Former CCCC runner fulfills Olympic dream

BENARD KETER

Benard Keter fulfilled a childhood dream: he competed in the Olympics. Representing Team USA, he finished 11th overall in the 3000-meter steeplechase.
The Olympics are over for now, but Keter, a former student/athlete at Cloud County Community College (CCCC) is far from done. He fully intends to compete for a medal in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
"I will get better, and I will get faster," Keter said. "My goal is to represent the Army and the USA in the next Olympics."
Born in Molo, Kenya, Keter came to the United States on an athletic scholarship to CCCC. In his one year at the local college, Keter won the NJCAA 3,000-meter steeplechase title. At Wayland Baptist University, and then Texas Tech University, Keter was an NAIA national champion in cross country, the 5,000m indoors and the steeplechase outdoors champion, a four-time Big 12 champion, and a first-team all-American.
After he graduated from Texas Tech, Keter joined the U.S. Army and now represents the Nike/U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program.
Keter has come a long way from the tiny village in Kenya where he grew up. "The only time you really know how many people are there is when there's a vote," he said with a grin. "I ran everywhere. There were no cars or buses. I ran to school every morning, then ran home for lunch, and then ran back to school in the afternoon for classes. If I had to go anywhere, I ran. I didn't realize it, but I had been building my endurance since I was a kid."
Keter attended high school in the small town of Kapkatet but, surprisingly, never really trained or began competing as a runner until after high school. He was inspired by his older brother, Tareq, who is a also steeplechase specialist. Tareq finished in 11th place at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
"I had the dream of being an Olympian a long time ago, when I was a little kid and watched my brother compete in the Olympics."
When Keter came to Concordia from Kenya in 2013, he had an easier adjustment than many foreign students. "In Kenya, the national languages are Swahili and English," he said. "Many of our tv and radio shows are in English, so I knew the language since I was a boy."
His initial impression of Concordia? "This is a very nice place," he said. "For me, in terms of school, I was not distracted by much. It's a good place to be for someone who is focused. For me, it all started here. This is what made me what I am."
At CCCC, Keter blossomed as a distance runner and steeplechase specialist. In 2013 he finished fifth in the NJCAA Cross Country Championships. He then earned All-American honors in the 2013-14 NJCAA Indoor Track and Field season while setting new CCCC records in the 3000-meter and 5000-meter events. Keter then became the 2014 NJCAA National Champion in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Keter enlisted in the Army in 2016 as a linguist, became a U.S. citizen in 2018, and now competes for the Nike/U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program.
"I love being in the Army," he said. "I'm able to take care of so many things because of the financial stability."
Keter has turned his focus to the 3000m steeplechase and is improving his times every year. "For me, the steeplechase is the best. I chose it because a lot of people avoid it. It is much more of a mental challenge. Aside from long distance running, you have to clear four barriers - one of them water - every lap. I love it."
In 2019 Keter finished in 4th place in the 3000m steeplechase at the 2019 Pan American Games. Then COVID-19 swamped the world, and the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo were postponed. If they had been held as scheduled, Keter would not have been able to compete for a spot on the USA Olympic team. "I was dealing with an achilles injury. But because they (the Olympics) were postponed a year, I was able to recover and make my dream come true."
On June 25, 2021, at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, Keter ran the 3000m steeplechase in 8:21.81 and finished in second place, earning him a spot on Team USA.
"It was everything I had worked for, everything I trained so hard for. I was an Olympian."
The trip to Tokyo took 23 hours of combined flying. Once there, the athletes were placed under very stringent regulations because of COVID-19. "I like the way we were taken care of: I like their policies," Keter said. "We wore masks and we were tested every morning. They were trying to make everyone safe, and I appreciated that, because if you tested positive you were out. That was the end of your Olympic dream."
Of all the runners from all the countries competing in the steeplechase at the Olympics, only the top 15 would make the Finals. In his qualifying heat, Keter ran the fastest he'd ever run before, finishing with a personal best time of 8:17.31. He needed it. He was the last person to qualify for the Finals.
In the men's 3000m Steeplechase Finals, Keter finished in 11th place with a time of 8:22.12.
Keter had realized a boyhood dream, but he's not done yet. Not by a long shot. Only 29 years of age - still relatively young for a distance runner - Keter is looking four years down the road, and beyond. "I'm going to run until I can't anymore. The next Olympics (Paris, 2024) is my goal. My goal after that is to compete for the USA at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles."
As a world-class athlete, Keter has traveled the world. He's been to dozens of countries where the highest caliber runners in the world train and compete: Switzerland, Monaco, China, Peru, and Qatar to name a few. But when Keter reflects on his life, he is humbled by what running has meant to him.
"Running has given me everything I have in my life," he said. "It is my life."