Twenty-year-old youngster Stephen Ndangiri says his historic Commonwealth Games race walk silver medal is only the beginning, insisting he still has plenty left in the tank as he sets his sights on even greater international accolades.
Ndangiri delivered Kenya a silver medal at the just-concluded Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, and stormed the men's 10,000m race walk in 38:46.57 to break the national record. His mark eclipsed the previous national benchmark of 39:08.6 set by David Kimutai in 2009.
In Glasgow, Australia's Isaac Beacroft struck gold in 38:45.51, while Canada's Evan Dunfee completed the podium after clocking 40:03.39 for bronze. Ndangiri, elated with his Commonwealth Games breakthrough, highlighted the significance of his performance in Glasgow. "This is an amazing achievement, being the first Kenyan to win silver at the Commonwealth Games.
"Before me, no other Kenyan had won that medal. The only one who came close was Samuel Gathimba, who won bronze," Ndangiri said.
Before Ndangiri's heroics in Glasgow, Gathimba had claimed bronze in the event at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, where he clocked 1:19:51. Australia's Dane Bird-Smith won that race in 1:19:34, while England's Tom Bosworth settled for silver in 1:19:38.
Fresh from landing his maiden global medal, Ndangiri believes his breakthrough performance is only a glimpse of what lies ahead. "This medal means a lot to me. I have always had the feeling that I am the guy to break records and raise the bar even higher," he said.
"Since I was successful at the Commonwealth Games, I know I will also be successful in the next challenge."
One of the key driving forces behind Ndangiri's Commonwealth Games silver was his impressive rise throughout the 2026 season. "Winning at the African Championships and beating Gathimba really helped me in preparing for the Commonwealth Games," he added.
Ndangiri began the campaign on a disappointing note, finishing 42nd in the marathon race walk at the World Race Walking Team Championships in Brasília, Brazil, on April 12 after clocking 3:36:04. He then switched gears at the African Championships in Accra, Ghana, on May 16, where he claimed silver in the 20km race walk after timing 1:20:01 behind Ethiopia's Misgana Wakamu, who won in 1:18:47.
Momentum continued to build on June 19 at the Commonwealth Games trials, where Ndangiri powered away from the field to stop the clock at 39:14.0. He crossed the line comfortably ahead of veteran Samuel Gathimba (39:45.4) and Hersitone Wanyonyi (40:59.7) to book his ticket to Glasgow.
With a slice of history now under his belt, Ndangiri has already shifted his focus to qualifying for the 2027 World Athletics Championships in Beijing. The next stop on that journey will be the Lusatian Race Walking competition in Germany this October.
"The focus now is to prepare for the half marathon race walk competition in Germany. I have to qualify for the World Championships. "I know it won't be easy, but I also know it's not impossible."
