Who is Eliud Kipchoge?

Eliud Kipchoge is a Kenyan marathon runner who has beaten his own world record at the Berlin Marathon by covering the 26 mile distance in 2:01:09 hours, which is thirty seconds lesser than the record he had set in the German capital four years ago. The 37-year-old Kipchoge is a two-time Olympic champion is only the third man in the history of the sport to have defended his Olympic gold medal.

Who is Eliud Kipchoge?

Eliud Kipchoge was born in 

Kapsisiywa, in Kenya’s Nandi County, on November 5, 1984. Kipchoge, who graduated from Kaptel Secondary School, ran 2 kilometres every day to the institution. Since he was 16, Kipchoge was trained by Patrick Sang, who is a former Olympic medallist himself.

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In the 2002 World Cross Country Championships, Kipchoge won gold with the Kenyan junior team while he himself came fifth in the individual event. The world record holder has participated in 11 World Marathon Major events till date, winning gold in 10 of them. 

Kipchoge’s performances in multi-sport events has also been spectacular. He won gold at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. At the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, the Kenyan international bagged silver. Before venturing into marathon, Kipchoge participated in the 5000m race at the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning bronze and silver, respectively.

At the World Athletic Championships’ 5000m event, the record holder won gold in Paris in 2003 and silver in Osaka in 2007. While his personal best record in marathons was scripted at Berlin on September 25, 2022, his 5000m best was 12:46.53, which he clocked at Rome in 2004. 

At the Berlin Marathon, Kipchoge was an unstoppable force, finishing his run four minutes and 49 seconds ahead of the runner-up, Mark Korir, who is also a Kenyan. Ethiopian Tadu Abate finished third.