In the highland village of Sachang’wan in Molo, Nakuru County, the land rises boldly toward the sky. The area sits on the edge of the dramatic Rift Valley escarpment, overlooking the vast Menengai Crater — Africa’s second-largest volcanic caldera — its silent ridges brooding in the morning mist.
Behind it, the rolling hills of Molo stretch endlessly, stitched with neat rows of potato farms that define the region’s identity. To the south lies Salgaa, a town better known for its flower farms, where long greenhouse tunnels shimmer like silver ribbons across the plains. Beyond this agricultural heartland, winding dirt roads climb toward Sachang’wan — where another kind of farming is taking root: the farming of athletic talent.
Here, where the air is thin and crisp, mornings begin before sunrise. Frost melts from the grass as a small group of determined athletes powers up a steep incline, their breath visible in the cold air. Leading them is 27-year-old Amos Kibet Chirchir, stopwatch in hand, eyes sharp with focus.
To an outsider, he might look like any other coach on a country road. But to his athletes — and to the growing Kenyan Athletics Training Academy (KATA) movement — Amos represents something much bigger: a new generation of homegrown leaders cultivating both champions and sustainability.
The Making of a Leader
Amos, the fifth-born in a family of eight, grew up in the cold, fertile highlands of Molo, raised by farming parents who taught him the value of hard work. Athletics runs deep in his family — his father was a 400m hurdler in the 1970s, competing when Kenyan track was just finding its rhythm.
“I didn’t just choose running,” Amos says with a smile. “Running found me.”
After excelling in local school competitions, Amos nearly saw his running dream fade — until June 2022, when he earned a place at KATA Thika, founded by American running innovator Bob Anderson, the visionary behind Runner’s World magazine.
“That changed everything,” he recalls. “For the first time, I could train without worrying about daily survival. KATA didn’t just build me as an athlete — it prepared me to lead.”
Building a High-Altitude Training Hub
When Anderson announced plans to expand KATA through athlete-led satellite camps, Amos seized the opportunity. He returned home and launched KATA Sachang’wan Camp with just five athletes — three men and two women. Today, the camp has grown to eight committed runners, with more young talents eager to join.
The camp sits at an altitude of 2,400 meters, ideal for endurance training. For faster sessions, they descend to 1,800 meters, creating a natural high-low altitude system similar to what world-class runners use in Iten, Kaptagat, and Eldoret.
Already, results are emerging:
• Weldon Kibet Lang’at clocked 30:36 (10K) and 14:55 (5K) at the Double Road Race before improving to 30:16 in the October 15 time trials.
• Elizabeth Wambui, who joined just two months ago, cut her 5K time from 19:00 to 17:35 at the same event.
Amos himself remains in strong competitive shape, with personal bests of 30:51 (10K) and 14:32 (5K).
“I want to build champions — not just athletes who run fast, but athletes who think beyond medals,” he says.
Farming Hope: The KATA Potato Project
Alongside athletics, the Sachang’wan camp thrives on another discipline — agricultural sustainability. Inspired by Bob Anderson’s belief in empowering athletes for life beyond competition, Amos integrated potato farming into his training model.
He began with two acres of KATA potatoes, a move that initially drew laughter from locals.
“At first, people thought I was crazy,” he recalls. “They said farming was a step backward for an athlete. Now they’re copying me.”
Today, the farm helps feed the athletes, generates income for camp operations, and inspires local farmers — many now shifting from maize to potatoes after seeing his success.
“Athletes must think about life after running,” Amos says. “This program lets us build something real, not just chase medals.”
Training Champions, Growing Futures
With schools now closed, Amos plans to recruit junior athletes from nearby villages — guiding them early and keeping them away from idleness and drugs.
“Talent is going to waste in villages like ours because nobody guides young runners. I want to change that,” he says.
His long-term dream is to build dormitories, expand training facilities, and turn KATA Sachang’wan into a full-fledged center of excellence — powered by athletics and farming.
“Bob Anderson’s Vision Is Working”
Amos believes that KATA is redefining the future of Kenyan athletics.
“This is more than running,” he says. “Bob Anderson’s program teaches us responsibility, teamwork, leadership, and self-reliance. We’re not waiting for sponsors — we’re building ourselves.”
From the cold ridges of Sachang’wan overlooking Menengai Crater, a quiet revolution is growing — one built on sweat, soil, and belief. Here, potatoes fuel champions, and running fuels dreams.
And at the heart of it all stands a young leader — stopwatch in one hand, hoe in the other — cultivating both athletes and a future for Kenya.