Eliud Kipchoge: Five things to know about legendary marathon runner

Eliud Kipchoge made history by completing a marathon in 1 hour 59 minutes 40 seconds in Vienna, Austria. The 34-year old Kenyan completed four laps around the Prater, a park in the center of the Austrian capital to set the record. Let's take a look at Kipchoge's achievements.

A Kenyan prodigy

Kipchoge was born on November 5, 1984, in the Nandi district of Kenya and was raised by a single mother also being the youngest of four children. At the age of 16, he met his trainer Patrick Sang and began his marathon career in 2001. In 2002, he was a part of the Kenyan team in the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Dublin. Kipchoge finished fifth in the individual race and was part of the Kenyan junior team that won gold. He won the juniors individual race at the Championship the following year in Switzerland.

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Olympic hero

In 2004, Kipchoge participated in the Olympics in the 5000m race winning a bronze medal in Athens. He followed it up with a silver in 2008 and a gold in 2012 editions of the Olympics held in Beijing and Rio de Janeiro respectively. He also has won a gold medal in the same category at the 2008 Commonwealth Games held in New Delhi, India.

Multiple record holder

Kipchoge has already set a world record for completing the 2018 Berlin Marathon in 2hr 1min and 39sec. He managed to break the previous record by a margin of 1min and 18sec. It was the greatest improvement in the marathon world record since 1987.

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Second time's the charm

Kipchoge has previously attempted the feat in the year 2017 in Monza, Italy. It was named as the 2017 Breaking2 Challenge. He famously missed the mark by just 25 seconds. Finally succeeding in the 2019 INEOS 1:59 Challenge and thereby beating his own marathon record.

Global star

Kipchoge, being the star he is, has endorsements with footwear giant, Nike. He also is the brand ambassador of Safaricom and Isuzu in Kenya. 

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Marathon Wins

Kipchoge has participated in 12 marathon events since 2013 and has won 11 of them, finishing second in one. He claimed a gold medal in his last marathon at the 2019 London Marathon. In total, he has won 17 gold medals while representing Kenya as well as an individual athlete.

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