dWorld marathon record holder Kelvin Kiptum has died, the Kenyan passed away at the age of 24 on Sunday night. car crash in his country of origin, relatives and the police confirmed, according to Kenyan media. The AP news agency also reported the death, citing an athlete friend.
“The accident occurred around 11 p.m. Three passengers were traveling in the vehicle, two of whom died instantly. The two are Kiptum and his trainer,” said Peter Mulinge, police commander in Elgeyo Marakwet, western Kenya. Kiptum was at the wheel of the car that arrived in Kaptaget, in the southwestern highlands, at around 11:00 p.m. local time. Kenya went off the highway, a region where many Kenyan long-distance runners train.
Coach Garvais Hakizimana also died
Also traveling in the vehicle were Kiptum's coach, Garvais Hakizimana, from Rwanda, and a companion. Hakizimana also died in the accident and the woman was seriously injured, according to police. There were no other vehicles involved. According to initial investigations, Kiptum lost control of the vehicle, left the road and crashed into a tree before ending up in a ditch 60 meters away, the Daily Nation newspaper quoted police representative Peter Mulinge as saying.
President of the World Athletics Federation Sebastian Coe He said he was “shocked and deeply saddened.” “An incredible athlete leaves an incredible legacy, he will be greatly missed,” the Briton (67), former member of the X, wrote on Twitter. Kenyan President William Ruto described Kiptum as having “left a mark.” “He was possibly one of the best athletes in the world, he broke barriers and set a marathon record,” Ruto wrote: “Kiptum was our future.”
Iconic runner Eliud Kipchoge reacted with dismay. The 39-year-old wrote on social media Monday that he was “deeply saddened by the tragic death” of his successor as marathon world record holder. His compatriot Kiptum was an athlete “who has a whole life ahead of him to achieve incredible greatness. I express my deepest condolences to his young family. May God comfort you during this difficult time.”
The news also shocked the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach. “It is with great sadness that I learned of the tragic death of world marathon record holder Kelvin Kiptum. “We were looking forward to welcoming him to the Olympic community at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and seeing what the world's fastest marathon runner can achieve,” Bach said in an IOC post on X.
Kiptum won the Chicago Marathon four months ago with a world record time of 2:00:35 hours. He improved Kipchoge's previous record by 34 seconds and became the first person to run an official marathon under 2:01:00 hours. Kiptum had barely completed his third marathon. According to the world association, he started running at 13 years old.
In Valencia in December 2022, Kiptum ran an unofficial debut world record of 2:01:53 hours, then sensationally won the London Marathon in 2:01:25 hours. The miracle runner immediately announced that he wanted to challenge the world record. He achieved it on October 8 in Chicago. At this year's Paris Summer Olympics, Kiptum, who did not compete for Kenya in any major international championships, was due to face his compatriot Kipchoge. Kiptum was considered a promising candidate to become the first person to surpass the magical two-hour mark under normal conditions.