Esther Wanjiru Maina (born March 27, 1977) is a retired female long-distance runner from Kenya.
She is from Kahuhia, Murang'a District.[1]
On January 15, 1999 she finished second at a half marathon race in Tokyo. The race was won by Elana Meyer, who set a world record, while Wanjiru scored did also beat the previous world record by timing 1:06:49 [2]
She won the Sendai Half Marathon in 1998 and 1999, and finished second in 2000.[3]
She finished third at the 2000 Osaka Ladies Marathon,[4] setting her personal best of 2:23:31 hours.
Wanjiru became the first Kenyan woman to win Commonwealth Games gold medal, although Jackline Maranga won 1500 metres later at the same games.[5]
| Representing | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 1st | 10,000 metres | ||
| 1999 | Seville, Spain | 11th | Marathon | ||
| 2000 | Osaka, Japan | 3rd | Marathon | 2:23:31 | |
| Sydney, Australia | 4th | Marathon | 2:26:17 | ||