Seated quietly and listening to long-distance race enthusiasts, you quickly notice their admiration for the late Samuel Kamau Wanjiru.

He was an icon in the long-distance marathons and carried with him the pride of his people from Central Kenya. He bagged a gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics in a record time of 2:06:32.

Wanjiru became the first Kenyan to win the marathon and the youngest to take part in the marathon since 1932.

And the fact that he hailed from Central Kenya still makes him a hot subject of debate in the country.

Born In Central Kenya

In Kenya, athletics is predominantly ruled by Kalenjins from the Rift Valley. This region is a hotbed of talents and the big names on the athletics world stage hail from the Great Rift Valley.

Therefore, for the late “Sammy” as he was fondly known, it was a big thing having a star athlete from the Mount Kenya region.

Besides, the fact that he broke records in long distances races in his early 20s always beamed the lenses of hope on him.

However, his controversial death on May 15, 2011 leaves behind a trail of questions as well as lessons.

Wanjiru was only 24 when he died at his posh Muthaiga Estate home in Nyahururu. He reportedly jumped from the balcony of the house and sustained major injuries.

An autopsy report is consistent with these findings by the police.

Wanjiru’s fame was not just for hype; he beat so many odds to achieve success but fame consumed it like a bush fire.

Samuel Wanjiru Grew Up In Abject Poverty

Wanjiru together with his brother Simon Njoroge were brought up singlehandedly by their mother Hannah Wanjiru. Life was tough for them and the late Wanjiru dropped out of school when he was only 12.

His mother could no longer afford to pay his school fees. And he hated poverty so much that God gave him a talent in marathon, or at least, he thought so.

With lady luck on his side, Wanjiru got a sponsorship in Japan for his high school. He schooled at Gakuen High School in Sendai, Japan where he rose to stardom due to victories in the cross country circuit.

He won the Fukuoka International Cross Country in 2003 – was then 16 years old. In 2001, he won Fukuoka International Cross Country and Chiba International Cross Country in 2005.

Toyota Kyushu signed him in 2005 as part of its athletics team. Yet again, he stunned with a new record at the World Junior Marathon just before he turned 18. He went on to set a new half marathon world record three times consecutively.

Samuel Wanjiru 2008 Beijing Olympics Win

In 2008, he broke the barriers at the Beijing Olympics to clinch a gold medal. He had won many other races before this one but it was his career’s highlight. His fame spread fast across the world and people couldn’t help but admire his tenacity at such a young age.

Wanjiru kept his winning streak with a win at the London Marathon and Chicago Marathon respectively in 2009. He would retain his Chicago Marathon title in 2010 amid an injury battle.

His Death

Now a celebrated marathoner, fame, and riches seemingly got into his head, pundits say. He changed many of his principles and would hit the brown bottle proper without any care in the world.

Reports surrounding his death suggest that he tried jumping over the balcony of his house in May 2011.

His first wife Trizah Njeri reportedly walked in on him with another woman in their bedroom making merry. Fracas ensued and he attempted jumping over the balcony when he met his death.

A police statement states the Njeri locked Wanjiru and his ‘visitor’ in the bedroom and ran outside. It is then that Wanjiru tried to jump off the balcony.

A decade later, it remains unclear if he intended to commit suicide or, he was just trying to escape amid rage.

Samuel Wanjiru’s Life Shrouded In Controversy

You wouldn’t be wrong to assume that a man’s wealth has a correlation to how many wives and concubines he keeps. That was Wanjiru’s life.

Besides Triza who he was legally married to, he was also a husband to two other women.

His union with Njeri bore two children while that of Mary Wacera – a fellow athlete – bore a daughter. His third wife Judy Wambui was expectant when he died in 2011.

Samuel Wanjiru’s Death Still A Mystery

His polygamous life was just the tip of the iceberg surrounding the late marathoner’s life. During an inquest into his death in May 2017, his mother insisted that his son was murdered.

She accused Njeri of engineering Wanjiru’s death in cahoots with six men who allegedly battered him on the head with a blunt object. Hannah referenced an autopsy report by a former chief government pathologist who concluded there was foul play in Wanjiru’s death.

However, Njeri while testifying at the inquest stuck to her theory leaving the case in limbo.

Poisonous Wealth

Those who knew Wanjiru well say the rains started beating in during his stay in Japan after developing a drinking habit. It would degenerate silently and nearly wrecked his marriage and career.

At one time in 2010, police stormed his house and arrested him for threatening Njeri when drunk. An AK-47 rifle was confiscated in his house.

Ten years after his death, his wealth is an eyesore to his family as his mother Hannah engages Njeri in inheritance battles.