Eliud Kipchoge during his world record run in Berlin in 2018 Photo: picture alliance/AP Photo
By Ulrike Krieger
It was a mishap that made him famous. In 2015, Eliud Kipchoge (37) lost the insole of his shoe at the BMW Berlin Marathon.
In the meantime, the Kenyan has become the greatest marathon runner of all time – twice Olympic champion, world champion and world record holder (2:01.39 hours) over the 42.195 kilometers.
On Sunday (9.15 a.m., rbb) the superstar will be at the starting line for the fifth time at the Berlin Marathon (winner 2015, 2017 and 2018). And says: “I think I will leave Berlin a happy person again. Here you can push your limits and achieve great things.”
Eliud Kipchoge on Friday at the press conference in the Hotel InterContinental Berlin Photo: picture alliance / Andreas Gora
Is that a world record attempt with an announcement? Kipchoge doesn’t let his cards be looked at: “I’ve trained well and I expect a very good race from myself.” And adds: “I want to inspire people and if a course record comes out at the end, I’d be happy.” A course record in Berlin would be a world record, but Kipchoge didn’t want to say the word.
Guye Adola (31/Ethiopia) will be Kipchoge’s biggest competitor. The best German at the start is Johannes Motschmann (28/SCC). Just six weeks after the European Championship marathon, he wants to beat his best time of 2:12:18 hours.