Daniel Komen was 20 years old and largely unknown outside athletics when he broke the world record for 3,000 metres in Rieti, Italy in 1996. He ran the distance in 7 minutes 20.67 seconds, a time so fast it still stands as one of the most extraordinary middle-distance performances in history. He went on to set world records at other distances. He was from the Eldoret area, the cradle of Kenyan running. He represented a generation of athletes who had grown up watching Kip Keino and believing that Kenyan runners could be the best in the world. They were right.