Br J Sports Med 2000;34:391–394 391 East African running dominance: what is behind it?

Bruce Hamilton

Introduction result of the forests, lakes, and scenery enhanc- East African middle and long distance runners ing the performance of the athletes.4 In the case are currently the dominant force in athletics. of the East African runner, it is widely believed As well as dominating the track events at the that birth and living at altitude produces great last several Olympic Games, they are also athletes, despite the great range in athletic pro- dominant on the American and European road ductivity observed between areas of similar racing circuit and world cross country events. altitude.5 If altitude were the only factor Although many physiological and anatomical involved, then all African countries with high factors have been proposed to explain East altitude populations, as well as countries such African dominance, research into these vari- as Nepal, Peru, and Mexico, should be ables has not yet revealed any definitive advan- producing many world class athletes.5 While tage for the African. Traditional social and cul- studying the diVerence between muscle fibre tural factors have often been described as types of highland and lowland Andean dwell- “advantageous”, and, although these factors ers, Rosser and Hochachka6 found that type I may be to a greater or lesser extent involved in (slow twitch) muscle fibres of those living at the East African dominance, it is probable that altitudes of 3300 m had reduced levels of both the African and caucasian psychology or oxidative enzymes (malate dehydrogenase) and “mindset” are now additional important fac- enhanced glycolytic ability. Despite the small tors in maintaining that dominance. Like sample size (three), this may suggest that Scandinavian distance runners in the early chronic exposure to altitude reduces rather 20th century, who won 28 of 36 possible than enhances maximal aerobic potential.6 Olympic medals over 5000 and 10 000 m, the Similarly, using analysis of indirect maximal East Africans have developed an aura of invin- oxygen uptake and muscle biopsies, Kayser et cibility, both in their own minds and the minds 7 al compared five Nepalese Sherpas with of their caucasian opponents. Caucasians caucasian climbers and lowland sedentary world wide are searching for proof of the physi- adults. They found the Sherpas to have signifi- cal advantage of the East Africans while hand- cantly lower maximal aerobic uptake and lower ing them on a platter a psychological advantage mitochondrial density, but equivalent capillary which, until removed, will perpetuate the density and muscle fibre size compared with current state. acclimatised caucasian climbers. They con- cluded that the Sherpas’ legendary endurance Possible reasons for East African could not be explained by any of the features dominance Many factors have been described to explain studied, which were found not to be unique to both the dominance of East African middle Sherpas. It could be argued that the variables measured do not reflect the key physiological and long distance runners and West African 8 sprinters. Many of these have been disproved parameters involved, and Noakes has theo- many times but are so fixed in folklore that they rised that cardiac function may well be the dif- 3 continue to be touted as possible causes of suc- ferentiating variable. Saltin et al found that cess. Despite being shown to be unsubstanti- Scandinavian athletes living at sea level had a ated in the 1930s,1 Sir Roger Bannister, in a higher muscle buVering capacity than Kenyan speech delivered to the British Association for athletes, and that altitude training enhanced the Advancement of Science in 1995, sug- muscle buVering capacity in sea level residents gested that factors such as heel bone length, training at altitude, but not in Kenyans who subcutaneous fat, and diVerences in Achilles reside at altitude. tendon length may explain the advantages that Hence, although it is clear that living and West African athletes appear to have.12 Pro- training at altitude results in a variety of physi- posed factors involved in the success of East ological adaptations, the exact nature and rela- African athletes include environmental, genetic tive importance of these adaptations to the Sports , endowment, and social development,3 while success of athletes from altitude are yet to be Australian Institute of elucidated. Legendary runner Ron Clarke Sport, Leverrier the psychological make up of the East African Crescent, Bruce, ACT is rarely considered. highlighted this clearly in 1981, “ . . .record 2617, breaking in distance running has come from B Hamilton ENVIRONMENTAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL VARIABLES very small areas of the world . . .New Zealand; Environmental determinism is a term used to Australia; ; a small part of the African Correspondence to: B Hamilton describe the attribution of human performance continent . . .and maybe . These coun- email: registrar@ to the environment in which the human lives. tries have produced the record breakers and yet hughessportsmed.com.au Scandinavian running dominance in the early none of the areas are the same . . .Why such a Accepted for publication 20th century, easily comparable with that of small area of the world has prolifically pro- 20 April 2000 East African dominance today, was felt to be a duced world record holders I don’t know”.9

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Genetic endowment is often stated as an Clearly innumerable physiological variables “obvious” cause of East African dominance. could be involved in the dominance of the East This is especially so when one considers the African athlete. However, at this stage, the Kenyan experience. In 1988 the Nandi people exact nature of these variables and their relative in the Rift Valley (one of seven tribes making importance, as well as the role of nature and up a larger group known as Kalenjin), nurture, are not clear. comprised 1.8% of Kenya’s population but supplied 42.1% of the nation’s elite runners.5 SOCIAL VARIABLES However, intermarrying between the diVerent The British attitude to their own sporting Kalenjin tribes has been occurring for many prowess in the early 20th century and the rela- years,10 suggesting that factors other than just tionship to training children and adolescents is the Nandi gene pool are involved. Physiological reflected in an early text on athletic training. advantages of Africans have recently been “We pride ourselves on being . . .the first studied in depth by Weston et al,11 comparing athletic nation. We have many assets that African subelite 10 km runners (eight from the should make us so. Our public school games Xhosa tribe, one from the Zulu tribe) with are, one and all, of incalculable help towards caucasians of similar ability. They found that the many assets demanded in an international the Africans had elevated citrate synthase and competition. By favour of these, the youngster, 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase activity unknown to himself, is putting in his ground and enhanced resistance to fatigue in a work, in conjunction with a national tempera- treadmill trial designed to imitate the stresses ment that has, in the past pulled oV big things. involved in 10 km running. However, no corre- Pluck, patience, enterprise, equanimity in loss, lation was found between these variables and restraint in victory, suppleness of limb, are all the best 10 km run time, and the researchers indirectly taught the schoolboy, and if he can be kept up to the mark set by all public schools, acknowledge the importance of such factors as no more can, or should be, expected of him. He environmental conditions, nutrition, and moti- is undergoing the fullest training that any vation in racing performance. With particular healthy lad should be subjected to”.13 regard to Kenyan runners, Saltin 3 reported et al With the emerging East African athletic elevated 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase dominance, similar principles appear to have but not citrate synthase activity, diVerences 11 been applied. Years of running to and from that Weston et al suggest may be a result of the school as children and adolescents has often confounding eVect of altitude exposure. In 11 been quoted as contributing to the develop- addition, Weston et al found African runners ment of elite East African runners. Indeed, to have a lower percentage of type I muscle Saltin et al10 describe their elite subjects as fibre, the fibre type that is typically associated having run or walked an average of 8–12 km a with endurance performance. This is in day, five days a week from age 7–8 years, contrast with the classical expectations of elite increasing to 90 km a week as adolescents. 12 distance runners and the findings of others, They also found that Kenyan children who did but Weston et al account for this by suggesting not have to walk great distances to school had that this is an appropriate adaptation for the maximal oxygen uptakes 30% lower than those increased speed and hence glycolytic demands required to travel to school by foot, and hence of modern 10 km running. Hence, while Wes- similar to that of Danish children. However, ton et al describe possible factors involved in they also describe how Kenyan teenagers “out the enhanced fatigue resistance as shown by a of training” had significantly lower maximal treadmill test, there are clearly other factors oxygen consumptions than students who had involved in the consistent racing success of just begun regular training. Hence, this may in African runners. Similarly, Coetzer et al12 com- fact suggest that organised training plays a sig- pared elite South African caucasian and black nificant role in the development of high maxi- athletes. They found that the black athletes mal oxygen consumption in Kenyan adoles- trained more intensively and were able to cents. Small samples and a lack of clarity about sustain a higher percentage of their maximal exactly what constitutes formal goal directed oxygen consumption during competition. It training make these findings diYcult to inter- was felt that this may have been related to the pret accurately. In comparison, Bale and Sang5 lower blood lactate concentrations found in report that 14 of 20 elite Kenyan athletes black athletes at any given running speed. interviewed never had been required to run to Although these findings may support an innate school. As long ago as 1960 when the great explanation for performance diVerences, it is appeared on the international possible that similar factors may also explain scene, talented Kenyan runners were being performance diVerences in racially homogene- removed from their homelands and being ous groups. placed in protected employment to enable the The degree to which findings from South full development of their running ability. With African runners can be extrapolated to more the increasing westernisation of Eastern Africa northern tribes is another factor to consider, and the development of athletic programmes given that racial characteristics lack homogene- in schools,14 targeting the perceived Nandi ity even within so called racial groups.4 Finally, potential, one must question the role of “natu- when examining the factors that separate the ral training” in the development of elite best from the merely elite, one must consider athletes. the rationale of extrapolating findings from In comparison with the Nandi, who have subelite athletes. remained a relatively rural society, many other

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Kenyan tribes have experienced accelerated such as East African runners, although not urbanisation, with the resulting availability of directly predicting behaviour, when combined alternative sports in cities reducing the pool of with other factors such as social situation will competitive runners. Hence, the rural environ- certainly influence the person’s behavioural ment and lack of resources for alternative pattern. If therefore a person believes that sports is one of the factors involved in the Kenyan runners have an advantage for what- maintenance of the Nandi dominance of Ken- ever reason, then this has the potential to aVect yan running. their performance negatively, especially if this Clearly, while the latest generation of East belief is being supported by peers and social African athletes have a very diVerent social constructs. Clearly this may result in the development from those of the first half of this formation of a self fulfilling prophecy. century, similar stereotypes continue to be Finally, it is important to consider the factors applied. As has been illustrated, these stereo- to which individuals attribute their successes types are based on factors that are no longer and failures. Gill17 describes the attribution of universally applicable. failure to stable external factors—for example, task diYculty, better opponents—as reducing PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES the shame associated with failure, but as having There is clearly more to the East African the worst prognosis for future performance. success story than their physiology, genetics, Understandably, this is the process caucasian and childhood athletic endeavours. Regardless runners may use whenever looking for a of physical attributes, the tougher athlete often genetic, developmental or physiological advan- prevails and the diVerence between success and tage in being East African. In comparison, East failure is often more easily, and perhaps more Africans may now believe that they have physi- appropriately, attributed to factors such as ological advantages that explain their success. psychology.15 Psychologically, performance can This stable internal attribution style will have a be considered to be a function of the positive eVect on their future performance. interaction between a person and the environ- It is clear that there is a theoretical rationale ment, or, by extension, the interaction of that psychology plays a critical role in the intrapersonal and interpersonal factors. Intra- dominance of the East African runner. The personal factors such as belief in oneself, moti- attitudes of both the African and caucasian vation, achievement orientation are critical to may be providing an advantage as great as, or performance. Berg-Schlosser (cited by Bale greater than, any of the more tangible factors and Sang5) disclosed in the 1970s that, of all more traditionally studied. the Kenyan tribes, the Kalenjin had the highest achievement orientation, while Mahlmann16 Conclusions more recently found that the Kalenjin had the Domination of individual sports by countries greatest ascetic experience of sport, both or regions of the world is not a new factors considered to be important in the phenomenon. It seems that the presumed successful performance of individual sports. causes of such domination are often recycled, Attitudes may be defined as “relatively out of date, and based on misinformation and stable, individual diVerence characteristics that myth. Over the last few years, it appears that presumably (sic) predispose the individual to North African countries have been producing certain behaviours”,17 and which tend to be large numbers of elite international athletes. directed towards specific objects, people, or Are we now going to search for the genetic ideas. Festinger’s theory of cognitive disso- advantages of these nations? Although there is nance (cited by Gill17) may provide some no conclusive evidence for an inherited physi- insight into the development of attitudes to ological advantage to the East African, this East African runners by caucasians. This does not exclude the possibility that one actu- theory suggests that people like to be consistent ally does exist. It may be that the technology in their thoughts, attitudes, opinions, and required to detect any diVerences is currently behaviours. Hence, if one considers that there lacking. is no advantage in being an East African in However, irrespective of the existence or terms of athletic performance, and yet is otherwise of any physiological advantage, it is consistently confronted with caucasian defeats, possible that the attribution of caucasian cognitive dissonance is created. To reduce this running “failures” to anecdotal stable external dissonance, either caucasian results must factors disempowers caucasians. Similarly, this improve or beliefs about the advantages of attribution style empowers the East African, being African must change. Clearly if the latter just as it did the Scandinavians in the early 20th occurs, a belief structure is set in place that will century and Australasians in the and aid only the East African. 1960s, with a psychological advantage, the Triandis (cited by Gill17) described three importance of which cannot be overestimated. components to attitudes: Fixed beliefs and attitudes to those anecdotal (1) cognitive—reflecting beliefs, or knowledge, contributory factors continue to impede the on a given subject, object, or person; success of caucasian athletes. Sports scientists (2) aVective—positive or negative feelings to- and practitioners aim to maximise athletic per- wards a subject, object, or person; formance, and yet it seems that they are all too (3) behavioural—the intended behaviour to- ready to accept that the East African domi- wards the subject, object, or person. nance is due to factors out of their control. Hence, from a caucasian point of view, a Although many factors contribute to East Afri- person’s cognitive understanding of a group can running success, present caucasian belief

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and attitude systems may be a significant 7 Kayser B, Hoppeler H, Claassen H, et al. Muscle structure and performance capacity of Himalayan Sherpas. J Appl perpetuating influence. Until our athletes, Physiol 1991;70:1938–42. coaches, and support staV accept responsibility 8 Noakes T. Maximal oxygen uptake: “classical” versus “con- for their own performance, the current level of temporary” viewpoints: a rebuttal. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1998;30:1381–98. athletic domination by East African athletes 9 Lenton B. OV the record. Collectors edition. DuVy: Brian may continue. Lenton Publications, 1981. 10 Saltin B, Larsen H, Terrados N, et al. Aerobic exercise capacity at sea level and at altitude in Kenyan boys, junior I would like to thank Professor Peter Fricker and Dr Kim and senior runners compared with Scandinavian runners. Bunnell for their support and assistance in the preparation of the Scand J Med Sci Sports 1995;5:209–21. manuscript. 11 Weston AR, Karamizrak O, Smith A, et al. African runners exhibit greater fatigue resistance, lower lactate accumula- tion, and higher oxidative enzyme activity. J Appl Physiol 1 Hoberman J. Darwin’s athletes. How sport has damaged black 1999;86:915–23. america and preserved the myth of race. 1st ed. New York: 12 Coetzer P, Noakes TD, Sanders B, et al. Superior fatigue Houghton MiZin Company, 1997. resistance of elite black South African distance runners. J 2 Hurst M. Running: Not a black and white issue. Fun Runner 1993; :1822–7. 1995:24–6. Appl Physiol 75 3 Saltin B, Terrados N, Larsen H, et al. Morphology, enzyme 13 Andrews H. Training for the track, field and road with some activities and buVer capacity in leg muscles of Kenyan and hints on health and fitness. 1st ed. : Stanley Paul and Scandinavian runners. Scand J Med Sci Sports 1995;5:222– Co, 1920. 30. 14 Kosgei M, Abmayr W.Cross country training in Kenya. New 4 Cobb WM. Race and runners. Journal of Health and Physical Studies in Athletics 1988;4:53–9. Education 1936 Jan:3–56. 15 Iso-Ahola SE. Intrapersonal and interpersonal factors in 5 Bale J, Sang J. Kenyan running. Movement culture, geography athletic performance. Scand J Med Sci Sports 1995;5:191– and global change. 1st ed. London: Frank