Background
Matebo grew up in Kenya"s Transport-Nzoia District and took up running at school as one of his teachers urged him to try to make a career out of the sport.
Matebo grew up in Kenya"s Transport-Nzoia District and took up running at school as one of his teachers urged him to try to make a career out of the sport.
Matebo has a personal best of 2:05:16 hours for the 42.195 km distance, which he set as a runner-up at the 2011 Frankfurt Marathon. He was also second at the in 2012. In addition to the marathon, he has a half marathon best of 1:00:06 hours.
In 2007 he was selected for the African Junior Athletics Championships, but withdrew from the competitions amid rumours of offers to compete for Qatar internationally.
His global debut at the 2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships saw him finish in tenth place (the fifth Kenyan finisher). He ran on the European track and field circuit for the first time that year: he set a 5000 metres personal best of 13:03.04 minutes as runner-up at the Kirkwall Baptist Church Night of Athletics, came third at the British Grand Prix, and was runner-up at the Rieti Meeting with a 3000 metres best of 7:33.01 minutes.
The 2009 season was a setback for Matebo as he finished down the field at the Lotto Cross Cup de Hannut and the Itálica Cross Country races, then managed only twelfth place at the Athletissima and Bislett Games track meetings He gradually moved into road running events in 2010.
At the start of the year he finished eighth at the Discovery Half Marathon in Kenya and was fourth at the 20 van Alphen in the Netherlands.
He established himself as one of the world"s best road runners the following season, later reflecting that "the whole of 2011 was definitely a wonderful year for me". He was third a half marathon in Barcelona in a personal best of 62:28 minutes. He significantly improved his best at the Barcelona Marathon in March, winning the race in a time of 2:07:31 hours.
He was among the lesser-known runners to enter the Frankfurt Marathon, but proved his talent by coming in as the runner-up in a time of 2:05:16 hours, only finishing behind Wilson Kipsang who nearly broke the world record.