Eliud Kipchoge Retains Marathon Title as He Cruises to Tokyo Olympics Victory

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World record holder Eliud Kipchoge won his second consecutive Olympics title in the men’s marathon at the Tokyo Olympic Games in Japan.

Kipchoge crossed the finish line in Sapporo Odori Park in a time of 2.08.38, followed by the Netherlands’ Abdi Nageeye, who clocked 2:09.58 to take the silver medal while Belgium’s Bashir Abdi timed 2:10.00 to take home bronze. Another Kenyan, Lawrence Cherono, finished fourth in a time of 2:10.02.

The 36-year-old is the world record holder in the marathon with a time of 2:01:39, set during the 2018 Berlin Marathon.

Taking to social media on Sunday, 8th August, Kipchoge said: “The Olympic dream is a special dream. For every athlete here, it has taken a lifetime of preparation to get to this point. Today, I lived my Olympic dream. I always say that sport is like life, whereby you can win and lose. But today was a day where I won,” Kipchoge tweeted.

“I can say I successfully defended my Olympic title. I want to say thanks to the people of Japan and the Olympic organisation for an incredible job in making these Olympics happen. A running world is a happy world. #NoHumanIsLimited.”

With this win, Kipchoge joins the list of runners who have successfully defended their Olympic marathon titles. Others are Ethiopia’s Abebe Bikila (1960 and 1964) and the former East Germany’s Waldemar Cierpinski (1976 and 1980).

Kipchoge’s two marathon golds also go along with his silver and bronze earned in the 5,000 metres at the 2008 and 2004 Olympics, respectively.

In over eight years, Kipchoge has run 17 marathon races in which he has only lost twice.

His victory earns Kenya its fourth gold medal of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and its 10th medal overall.

The post Eliud Kipchoge Retains Marathon Title as He Cruises to Tokyo Olympics Victory appeared first on LitKenya.

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