The current world record holder Marathon Kelvin Kiptum and his coach Gervais Hakizimana died in car accident on Sunday night outside the Rift Valley town of Eldoret, its police confirmed Kenya. The 24-year-old Kenyan sportsman, who was driving a Toyota Premio, and his coach died at the scene of the collision, Elgeyo Marakwet County Police Commander Peter Mulinge told CNN.
A third passenger survived with serious injuries, Mulinge added.
“He lost control, left the road, went into a 60-meter ditch and hit a big tree,” Mulinge said. The accident happened around 11 pm. Local time.
His world record Kelvin Kiptum in the marathon 2:00:35 set at the Chicago Marathon last October was validated a few days ago by World Athletics. He had only switched to the marathon from shorter distance races a year before setting this record pace. He improved his personal best time by 50 seconds to smash the record of 2:01:09 set by Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge, widely regarded as the greatest marathoner of all time. Kiptum is widely believed to be Kipchoge's successor and a possible candidate to run the marathon in under 2 hours.
Hakizimana, 36, was a former professional athlete from Rwanda who competed in events ranging from the 5,000 meters to the half marathon.
“Tragic loss for Marathon”
The entire world of athletics and long distance running paid tribute and mourned the loss of such an athlete at the peak of his career. World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said Kiptoum was “an incredible athlete who left an incredible legacy, he will be greatly missed”.
“We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn of his tragic loss Kelvin Kiptum and his coach of, Gervais Hakizimana,” said Coe. “On behalf of all of World Athletics, we send our deepest condolences to their families, friends, teammates and the nation of Kenya.”
Coe added that, “it was only earlier this week in Chicago, the place where Kelvin set his outstanding marathon world record, that I was able to officially validate his historic moment,” reports the CNN.
Kiptum's manager Bob Verbeeck described the athlete as a “dear friend”.
“On behalf of all our colleagues and his friends at Golazo (Management Group), we send our deepest condolences to their families, friends and everyone in the sports family,” Verbeeck said in a statement. Messages of condolence were also posted on Kiptum's official Instagram account following the news of death of.
London Marathon organizers shared a message on X. “We are shocked and deeply saddened. The thoughts of everyone at the TCS London Marathon are with the family and friends of Kelvin and Gervais.” Kiptum's loss would be felt in Chicago, said Carey Pinkowski, Executive Race Director, Bank of America Chicago Marathon, where Kipton made history in 2023.
“Kelvin was an athlete of a new generation at the beginning of his career,” Pinkowski said. “While he will be remembered for his record-breaking performances, I will remember him as an incredible talent and an even more wonderful person.” “We were lucky to witness his greatness on the streets of Chicago,” he added. “The sport of marathon running has suffered a tragic loss.”
Source: News Beast
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