The running world is in shock: 24-year-old Kelvin Kiptum died this weekend in a car accident in Kenya. Kiptum, who made his marathon debut in 2022, won major races such as Valencia, London and Chicago and at the latter also broke Kipchoge’s world record by finishing in 2:00:35, which was seen as perhaps the biggest breakthrough within the marathon world.
Kiptum was on his way from Paktaget to Eldoret (Kenya, ed.) yesterday when his car went off the road and crashed into a tree. Kiptum himself was behind the wheel, but his coach Gervais Hakizimana also died. A third occupant sustained serious injuries, Kenya’s sports minister announced.
In April, Kiptum was about to start at the Rotterdam Marathon in The Netherlands. There he planned to attack his own world record.
