Death of a Runner
Lucas Sang was a hero to his neighbors near the Kenyan city of Eldoret, an Olympic runner known for his kindness and generosity. Yet when ethnic fighting engulfed Kenya after its tainted elections last December, Sang chose to lead a rampaging mob seeking revenge on members of a rival tribe, a decision that led to his death. "Even You?" by Wright Thompson of ESPN does a masterful job of exploring Sang's last hours, the tensions that divide his country and the limits of heroism. Here Thompson describes what life is like for Sang's wife following the violence:
Sunday morning brings the sound of hammering. The solid whack of metal on nail is a beautiful song of rebirth outside Eldoret. People are rebuilding, putting together new roof beams, fixing what has been destroyed. Along the Eldoret-Iten road, the epicenter for much of the violence, there are signs of renewal.
But down the road a bit, Pamela Sang sits alone in the grove of trees, the roosters pecking in the patchy grass for food. Every now and then, they crow. A wedding ring is still on her left hand. Her face is dark and cloudy. She looks lost. It has been five months and 19 days since Lucas left here for the last time and never came home. She knew something was wrong when he didn't call to check in. He always checked in. That night, she tried his cell phone twice. The customer you are trying to call cannot be located. She did not try again. She already knew.
For more great work by Thompson check out "Bedtime Stories for Catherine" and "The Death of a Basketball Player." The brilliant colors in the photos by Evelyn Hockstein of ESPN.com and Jose Cendon/AFP/Getty Images capture the beauty of Kenya and the tragic outcomes of the ethnic clashes. http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=kenya