Kipchoge 'Kip' Keino - one of the all-time athletic greats - spends much of his time, energy and money looking after poor children in western Kenya.

Keino established Kenya's tradition of world-class runners, and is now on his country's National Olympic Committee. He set world records in the 3,000 and 5,000 metres in 1965, and won a gold and a silver medal in both the 1968 and 1972 Olympics.

But for more than three decades he and his wife, Phyllis, have been caring for homeless orphans in the city of Eldoret - a centre for high-altitude training - where he lives. 'They need love and shelter, a father and a mother - and a vision,' he told Tunza.

The couple now look after about 60 children in a family-like setting, though at times the total has touched 90. Keino has also established a school, which educates the orphans and other local children, and a farm to feed them and provide a surplus to sell to raise money.

Keino says that all this is a way of giving something back to the poor. 'I feel I came to this world with nothing, and I will leave with nothing,' he says. 'If I invest in those who need assistance, it is an achievement to live together and to let them live like human beings.'

photo: empics