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While fellow Kenyans Wilson Kipsang, Geoffrey Mutai and Stephen Sambu garner most of the attention ahead of Saturday’s UAE Healthy Kidney 10K, they certainly won’t be sleeping on countryman Leonard Korir, who is a legitimate threat to win the race and challenge the course record. Here are a few facts about the 28 year old.

Tea Party

Korir, the oldest of three brothers and two sisters, hails from Kericho, Kenya, a town located in the highlands west of the famous Rift Valley. Contrary to the orange clay backdrops of running hubs like Iten, the landscape in Kericho is a lush green. The area, which receives rain almost daily, is home to Mau Forest, Kenya's biggest water catchment area, as well as the world’s largest tea plantation.

Discovery Channel

Unlike many of his Kenyan counterparts, Korir was a latecomer to running, only picking up the sport after he graduated high school and began attending Tambach Teachers College as a 20 year old. A professor encouraged Korir to tryout for the team. At his first meet in Mombassa, he won a 10K on a dirt track in “32-something.” Later that year, he won the 10K at Nationals in Nairobi. After that, Korir began training with Brother Colm O’Connell, who helped him on the recruiting trail, which eventually landed him in the United States in 2008.

Bite Out Of Big Apple

Korir’s college recruiting landed him at Iona College in New Rochelle, a mere 18 miles from Manhattan. A determining factor in choosing the school was the success that fellow Kenyan Richard Kiplagat (10-time All-American) had at the school. Korir was equally successful for the Gaels, winning the 2011 NCAA Indoor 5000m title and the NCAA Outdoor 10,000m crown. He finished his career with eight All-American honors and two school records.

Late Show

Korir has had many of his top performances in New York, but his biggest came in March when he surged over the final meters and swept passed training partner Stephen Sambu to win the NYC Half in 1:01:06. “Since I was in college, I used to like to kick,” Korir said afterward. “I was telling myself: ‘just hang in there.’ I was telling myself: ‘I’ll be number two’, but with 1K to go, I saw Stephen was not going and something in my head said: ‘you know what, win this thing.’”