Described as the Greatest of All Time (GOAT), consistency in winning is inarguably the best description that Eliud Kipchoge has earned himself.
His accolades in the marathon world are no doubt unmatched.
For some, he is the lord of Marathons. For others, no one is close to this legend.
"In my opinion, no one can come close to Eliud Kipchoge (EK), he must be lonely up there, I am happy for him and he is my GOAT," Brian Odonga fan said.
Kipchoge earned the respect and admiration of the world when he beat the INEOS 1.59 challenge. He ran a 42-kilometre marathon in under two hours.
The event was specifically created for Kipchoge and held in Vienna, Austria, on 12 October 2019.
"I'm the happiest man. I'm feeling good. It's taken 65 years for a human being to make history. I have tried... It means no man is limited."
"The first kilometres were hard. It needs perseverance. I appreciate the 41 pacemakers volunteering to do the job. I want to tell Kenyans that anyone can step out of their cocoon," he said after finishing the Marathon at 1hr 59minutes and 40 seconds.
Kipchoge has won four major marathons, in London, Chicago, Berlin, and Tokyo.
In Berlin, he has won four out of five marathons, that is in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022.
In the 2022 marathon, he broke the world record again by clocking 2:01:09.
In the London marathons, Kipchoge won four times, in 2015, 2016, 2018, and 2019.
Kipchoge has two Olympic titles at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 in the men's marathon clocking 2:08:38.
Kipchoge's stellar career has, however, had its fair share of low moments.
Aged 37 years, Kipchoge has participated in 19 marathons, recording only two losses.
At the 2013 Berlin Marathon, Kipchoge lost to Wilson Kipsang becoming second in the race.
Another notable loss was the 2020 London marathon where he finished eighth.
Kipchoge attributed his 2020 dismal performance to a hearing problem he said he developed after running the first 25 kilometres of the race.
"My ear blocked and it couldn't open anymore, but this is how the sport is, we should accept defeat and focus on the winning next time. Thanks for the support,” he said.
In an interview with Reuters, Kipchoge said that he was disappointed about the loss, and had a cramp, he also experienced a problem with his hip in the last 15 km.
"I'm really disappointed. I had a problem with my right ear after it blocked, and then I really cramped and had problems with my hip for about the last 15 km. It's really cold but I don't blame the conditions and I'm still there to come back again," he said.
The loss came after he had just set a world record of being the first human to run a marathon in under two hours.
Edited by Bosco Marita
