Eliud Kipchoge

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Kipchoge claimed his first individual world championship title in 2003 by winning the junior race at the World Cross Country Championships and setting a world junior record for the 5000 m. At age eighteen, he became the senior 5000 m world champion at the 2003 World Championships with a championship record, then followed by an Olympic bronze for Kenya in 2004 and a bronze at the 2006 World Indoor Championships. A five-time World Championship 5000 m finalist, he took silver medals at the 2007 World Championships, 2008 Beijing Olympics, and 2010 Commonwealth Games. He switched to road running in 2012 and made the second-fastest half marathon debut ever, at 59:25. In his marathon debut, he won the 2013 Hamburg Marathon in a course record time. His first victory at a World Marathon Major came at the Chicago Marathon in 2014, and he went on to become series champion a record five times – for 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022. He has won the London Marathon a record four times and also holds the record for most Berlin Marathon wins with five, his latest coming in September 2023. With 15 victories in his first 18 marathons from 2013 to 2023, his only losses were a second-place finish behind Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich at the 2013 Berlin Marathon, where Kipsang broke the world record; an eighth-place finish at the 2020 London Marathon and a sixth place in his debut at the Boston Marathon in 2023. He has since 2024, been defeated in his last three marathons. Kipchoge's last world record run broke by 30 seconds his own 2018 world record, which was in turn a 78-second improvement over the existing best, the greatest improvement in a marathon world record time since 1967. On 12 October 2019, Kipchoge ran the marathon distance for the Ineos 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, achieving a time of 1:59:40.2, becoming the first person in recorded history to do a sub-two-hour marathon. The run did not count as a new marathon record, as he ran with specialized shoes, standard competition rules for pacing and fluids were not followed, and it was not an open event. Kipchoge was appointed Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart by former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on 20 October 2019 in recognition of his sub-two-hour marathon. He was also named the 2019 BBC World Sport Star of the Year. In 2023 he was awarded the Princess of Asturias Award in the category 'Sports'.

Reader's Guide

Eliud Kipchoge's significance lies in his dominance of the marathon and his role in pushing the boundaries of human endurance. His 2019 sub-two-hour marathon, though unofficial, demonstrated what was previously considered impossible. His world record in 2018 and its subsequent improvement in 2022 represented the greatest leap in marathon record times since 1967. Kipchoge's career also highlights a successful transition from track to road running, winning multiple World Marathon Major titles and Olympic golds. His legacy is marked by consistency—15 wins in his first 18 marathons—and by his status as a symbol of Kenyan distance running excellence. The online threats he faced after Kelvin Kiptum's death in 2024 underscore the pressures outside competition. Kipchoge's achievements have been recognized with national honors and international awards, cementing his place in sports history.

Did You Know?

• Kipchoge set a world junior record in the 5000 m at the 2003 Bislett Games, running 12:52.61, which stood until 2012.
• He won the 2013 Hamburg Marathon in his marathon debut with a time of 2:05:30, a course record.
• On 12 October 2019, Kipchoge became the first person in recorded history to run a sub-two-hour marathon, with a time of 1:59:40.2 in Vienna.
• Kipchoge was appointed Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart by former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on 20 October 2019.
• He was awarded the Princess of Asturias Award in the category 'Sports' in 2023.