Published on 08.02.2024
Former world marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge will make his third appearance in Japan on Sunday, March 3 with a bid to hunt for his third victory.
The first time Kipchoge ran a marathon in Japan was during the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games where he won his second successive Olympic marathon title. He then returned to the Japanese capital for the 2022 Tokyo Marathon where he also won the race in style.
He now returns to the same streets with the hope of bagging another title as he gears up for the Olympic Games where he intends to become the first man to win the Olympic title for the third time in a row.
He said, “Japanese people love running and their culture is instilled in running and they love marathons. You know it’s a good city and I can say it’s a marathon city.
“The first race in Japan was the Olympic Games where I won a gold medal and then I promised the Japanese people that I would be back for the Tokyo Marathon because I hadn’t run in the streets of Tokyo, we were running in Sapporo.
“Then I went back and won the Tokyo Marathon and it was a good event for my fans and in Japan. I’m looking to run fast and enjoy,” .
This will be Kipchoge’s 22nd marathon, with 18 wins so far including 11 Major Marathons. He has twice broken the world record, both times in Berlin, and in 2019 became the first runner in history to break the two-hour barrier as part of the INEOS 1:59 project in Vienna, running 1:59:40.
He also explained how winning his fifth Berlin Marathon title was a game changer and after the race, he took a break from running completely before resuming training late last year.
His time of 2:02:42 in Berlin means six of the ten fastest official marathons to ever have been run are by the Kenyan.
