Stella Rutto

Rutto began competing as early as 2012, finishing runner-up at the Kenyan U20 Championships and winning a bronze medal at the 2012 World U20 Championships at age 15.[2] Rutto said after the competition, "I started too late in the last lap to fight for the silver [...] I am happy for Daisy and to obtain this second medal for my country, even if it is only the bronze medal."[3]

At the 2013 African U18 Championships, Rutto won a silver medal in the 2000 metres steeplechase, losing only to countrywoman Daisy Jepkemei who had beat her in 2012 as well.[4] Two years later, Rutto won her last age-group medal at the 2015 African U20 Championships, winning the 3000 m steeplechase and helping Kenya place 5th in the medal standings.[5]

In 2019, Rutto first competed in Romania, winning the Romanian International Championships steeplechase and 5000 metres as well as placing 7th in that year's Kenyan Athletics Championships steeple.[1] After winning the 2020 Romanian Athletics Championships in the 5000 m and steeplechase, she won the same two events at the 2020 Balkan Athletics Championships but was later disqualified as she had not yet been cleared to represent Romania internationally.[1][6]

Competing as a foreign national, Rutto won the 2021 Turkish Athletics Championships steeplechase and ran several half marathons in Turkey that year, debuting at 1:07:45 to win the Trabzon Half Marathon.[1] On 21 February 2022, Rutto was cleared by World Athletics to represent Romania in international competitions.[2] She finished 8th at the 2024 Diamond League Shanghai in the steeplechase.[1]

Born on 12 December 1996 and originally from Kenya, Rutto first competed in Romania in 2019.[2] Despite competing at Romanian and Turkish national championships, she was not officially cleared to represent Romania until 2022.[2]

• Stella Rutto at World Athletics