Lucas Sang

Lucas Sang (February 12 1961 [ [http://digilander.libero.it/atletica2/Stagionali/WRL/1990/800.htm Spreadsheet of World Athletics results (1990)] including Lucas Sang's date of birth "(Italian)"] – January 1 2008) was a Kenyan athlete who participated in the 1988 Summer Olympics, held in Seoul. He was a member of the Kenyan 4 x 400 metre relay team, reaching the final and finishing eighth. He also competed in the 400 metre individual race, but failed to make the semifinals. [Full Olympians: [http://users.skynet.be/hermandw/olymp/stathm4.html Athletics - Men's 400 m] ]

Sang took part in the 1987 All Africa Games in Nairobi, the 1998 African Championships in Athletics and the 1989 IAAF World Cup.The Standard, January 3 2008: [http://eastandard.net/archives/index.php?mnu=details&id=1143979865 Poll violence claim former athlete Sang] ] He then switched to the 800 metre event, but failed to make an impact due to competition from other Kenyan runners. He later became known as a pacesetter for both Kenyan and international athletes. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article3121539.ece Kenyan Olympic runner hacked to death] The Times, 2 January 2008] He was part of the Kenyan Armed Forces athletics team [The Standard, January 6, 2008: [http://www.eastandard.net/archives/index.php?mnu=details&id=1143979981&catid=48 Kenya loses an Olympian in violence] ] .

After retiring, Sang became a farmer and had a large-scale farm in Moiben, in the Uasin Gishu District of Kenya. He was also a business partner of Moses Tanui, the former 10,000m World Champion.. He was also involved with sports administration and, at the time of his death, was the chairman of the National Association of Kenyan Olympians (NAKO) [IAAF, January 3, 2008: [http://www.iaaf.org/news/kind=2/newsid=42811.html Violence in Kenya claims Lucas Sang, 1988 Olympian] ] . After initial reports that Sang was "hacked to death", it later emerged that he was attacked and killed by a stone-throwing gang [ [http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,23009714-5003402,00.html Olympic athlete stoned to death] by Tim Cocks, CourierMail.com.au, January 05, 2008 05:27am] in the town of Eldoret on New Year's Day 2008, while on the way to his home at Kimumu, during the violence gripping Kenya in the aftermath of the controversial December 2007 presidential elections. After being struck on the head by a rock, Sang's body was then burnt by the gang, which it is believed, mistook him for a member of a rival tribe. That is very unlikely though because he looked disticintly Kalenjin and he would surely have spoken the language.

Other reports say that Sang was killed by his Kikuyu neighbors as he led a group Kalenjin men to attack them. This version was corroborated to ESPN by a Kikuyu man who was one of the attackers as well as a Kalenjin man who had been conscripted to join in the attack. [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=kenya&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines]

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