Dorcus Inzikuru

{{MedalTableTop|medals= {{Medal|Sport | Women's [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]]}} {{Medal|Country | {{UGA}} }} {{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]}} {{Medal|Gold |[[2005 World Championships in Athletics|2005 Helsinki]]|[[2005 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 3000 metres steeplechase|3000 m st.]]}} {{Medal|Competition|[[African Championships in Athletics|African Championships]]}} {{Medal|Silver|[[2002 African Championships in Athletics|2002 Radès]]|[[2002 African Championships in Athletics – Women's 5000 metres|5000 m]]}} {{Medal|Competition|[[Commonwealth Games]]}} {{Medal|Gold|[[2006 Commonwealth Games|2006 Melbourne]]|[[Athletics at the 2006 Commonwealth Games – Women's 3000 metres steeplechase|3000 m st.]]}} }} [[image:Docus Inzikuru.jpg|thumb|right|230px]] '''Dorcus Inzikuru''' (born 2 February 1982 in [[Vurra]], [[Arua District]]) is a [[Uganda]]n [[track and field]] athlete, competing in the [[steeplechase (athletics)|steeplechase]]. She won the inaugural world title in women's 3000 m steeplechase, as well as the first [[Commonwealth Games|Commonwealth]] title in the event. Her coach is [[Renato Canova]]. Sometimes her name is spelt "Docus". It was misspelled in her [[passport]], and the mistake was perpetuated when she entered international races.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://memim.com/dorcus-inzikuru.html|title=MEMIM Encyclopedia: Dorcus Inzikuru|date=9 July 2015|access-date=9 July 2015|publisher=MEMIM Encyclopedia (ME)}}</ref>

==Career== Inzikuru won the [[bronze medal]] in the [[5000 metres]] at the [[Athletics at the 2003 Afro-Asian Games|2003 Afro-Asian Games]], finishing behind [[Meseret Defar]], and [[Tirunesh Dibaba]]. She also won at cross country, beating all-comers at the [[Eurocross]] meeting that year.<ref name=ARRS>{{cite web|last1=Civai|first1=Franco|last2=Gasparovic|first2=Juraj|access-date=9 July 2015|date=28 February 2009|url=https://www.arrs.run/HP_DiekirchXC.htm|title=Eurocross 10.2Km (Men) And 5.3Km (Women)]|publisher=[[Association of Road Racing Statisticians]]}}</ref>

===2005 World Championships=== In 2005, at the [[2005 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]], in [[Helsinki]], [[Finland]], Inzikuru ended Uganda's 33-year wait for an athletics world title, winning the inaugural women's 3000 m steeplechase event, in a time of 9:18.24 (at the time, the sixth best performance ever). Inzikuru only became aware of the $60,000 prize after winning the final and vowed to use her money to build a house and to help young athletes.

She had competed in the [[2005 IAAF World Cross Country Championships]] that year, but she finished in 18th place. In 2006, she won the [[Oeiras International Cross Country]] meeting, but she pulled out of that season's [[2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships|World Cross Country Championships]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.iaaf.org/news/news/inzikuru-and-kamais-dominate-iaaf-xc-in-oeira|title=Inzikuru And Kamais Dominate IAAF XC In Oeiras| date=12 November 2006|access-date=9 July 2015|first=António Manuel| last=Fernandes|publisher=[[IAAF]]}}</ref>

===2009 return=== After taking two years out from athletics, due to giving birth to her first child (Emmanuelle Munguci) and receiving treatment for sinus infections and various allergies, Inzikuru returned to competition. She won an [[800 metres]] race in [[Mandela National Stadium|Namboole]] on 6 June 2009, with a time of 2:12.0, later saying: "This is my first race after over two years. I am just coming back and am proud of my time. It builds my confidence".<ref>{{cite web|date=8 June 2009 |access-date=20 October 2019 | url=https://www.iaaf.org/news/news/inzikuru-starts-comeback-with-800m-outing-in |publisher=[[IAAF]] |author=Norman Katende | title=Inzikuru Starts Comeback With 800 Meter Outing In 2:12.0}}</ref> She competed sparingly over the following years and could not recapture her steeplechase form, recording season's best of 9:53.02 and 9:54.50 minutes in 2010 and 2011.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/uganda/docus-inzikuru-170929| title=Athlete Profile of Dorcus Inzikuru|access-date=9 July 2015 | date=9 July 2015 |author=IAAF|publisher=[[IAAF]]}}</ref>

Inzikuru returned to the top level of the sport in 2012, running a time of 9:30.95 minutes for the steeplechase and qualifying for the [[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 London Olympics]]. The event had moved on since her championship win, however, and she was not fast enough to reach the final.<ref>{{cite web |date=2012 |access-date=9 July 2014 |url=http://www.london2012.com/athletics/event/women-3km-steeplechase/phase=atw033900/index.html |title=2012 London Olympics: Women's 3000m Steeplechase |author=LN2012 |publisher=London2012.com (LN2012) |archive-date=4 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130404000403/http://www.london2012.com/athletics/event/women-3km-steeplechase/phase=atw033900/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> She ran at the major [[Weltklasse]] and [[Internationales Stadionfest]] meetings in [[Germany]] after the Olympic Games, but barely managed to reach the top ten. In 2013, she attempted to reinvigorate her career with a switch to the [[marathon]], but on her debut at the [[Brighton Marathon]] she finished with a time of 2:42:38 hours, missing her target of the [[List of Ugandan records in athletics|Ugandan record]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.runbritain.com/news/more-course-records-in-brighton|title=More Course Records In Brighton|date=15 April 2013|access-date=9 July 2015|publisher=Runbritain.com}}</ref>

==Personal life== Inzikuru grew up in Vurra, in [[Arua District]], the daughter of an [[Anglican]] priest. Her parents were both talented athletes, but did not compete internationally. She was the third of eight children, but lost her two older brothers at the ages of eight and fourteen, to [[typhoid]] and [[malaria]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.monitor.co.ug/SpecialReports/ugandaat50/Inzikuru-became-a-beacon-for-Ugandan-women-s-sport/-/1370466/1398758/-/6umgibz/-/index.html|title=Inzikuru Became A Beacon for Ugandan Women's Sport|access-date=9 July 2015| first=Ismail|last=Dhakaba Kigongo|date=5 May 2012|newspaper=[[New Vision]]|location=Kampala}}</ref>

Inzikuru was married to an accountant, '''Martin Bosco Acidri''', a former [[Sprint (running)|sprinter]], and together they had a daughter, ''Emmanuela Munguci''. They separated in February 2012.<ref>{{cite web|title=Acidri Demands Part of Inzikuru's Fortune for Divorce|url=http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/629520-acidri-demands-part-of-inzikuru-s-fortune-for-divorce.html|access-date=9 July 2015|date=9 March 2012|first=Alex|last=Balimwikungu|newspaper=[[New Vision]]|location=Kampala}}</ref> He died in October 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/648702-dorcus-inzikuru-s-estranged-husband-passes-on.html|access-date=9 July 2015|title=Dorcus Inzikuru's Estranged Husband Passes On|date=22 October 2013|newspaper=[[New Vision]]|location=Kampala|first1=Richard|last1=Adrama|first2=Robert|last2=Ariaka}}</ref>

Inzikuru often lives and trains in [[Turin]] and competes for the [[Milan]] club Camelot. She often trains with men's world record holder, [[Saif Saaeed Shaheen]], as the two share coach Renato Canova.{{cn|date= July 2025}}

==Achievements==

===3000 m Steeplechase=== *2005 World Championships, Gold (9:18.24) *2005 World Athletics Final, Gold *2006 Commonwealth Games, Gold (9:19.51)

===3000 m=== *1999 World Youth Championships, 8th

===5000 m=== *1999 African Games, 6th *2000 World Junior Championships, Gold *2002 Commonwealth Games, 4th *2002 African Games, Silver *2003 Afro-Asian Games, Bronze

===Cross Country=== *2000 World Junior Championships, 10th *2004 World Championships (short course), 38th *2005 World Championships (short course), 18th *2007 World Championships, DNF

==Personal bests== *800 m, 2:02.00 *One Mile, 4:36.05 *3000 m, 8:46.29 *5000 m, 15:05.30 *2000 m Steeplechase, 6:04.46 *3000 m Steeplechase, 9:15.04

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== *{{World Athletics||name=Dorcus Inzikuru}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20060622090438/http://www.melbourne2006.com.au/M2006/Homepage+News/20060322Ugandian+gold+in+Games+debut.htm 2006 Commonwealth Games], "Ugandan's Golden Games Debut" *[https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/athletics/4132242.stm BBC News]

{{s-start}} {{s-sports}} {{succession box|before={{flagicon|RUS}} [[Gulnara Samitova-Galkina]]|title=[[Steeplechase (athletics)|Women's 3000 m Steeplechase<br>Best Year Performance]]|years=2005|after={{flagicon|POL}} [[Wioletta Janowska]]}} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Inzikuru, Dorcus}} [[Category:1982 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Ugandan women middle-distance runners]] [[Category:Ugandan women long-distance runners]] [[Category:Ugandan women marathon runners]] [[Category:Ugandan women steeplechase runners]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games]] [[Category:Olympic athletes for Uganda]] [[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Uganda]] [[Category:World Athletics Championships medalists]] [[Category:African Games silver medalists for Uganda]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 All-Africa Games]] [[Category:World Athletics Championships winners]] [[Category:People from Arua District]] [[Category:Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games]] [[Category:Sportspeople from Northern Region, Uganda]] [[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics]] [[Category:African Games silver medalists in athletics (track and field)]]