Joe Sang (second L) and his training group during a training session in Karen/ HANDOUT Former Kenya Pipeline Company Managing Director Joe Sang will next Sunday compete in the Sydney Marathon, his third World Marathon Majors race, with a mission beyond the finish line — raising funds to support education for needy and vulnerable children across Kenya.
Sang has completed his local preparations for the August 30 race, where he will share the global stage with elite athletes while using the international platform to raise awareness for the Joe Sang Foundation.
The foundation currently supports the education of 10 bright but underprivileged children from across Kenya. It has also expanded into education infrastructure, recently completing construction of a modern classroom at a primary school in Kitui County. The facility will be officially launched next month when schools reopen for the third term.
“Today, we are supporting 10 children across Kenya, including a bright boy at Lenana School and another who qualified for university. There's also a young girl from Samburu, whose education we are anchoring. Our support is spread across Kenya to ensure a national impact,” Sang said after his final long training run in Karen, Nairobi.
Sang said the foundation had moved beyond school fees after realising that children also need a conducive learning environment.
“We realised that school fees alone are not enough if the learning environment is dilapidated. That is why we are investing in infrastructure. We have just finished constructing a classroom in Kitui. Our objective is to transform education through interventions like tuition fees, uniforms, and structural developments that give children a dignified place to learn.”
Sang made his World Marathon Majors debut at the 2024 Chicago Marathon, clocking 3:07, before improving to 3:00:57 at last year’s Berlin Marathon.
He will be joined in Sydney by corporate leaders including Alvin Mbugua, General Manager for Spirits at East African Breweries Limited, and businessman John Terer of Car City dealership. Terer ran alongside Sang in Chicago and Berlin, while Mbugua, a former scholarship beneficiary, is supporting the foundation’s education initiatives.
The foundation is increasingly targeting children from economically disadvantaged regions, particularly Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands, where poverty threatens access to education.
Funds raised from the Sydney Marathon will support the next cohort of high school scholarships, with the foundation targeting to double its current intake by 2027.
Sydney will provide a different challenge from Chicago and Berlin, with its rolling hills, sharp turns and demanding finish across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Sang has prepared by training on the hilly terrains of Ngong, focusing on endurance and sustained pacing.
He will share the Sydney stage with a strong East African contingent led by reigning World Marathon Champion and Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir, 2018 London Marathon champion Vivian Cheruiyot and Tanzania’s World Championship gold medallist Alphonce Simbu.
For Sang, the marathon represents both a personal challenge and an opportunity to amplify his philanthropic message.
“I would like to thank individuals and like-minded corporates who have supported us. We are still way off our target, but we believe that the Foundation will grow in leaps and bounds and benefit more children,” he said.
