Israeli Olympic profiles: Lonah Korlima Chemtai

Women's Tel Aviv marathon champion Lonah Korlima Chemtai hopes to bring the gold for the country she now calls home.

Lonah Korlima Chemtai (photo credit: Courtesy)
Lonah Korlima Chemtai
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Date of Birth: December 12, 1988 (age 27)
Event: Women’s Marathon
Schedule in Rio: Marathon – August 14
Career highlight: Winning the women’s Tel Aviv marathon in February with a time of 2:40.16 hours
Outlook for Rio: The Kenyan-born Chemtai’s request to receive Israeli citizenship was only finally approved by Minister of the Interior Aryeh Deri in March. She has been living in Israel since 2008, first arriving in the country to work at the Kenyan consulate. She has since married Israeli running coach Dan Salpeter and she gave birth to their son last year before turning her focus back to running and progressing in impressive fashion.