What a career it’s been for Eliud Kipchoge.
The Kenyan runner, the greatest marathoner of all time, ran his final marathon major this Sunday at the New York City Marathon. He finished 17th.
His storied career
could be best defined as a two-time Olympic champion, winning the gold medal in 2016 and 2020 Games after changing disciplines from the 5K.
He was also the subject of a unique experiment: the Ineos 1:59 challenge to run a marathon in under 2 hours – a feat that’s never been done before. Kipchoge finished the 2019 run in 1:59:40, although the greater running authorities do not officially recognise it as a record because of how the event was structured.
He also won 11 World Marathon majors (one in Chicago, one in Tokyo, four in London and five in Berlin) in an astonishing accomplishment.
Kipchoge is also an incredible sportsman, and it was a richly deserving send-off he received in New York.
If you’ve never followed running but feel like you might’ve heard the name Eliud Kipchoge somewhere, maybe it’s because you might remember his visit to Tottenham Hotspur in 2018.
Kipchoge visited the Spurs training centre during the Victor Wanyama era shortly after he won the London Marathon. It was fun to see the two Kenyans have a chance to connect at the time.
What’s next for Kipchoge? The Kenyan marathoner said his next goal is to run seven marathons on all seven continents over the next two years, which he is calling the “Eliud Kipchoge World Tour”. Kipchoge said that he intends to “unite the world through running”, with each stop on the world tour raising funds for his foundation that supports education and environmental projects.
No idea yet on which of these marathons Kipchoge decides to run, but I’ll be watching closely.
Fitzie’s track of the day: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, by The Beatles
And now for your links:
The Athletic ($$): “Micky van de Ven and a goal like no other: ‘It was Messi transformed into a centre-back’”
BBC: “Spurs support Udogie after alleged gun threat”
The Independent: “Red card and wondergoal sum up best and worst of Tottenham in Thomas Frank rebuild”
Alasdair Gold: “Thomas Frank hits back at Jamie Carragher and explains why Micky van de Ven is like Lionel Messi”
Express & Star: “’I take responsibility … we’ve lost too many games’ – Ryan Mason owns up to struggling West Brom goal-shy form”
