The Ugandan Running Culture

Uganda, often referred to as the “Pearl of Africa’, is a country for unique travel experiences such as gorilla tracking, game viewing, trekking and mountaineering adventures or bird watching. Maybe less known is the fact that Uganda is also one of Africa’s top destinations for trail- and long distance running. In this regard, Kapchorwa is still one of East Africa’s best kept secrets; a seemingly ordinary farming town that has produced many extraordinary athletes. Here, Olympic, World and Commonwealth champions live and train alongside you. Kapchorwa, located on the slopes Mt. Elgon, a 4321m high extinct volcano, is the permanent home and training base to hundreds of elite endurance runners from Uganda and beyond. The presence of celebrated Ugandan Olympic and World champions such as Joshua Cheptegei, Jacob Kiplimo, Peruth Chemutai and Stephen Kiprotich has given the region the title: “The Land of Champions”.
Many of the training routes around Kapchorwa feature punishing climbs of anywhere between 500m to 1000m height difference – which hones strength and endurance in the athletes. However, 32km from Kapchorwa, at the foot of the mountain, at an altitude of approx. 1’100m, there is a big plateau with almost endless long tarmac and dirt roads, almost completely flat. This is where Uganda’s biggest stars train their tempos and most long runs. To have such a low altitude training option so close by is not something that is so readily available in Kenya or Ethiopia.
It’s only in recent years that tourists have ventured here to run, hike and cycle amongst the beautiful nature, passing through villages, banana plantations and farmland alongside the athletes who train morning and evening as they aspire to become champions themselves. With the construction of a high-altitude elite training facility in Teryet at 2’600 metres above sea level well on the way, the  future is certainly bright for the running community in Kapchorwa.

Running with Us in Uganda

Also in Uganda, we invite running lovers of any level and experience to take part in our running camps We’re going to train at more than 2’000 meters above sea level, running the same routes as Uganda’s elite endurance runners and World champions. However, if you hate hills, Kapchorwa is probably not the place of first choice for you to go. If you want to run a 10km loop here, it’s hard to do it with less than 250m of climbing. We’ll make a few day-long trips up hills of Mount Elgon and to the Nothern region – to the slopes of mounts Kadam and Moroto. Crossing rivers, passing waterfalls, venturing out into rural villages, watching wild life and subalpine landscapes of most peaceful countryside in Uganda. Every second day we’ll find ourselves not only in different areas, but also with different tribes and cultures: Ethnography along with sport is a brilliant combination! The Mount Elgon region is one of the most beautiful in Uganda, and having a run through it is simply magical. Visitors are rewarded with fresh mountain air, stunning views, challenging terrain rising to 2’600m, minimal traffic and endless trails of the famous red dirt to run on. Due to its remote nature, the region is still relatively untouched by tourism.