The World Champion Who Learned from YouTube Videos

The story of Julius "Mr. KZbin Man" Yego. The Kenyan Javelin thrower who coached himself using KZbin videos. All the way to win a World Athletics championship gold & Olympic silver.

[@nidhishshivashankar4885]

This isn’t just KZbin - it’s 2006-2011 KZbin. Props

[@keovezo]

Honestly I think KZbin back then was better for accessing certain information! Yes the volume and quality of videos was probably worse but back then I remember the search feature was nowhere near as awful as it is now. You’d literally have pages of videos to select from now you get all of these damned shorts with irrelevant information, you type in “how to" and you get videos that somewhat feature the subject but not in an informative context it’s so annoying. And don’t get me started on the "views also watched" thing that just shows you a bunch of completely irrelevant videos that the algo thinks you wanna watch instead of looking for the video you wanted.

[@develrandomdankmemes7586]

yuupp@@keovezo

[@vinayjoshi5788]

​@@keovezo use seach filters to get rid of shorts

[@agibitable]

@@keovezo this has become a problem with google and all of its subsidiaries that use its search tech. these days its entire purpose is to generate revenue, not actually serve you what you're looking for. surprisingly, chatGPT works well as a search engine as long as you're not looking for info that's up-to-date within the last couple of years

[@notrather5514]

@@keovezo I remember a time when youtube would show me in a line the new videos of people who I have subscribed to. And even those that were not from that list were good as well. I was able to find new quality videos without searching. Now even if I search and type the exact title its still a 50-50

[@crabb9966]

So sad he got injured. He was on his way to perhaps break the world record. But in javelin everyone gets injured

[@Dave-lr2wo]

Perhaps, but really not likely at all. And part of being the WR holder in any event is staying healthy long enough to progress to near-WR levels, so that means multiple years of health and progression. The point here is that maybe people get injured, and staying injury-free is a kind of genetic talent, just like throwing potential.

[@robertrosen2703]

​@@Dave-lr2wo Yeah, or maybe, just maybe, growing up in Afrika didn't give him the same start healthwise. Don't you think? His accomplishments in difference to his start are miles in front of many other athletes.

[@davidhooper259]

Not likely. For certain he is histories most unlikely 90m thrower. Easily the one guy who throw far beyond his physical size, strength and country’s pedigree ever expected.

[@Dave-lr2wo]

@@robertrosen2703 1. Africa is not a monolith, so you really shouldn't be referring to an entire continent in your reasoning about one person. 2. If your argument made sense, which it does not do, there would be no athletic excellence in general in Kenya, which their middle and long distance programs have long disproven. Those are also athletes who grew up with similar nutrition and food availability.

[@Pintkonan]

@@Dave-lr2wo i think he probably had the potential, but due to like 10 years of waste in the youth, were you lay a good foundation, was too much. if he had been scouted and properly trained from a young age on, i think theres no doubt he would be at least a serious contender. ps: i dont want to make fun of or make look bad the way he trained. he achieved something amazing with his self training.

[@jordanhanash]

KZbin should give him a medal making it to the Olympics as KZbin apprentice!

[@edwardb911]

KZbin master

[@theoteddy9665]

you mean other way around, no??

[@stefthorman8548]

no, he was an apprentice of youtube@@theoteddy9665

[@marioionion2]

​@@theoteddy9665what?

[@damsen978]

Won't happen. Because it's KZbin what we're talking about.

[@One_Track_Mind]

My brother is having a similar journey. He went from being a pitcher throwing 79mph to throwing 99mph in three years partly due to the research he did on KZbin, Instagram, and with online articles. He applied it by videoing himself and improving one thing at a time, gaining weight, and lifting with tons of variability. He’s now in the Orioles organization and working his way up to the MLB. It’s insane how much social media can help athletes.

[@jakesweet1000]

the internet is a great tool if you use it wisely

[@pedroclaro7822]

It’s about information accessibility. There are people fascinated by others who analyze them - and people are rightfully taking advantage of it.

[@Ryan-wx1bi]

That's awesome. Hope he succeeds

[@aljon5947]

Yup baseball pitching has so many online resources

[@aljon5947]

Slowmo camera is probably the most important part though, the feedback you get from seeing your mechanics is so crucial.

[@ruleset]

the difference is he applied the knowledge instead of procrastinating unlike most of people who watch youtube

[@real_dddf]

well I do pick up knowledge from youtube, it's just that I don't have a place to apply it :)

[@foolishyish]

I feel personally attacked

[@zeeshansunesara2822]

Applies to you

[@jake_runs_the_world]

FACTS 😭😭

[@dontworrydon]

Well..........he did have talent above and beyond.

[@Legend-zo9bc]

I keep telling my kids that YT is not just there to entertain you, it can teach you so many valuable skills. You can learn anything, what I would have given for this resource as a child.

[@joostfloot5279]

Yess! I do almost all my car maintenance myself with the help of KZbin videos.

[@catwif]

you can still learn many things no matter your age

[@TheSonOfGodWorshipsTheFather]

Fun Fact: Jesus is LORD. 🙂

[@cerebrumexcrement]

@@catwif yes we can learn anything at any age. but todays kids should understand the resources they have at their fingertips. its not something to take for granted.

[@maikeschafers9569]

I'd trade for public libraries anytime, barely any left here.

[@AidenasJ]

This guy is a beast. No excuses

[@adrianafamilymember6427]

MR. BEAST

[@Im-Eva]

genetics

[@statictech7]

I won the 2015 ISKA US Open MMA Tournament without a grappling coach, I won by submission. I learned striking from a brilliant kickboxing instructor and then taught myself everything about grappling and wrestling from dvds and youtube videos. I would take notes and run drills with my training partners. The information is out there if you look.

[@kenw2225]

I wore 5 covid masks at a time. Still do. Stop living in the past bruh

[@housesports000]

indeed, coaches and instructors alike are more just as mediators of the information although still useful, but if you can do it by yourself then why not give it a try

[@dummy9517]

Lol quite relatable, except I learn kickboxing on my own as well. Only had a friend to spar with, but we taught ourselves from scratch

[@mizu_7422]

the good thing about coaches is that they can help find problems and fix those problems that are exclusive to you and you might not be aware

[@giftapfel]

Yea they also help you to not build bad habits. Whatever works though, if you don't have the money and its all you have then its much better than nothing if you don't have a coach and really focus on drilling technique.@@mizu_7422

[@xyzabc4574]

I learned how to cast molten metal on KZbin. And how to replace a bathroom sink drain. Honestly, this is pure marketing gold. It writes itself.

[@reedOsama]

Man I love this story, it really shows the beauty of the internet. This man travelled the world, realised a talent and brought high level javelin to Kenya.

[@dd-uf9nw]

I learnt playing football by using KZbin and for the first time when i had played under any coach when i was 18 and was in my college team but no one ever realised this was my first ever proper training experience with any coach because i was already familiar with the basics. I won't say I'm as elite sportsman as him but still KZbin helps you a lot if you have right mindset.

[@nilon5327]

That already is a major achievement, keep going!

[@dd-uf9nw]

@@nilon5327 thanks , but i only play for fun these days but I'm happy atleast I tried.

[@dd-uf9nw]

@@nilon5327 bro i stopped playing football I just play for fun now btw thank you for your encouragement.

[@devincooper7821]

Knowing how difficult and technical throwing a javelin can be, this is amazing.

[@phuongvu527]

I learned English from KZbin. I meant, it's not as impressive as what that champ did, but it was still something I didn't expect.

[@glennspencergalanido5427]

props to u bro, learning another language is never not impressive 👏🙌

[@kerolokerokerolo]

it is quite impressive honestly. congrats!

[@phuongvu527]

thanks. But I'm not fluent 😄

[@sirk603]

Out of curiosity, how exactly?

[@phuongvu527]

@@sirk603 In case you were not being sarcastic, my answer is: Subtitles. Both the generated subtitles and the "official" ones. First I watched videos of BBC Earth, the show I had loved ever since I was a kid. Sir David's voice was easy to listen to too. Therefore, I had recalled the words even before they were uttered. Even if I heard/saw some new words , I could still guess their meanings due to the context and my knowledge of that field. (and most of the time, they were correct/close 😅). Then when my vocabulary got better, I watched different shows. Different contents. I started to read comments. I started to know about slang and memes 😅 It kept snowballing until I was confident enough to comment my own opinions. 😅 That's it. My speaking still sucks, but at least my writing, reading and listening skills is useable

[@thesahel7218]

There are a lot of horror stories about the internet but this is a certified wholesome moment. There really is quality information online even though it may be hard to find

[@GeneralKenobi69420]

People will literally become world champions watching KZbin and my "damn kids these days" boomer dad will still think the entirety of KZbin is "pointless" and "stupid" despite not having watched a single video ever but will happily watch TLC all day

[@bleeka325]

Agreed. My mama is always turning her face up when I say I get info from the internet. There is so much knowledge on the internet.

[@annoswet1576]

@@bleeka325and so much misinfo. Doubleedge as usual

[@johon127]

@@annoswet1576 i mean the tv is only misinformation so atleast with the internet you are 50/50

[@ictogon]

Big difference between doing research and seeking information rather than mindlessly watching Mr beast slop like youtube pushes you to do

[@annoswet1576]

@@johon127 lmao

[@yymediaprod]

It's strange to say this KZbin is a good coaching platform, learned so much from watching videos but for a national champion and Sliver Olympic medalist...... total madness 😂 *forgot about him being a World champion too 👏🏾

[@thecashier930]

I disagree a bit. I don't think KZbin is a good coaching platform, it's a good learning platform for those who can coach themselfes. If you want you can educate yourself on pretty much any topic to surprising depths and from tons of different angles on KZbin. The challenge is just that you are able to sort out the crap and fuse the good bits together so it works well.

[@yymediaprod]

@@thecashier930 I understand, it really depends on many factors like skill set, experience and knowledge etc. It's not the best option but it's not a bad option IMO

[@Algorithmicgeneratedwordsalad]

Back when KZbin was still kind of wholesome and you can find what you were actually looking for before they broke it with the algorithm

[@Cheeseboiger]

This is somewhat relatable, I’m a soccer defender and I honestly sucked. I started watching KZbin videos, doing Pinterest practices and I’m playing at a professional club! (youth devision) These videos got me really far and I’m extremely happy I started watching them.

[@KashNoK]

thats actually awesome dude! I used to only play goalkeeper since I was the fat kid and everytime I played as an outfield player like in defense or midfield I completely sucked at it because I didn't learn any of the necessary skills, only goalkeeping skills. Fed up, I watched KZbin vids on dribbling, pressing, passing etc. and now I'm actually decent as a wingback :D

[@ehkbv]

whats pinterest practice?

[@Cheeseboiger]

@@ehkbv it’s basically ideas for soccer practice, and some are doable for 1 person so I did those

[@Collapse1221]

yooo share me some links brother, i suck at defender rn and its the only role i can play

[@GDNachoo]

come to salus

[@mikewayne8902]

Those people standing on the field got 1000x more trust in his aim than i would lmfao.

[@vivsevs1087]

goddamn they were running so close to it too

[@aguyfromnewzealand3392]

I love this story! I'd heard that years ago. Crazy stat about Kenya men's marathon having 30 of the top 50 fastest all times! For comparison America has 23 of the top 50 men's 100m all time!

[@cubest817]

I’m trying to train myself for 100 meters just by KZbin and this video encourage me.

[@SirMatthew]

People always underestimate just how much we can learn simply by watching others do things

[@mapple558]

Make this man a movie, he literally throwed sticks in his childhood, it's perfect

[@dooby1445]

I’ve learned most of what I know about cars off of KZbin videos, articles, and forum posts. Recently just built a wiring harness and tuning my engine myself on an ECU I assembled (Speeduino). Now I’m prepping to swap a different drive train into my 87 MR2. It’s amazing what you can do with the access to information.

[@MatschinHandstand]

Its not about the coach always, its about the determination and how much you like what you do :)

[@erwannthietart3602]

Well the coach plays a great part too. But in order for the coach to teach well, the one taught needs to have determination and love to do his thing indeed ^^

[@JimmyKim-fb1ji]

@@erwannthietart3602you don’t need a coach if you know what your doing, but most athletes don’t know what training is the best so they get a coach

[@SoliseLeili]

Stories like these make me go crazy. Props to all athletes going the impossible possible

[@ahoj4480]

I am not saying you should trust everything u see on youtube, but the fact it holds infinite amount of knowledge is true

[@psymar]

Unlimited knowledge, unlimited bullshit. The key is telling them apart.

[@seabss1272]

Thank you for sharing his story

[@ThatOneAmpharos]

ive been saying this to myself for years, youtube and reddit are the best things and only things you need to learn any skill

[@teinmeizeshi5209]

Well, best teachers are those who teach with passion, and it just so happens, most YT videos are passion projects.

[@mikrikbell]

I learned how to solder. I learned how to clean, repair and upgrade every xbox and playstation console since the 360 and PS2. These skills and a few more I've learned entirely through KZbin

[@MNC2k]

Love this!

[@francesco5254]

I will use this video to learn Javelin. We gonna get this world record guys

[@ambiguous8661]

4:41 holy crup look at that wind explodion sweat pact effect, so real life is not like anime but,a anime is like real life daaaang.

[@nilsify]

Thank you for sharing his story! I would have never known about him if it wasn't for you!

[@clarkecorvo2692]

dude had a dream and made it work with what he had, nothing but respect!

[@wallysworst]

this man's an inspiration

[@-humsafar]

Mad Respect brother❤

[@BingoGo2Space]

Almost every course I choose to study from KZbin end up making me the top of the class. KZbin indeed is a good place to learn.

[@ricey6667]

Good vid, glad to have watched!

[@Pluzzie]

Big hand of applause to this guy for making it in the top league 👏👏👏 humble beginnings

[@elpred0]

Amazing history!

[@linked3]

this is so inspiring

[@RDd188]

No Excuse. Just pushing all the way through the resistance. What an inspiration.

[@UzzyT.]

The fact KZbin hasn’t sponsored this man just show what they’re like.

[@Alphoric]

The good thing about javelin is his improvements can be measured unlike most sports. How good you are is quantifiable so KZbin works as long as he’s improving then it must work

[@b.l.a.c.k.s.t.a.r]

I taught myself how to build computers through KZbin, it's basically like an alternative to going to the library imo

[@Fetlet]

nice video man. amazing quality

[@allahlesboslu2_9]

Inspiring story ♥️ but a big part in his success is ofc his discipline

[@johnnymeansii]

Just shows how information is the most powerful thing you can have.

[@MRTatsaa]

Hope this video goes viral.

[@kittyvlekkie]

seriously, you can teach yourself so much

[@gdvortex2169]

Wow it was unexpected that the 92.72 meter throw clip was a clip from Yle TV2. Pleasant surprise to hear my own language on the internet every now and then

[@padaddadada5417]

Thank you KZbin , even if you are trash these time thank you this video is truly wholesome

[@sportingdirector1]

He's a king for learning from KZbin

[@CarlosAM1]

Great video, and yup, pretty much. You can learn a lot of stuff with only youtube, pretty much anything, however only if you put in enough hard work and discipline to truly do so.

[@luffydobrasil1758]

awesome, also... more videos my man!

[@Izuky_]

As a self-taught Nunchaku Freestyle competitor i respect and admire how far this guy went. I started to learn Nunchaku Freestyle like 3 or 4 years ago through KZbin videos, and since then i did rank 4 in 2022 FNF World Cup and rank 11 on 2023, still looking for the win... I also won the 2023 Nunchaku Indian Freestyle Nunchaku Tournament , the Nunchaku Frestyle Grand Prix 2022, the 2022 Chux Off and the 2023 North American Nunchaku tournament... The sad part is that Nunchaku Freestyle is still very new, and not really popular, so it's hard to get clients to teach, or shows taking me seriously since i started my Freestyle Academy... I never had newspapers looking for me, never had an article about how i'm trying to get my country to the top, just the joy of seeing my name in the top next to the guys i admire...♥ I really hope this year will give me a bit more rewards for the efforts i made to get here... And i wish you all the same ♥.

[@crashh-course]

im proud of you, that's really impressive!! 💗

[@Izuky_]

@@crashh-course Since i really have almost no recogntion, thank you from the botom of my heart, i hope you have a wonderfull 2024 ♥♥

[@alexben04]

good work, dude!

[@Izuky_]

@@alexben04 Thank you man ❤❤❤ Happy new year bro 🙏🙏

[@develrandomdankmemes7586]

awesome!

[@LisaSoulLevelHealing]

Amazing

[@finlayhutchinson7370]

amazing

[@Cadexa]

You deserve 100k subscribers

[@mattbphotograph8973]

Thats Dope, smart guy.

[@mattbphotograph8973]

Jesus of Nazareth, The Messiah, died for the remission of sin, including yours, was buried and rose from the dead on the third day, and whoever believes on him has everlasting life in heaven. Jesus himself said in John 6:47 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life."

[@dan_kay]

I love these stories. Friendly people on KZbin taught me how to play the guitar. Today, I can play my favorite rock and metal songs from end to finish and lower the property value in my direct neighborhood at the same time :)

[@dasmensch2317]

Crazy much respect to hin

[@bayuarga4261]

2:18 proof that cameramen never dies being that close to get hit by the javeline

[@spadeespada9432]

Education is about what you put into it.

[@9xqspx6]

Inspiring

[@MrChriscraft18]

No coach ? No problem !! IWhat an incredible and inspiring journey

[@rainbowGZUS7]

About 15 years ago i used youtube to learn how to solve a rubix cube. Thanks Dan Brown! I wonder if that guy still has a channel...

[@louiejaytabuena262]

this guy inspired me to train shot-put throw and discuss on my own without a coach, using only youtube

[@user-je3cr1wr4k]

love

[@qawiemmt]

good man! i learn cooking from youtube too and now it is my professional profesion. thank you youtube!!

[@hedhuntervizo6749]

Legend

[@Ken_neThT]

This guy just proves valid the reason why the Internet was invented

[@gazeboist4535]

Reminds me of the stories about the 1900 Paris games, where medals went to random tourists who just happened to be in town and felt like joining in.

[@alZiiHardstylez]

Gotta love the underdog

[@khaasumi]

you're really underrated.

[@Zanthorr]

Musicians and mechanics unite!

[@u_s_e_rname]

Solid vid bro

[@m.p.2005]

I'm no Olympic sports person, but I genuinely learned to swim and the freestyle swimming style from youtube lol

[@Phosypha]

A diamond is still a diamond no matter how you polish it

[@ChildrenOfDesire]

Ina

[@FalloutUrMum]

Imagine your job being the guy who's supposed to try and run ahead of the Javelin

[@omer8141leo]

so cool tbh

[@ashraf7242]

Hero

[@athunderfan]

This is going to start happening more often and in multiple sports. Im sure the next generation of athletes will cite youtube very often as places where they did the most learning.

[@333dog]

Oh wow so few views… just realized… everyone leave a like this is a great video!

[@MK-we9sw]

I learned how to replace my hard drive on KZbin 😂

[@lamp7746]

Learn how to make a million dollars

[@MK-we9sw]

@@lamp7746 did you learn how to make a million dollars?

[@lamp7746]

@@MK-we9sw I don’t need to buy happiness I’m happy as is

[@MK-we9sw]

@@lamp7746 so why are you telling me to go learn how to make a million dollars?

[@lamp7746]

@@MK-we9sw it might buy you happiness

[@crashh-course]

WOOO KENYAN MENTIONED 💗💗💗

[@HittokiriBattousai17]

I was talking about this with a friend of mine the other day and he agreed with me: we've learned (or re-learned) some things in KZbin better than when we initially found about them in school. And it's just sad to understand that a 10 minute KZbin video could be better than 15 to 25 years of education.

[@quincyileh3250]

Many countries spend billions on training and this young man trained himself , just to show you we Africans can survive

[@Baltazar009]

This would be good story for movie.

[@aguyfromnewzealand3392]

Funny seeing kiwi legend Javelin thrower Stuart Farquar! I roomed with him in secondary school nationals in Wellington back in 1999 lol. He had a slightly better career than I did

[@JumpmanTF]

Thats crazy! Dude was an incredible thrower. Its a shame he was a bit before me never saw him throw in person!

[@1v1.EDITTS]

KZbin is a useful tool. Sometimes i dont get what my teacher is explaining, because its not straight forward. So i searched them up on youtube to leanr them better. It worked wonders. You can really learn mostt things on youtube. I learned some coding from KZbin too.

[@HeebieJeeBee]

My man

[@CYI3ERPUNK]

YOU"RE GODDAMN RIGHT

[@EnglishLearning-cj4sg]

KZbin is the best place to learn almost everything such as English which I am learning nowadays, and the most amazing thing is that it's totally free🗿❤

[@xscwens4840]

Im subscribed.. ❤

[@tiexiaowang7939]

Shocked that YT has yet to make a promo with him

[@notliya]

crazyy

[@asianpersuasion4901]

I feel a sport like this can (literally) be carried by the wind...