering the competition such as American athlete Craig Engels.^[9] At the World Indoor Championships, Kipruto finished fourth in his heat and did not qualify for the finals.^[1]