Running News Daily

What is Eliud Kipchoge secrets for being one of the best runners in the world ever

Consistency, self-discipline and hard work are the ingredients that made him retain the World Athletics Male Athlete of the Year title, Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge said on Sunday.

The world marathon record holder, who tuned 35 on November 5, edged out four other contestants to retain the award during the World Athletics gala in Monaco on Saturday night.

Kipchoge, who was not at the gala but accepted the accolade in a telecast interview, won the London Marathon on April 28 in a course record of two hours, two minutes and 37 seconds.

It was Kipchoge’s fourth victory in London, having staged similar exploits in 2015 (2:04:42), 2016 (2:03:05) and 2018 (2:04:17).

However, what perhaps engrossed the world was when he made history as the first man to run a marathon under two honors, completing the “Ineos 1:59 Challenge” in 1:59:40.2 on October 12 in Vienna, Austria.

This was the second time Kipchoge, the 2016 Rio Olympic Games marathon champion, was attempting to run a marathon under two hours, having fallen short by 26 seconds during the Nike Breaking2 on May 6, 2017, in Monza, Italy.

“Consistency is the key in sport while self-discipline is the mother and father of not only sports but any other undertaking,” said Kipchoge. “Working hard is recognizable in the world of sports.”

The athlete said that breaking the two-hour barrier was the true inspiration to the generation, what with 500 million people having watched the race live in the duration of 1:59.40.

“One billion people had watched by the end of the day on October 12. It goes further to affirm that no human is limited. It was truly historic for me since I’m sure I’ve helped some people kick out the limitations in their mind to achieve what they had deemed impossible,” he said.