Kipchoge criticized for not congratulating Kiptum

Many Kenyan fans have questioned Eliud Kipchoge's silence after his countryman Kelvin Kiptum overtook him for the world marathon record.

"Many Kenyans are waiting for Kipchoge to publicly congratulate his junior Kiptum as a show of sportsmanship and national spirit," wrote Kenya Citizen Digital news site .

However, the 38-year-old runner remained silent and had no action on social media as of October 11, three days after the 2023 Chicago Marathon. On October 12, Kipchoge posted on his X account - a social network formerly known as Twitter - posting photos of him interacting with fans at an event in China.

Kipchoge's latest post on X. Screenshot — Kipchoge's latest post on X. *Screenshot*

Kipchoge only changed his Instagram bio after Kiptum set the world record in Chicago. Before the race, Kipchoge's Instagram bio read "1:59:40 | 2:01:09 WR | 2-time Olympic Champion". After Kiptum set the record in Chicago, he removed the "2:01:09 WR" and changed his bio to "1:59:40 | 2-time Olympic Champion".

Of which, 1:59:40 is Kipchoge's achievement in the Ineos 1:59 event in Vienna, Austria in October 2019. At that time, the Kenyan runner became the first athlete to run a sub-2 marathon when reaching 1 hour 59 minutes 40 seconds. However, that achievement was not recognized by World Athletics as a record because the runner born in 1984 competed in controlled conditions, such as no opponents and a rotating team of pacers.

2:01:09 is 2 hours 1 minute 9 seconds - the old world record set by Kipchoge at the 2022 Berlin Marathon. The rest is Kipchoge's two Olympic gold medals, at Tokyo 2021 (2 hours 8 minutes 38 seconds) and Rio 2016 (2 hours 8 minutes 44 seconds).

Kipchoge's X self-introduction remains the same, although the acronym WR (World Record) is not written in front of 2:01:09.

Kipchoge's Instagram account has had his bio edited, removing the world record of 2 hours 1 minute 9 seconds. Screenshot — Kipchoge's Instagram account has had his bio edited, removing the world record of 2 hours 1 minute 9 seconds. *Screenshot*

Kipchoge's failure to congratulate his junior has drawn criticism on social media. "I haven't seen any posts from Kipchoge congratulating Kiptum for breaking a world record set by Kipchoge himself," commented @ItsMutai . "Why would Kipchoge do that, when he himself talks about pushing the limits? And Kiptum has pushed the limits, right?"

"A few days have passed and former world record holder Kipchoge still hasn't congratulated Kiptum for breaking the marathon world record," @Makiadi wrote with a disappointed expression.

Even in Kipchoge's latest post about his trip to China, many fans were also wondering why the former record holder had not congratulated Kiptum. "We are still waiting for you to congratulate the new record holder," wrote @FellMentKE . "What about congratulating Kiptum?" asked @abuyamasta . Many other comments also raised similar questions.

But others defended Kipchoge's reaction. "Leave Kipchoge alone! He's always been one of the greatest marathoners. There's no rule that says Kipchoge has to congratulate someone else for setting a record," Gathoni Wanjau said.

When Kiptum won the 2023 London Marathon in 2 hours, 1 minute and 25 seconds earlier this year, Kipchoge congratulated his junior. "I always say records are meant to be broken, and I hope Kiptum does it soon. He's a man with a big heart," the 38-year-old runner said at the time.

Kipchoge is widely considered the greatest marathoner of all time. He has won two Olympic marathon gold medals and 11 major championships, including four in London (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019), four in Berlin (2015, 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023), and once each in Chicago (2014) and Tokyo (2021). He has also broken the world record twice, with 2:01:09 at the 2022 Berlin Marathon and 2:01:39 also in Berlin in 2018, before Kipchoge won Chicago 2023 with 2:00:35.

Hong Duy

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