The University of Mississippi Athletics
Kirui Selected As Student Representative For Debate
9/23/2008 | Track and Field
OXFORD, Miss. Barnabas Kirui was selected as one of 23 Ole Miss students to serve as student leaders and representatives for media members that have flocked to Oxford to cover the upcoming Presidential Debate slated for Friday at 8 p.m. from the Gertrude Ford Center.
Kirui, a member of both the Ole Miss cross country and track and field team, was selected to be the representative for the international students across campus. In this capacity, Kirui will serve as the media contact for any outlet wishing to pursue interviews with any of Ole Miss' international students.
A native of Lintein, Kenya, Kirui will also be responsible for guiding media members around campus, while showing them all of the beautiful attractions that Ole Miss has to offer.
"It is an honor for a debate of such magnitude to take place at our university," Kirui said. "As an international student from Kenya, the debate will provide me with an insight in American politics. There is no doubt that the whole world is following the events as they unfold, so it will be interesting to see how the world's leading democracy will handle the debate."
Kirui's athletic achievements include his selection as an Academic All-American by ESPN magazine. In 2007 he was an NCAA scholar-athlete of the year and earned athletic distinctions being named SEC Male Athlete of the Year and SEC cross country champion. He is a member of the Student Athlete Academic Committee and the African Caribbean Association and is a banking and finance major.