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"By now, you've probably seen the incredible YouTube footage from a track and field meet in Kenya. To the backdrop of bouncy music, two contestants \u2014 one of them barefoot \u2014 take turns gaining momentum before clearing an impossibly tall high jump bar then landing without mats in front of a cheering crowd. \nIn the aptly-titled \"Kenyan High School High Jump,\" the combination of athleticism, unglamorous surroundings and mystery is pretty awe-inspiring. The video has garnered more than 2 million views in eight days online and been featured on sports and news sites worldwide. Here's how it reached your computer screen. \nSEE ALSO: Can Viral Sports Videos Give Kenyan Orphans a Better Future?\n\nMichael Stewart spent the first three months of this year working in Kenya's Great Rift Valley for a Canadian NGO called Run for Life, which primarily uses running to promote education and job skills at schools around the world. It was during that time that he shot the high jump video while attending a track meet outside the town of Mosoriot. But he didn't expect it to go viral; his most-viewed video has second most-watched YouTube video has accrued just over 1,100 views. \nWhile \"Kenyan High School High Jump\" has blown minds around the web, Stewart said it didn't stand out from much of what he saw in Kenya \u2014 despite the fact that these athletes land on their feet after clearing a bar he said was raised to just over six feet. \n\"This is pretty standard stuff for this race, \" Stewart told Mashable in an email. \"Many of the runners ran insane times at this high school meet as well.\"\nThat's likely because many of the world's greatest track athletes come from the Great Rift Valley \u2014 and, more specifically, the Kalenjin tribe that Stewart lived with. The Kalenjin tribe is known for producing world-class distance runners. As the only white person in town for much of his time in Kenya, Stewart wrote in his email to Mashable, he had a firsthand look at the origins of that success. \n\"The guys who train here are serious,\" he wrote. \"They run every day, excluding Sundays. They start with a 6 a.m. run, and often do a workout at 10 a.m. followed by a third run at 5 p.m.\"    \nNow, Stewart hopes the surprising success of his video from the Kenyan high school can help raise money and support for athletes like the ones who star in the clip. To learn more about how you can help, check out Stewart's Facebook page or the Run for Life website. \nHomepage image courtesy of Michael Stewart via YouTube"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/05/31/kenyan-high-school-high-jump/>