Kenya’s Kipchoge cements legacy as greatest marathon runner

Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya crosses the finish line to win gold 

TOKYO (Reuters): About 30 kilometres into the men’s marathon in Sapporo on Sunday, Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge pulled away from the pack and began running his own race, chasing immortality.

Kipchoge looked like a man determined to run towards his legacy of greatness. He took a peek behind him at one point and there was no one there. He was all alone – the greatest marathon runner in history and one of the greatest Olympians.

“I wanted to create a space to show the world that this is a beautiful race,” Kipchoge said after winning Gold. He began to smile as marathon-mad Japanese fans, who defied Olympic organisers’ request to stay away due to COVID-19, lined up the streets of Sapporo and cheered him on to the finish line. Kipchoge was about to become only the third person ever to retain their Olympic marathon title, and cement his legacy. Smiling was his way of enjoying the race, he said later.

“That smile is the happiness,” he said. He waved at the fans as he came through the tape, slapped his chest and pumped his fist into the air. “I have fulfilled the legacy by winning the marathon for the second time, back-to-back. I hope now to help inspire the next generation,” he said.

Doubts crept in about his ability to retain the Olympic title he won five years ago in Rio de Janeiro, after he suffered a rare defeat in October’s London marathon.

The 36-year-old had previously won 10 straight races and his eighth-place finish sparked rumblings that he may have started to fade. He allayed those concerns after a win in the Netherlands in April. And after his victory on Sunday, in what could be his last Olympic Games, any questions about his abilities were put to rest.

He clocked 2:08:38 to win the race, and now holds two of the top five fastest times ever posted in Olympic marathons.

Kipchoge said last month that winning this Gold medal would be his greatest achievement – a big statement for an athlete who already has an Olympic Gold, holds the world record and is the only man to have ever run the marathon in under two hours.

“Today I lived my Olympic dream,” he said. “I always say that sport is like life, whereby you can win and lose. But today was a day where I won and get to say I successfully defended my Olympic title.”