Double Olympic champion and marathon great Eliud Kipchoge has announced his retirement from Olympic Marathon following his shocking defeat in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Kipchoge made the announcement on August 10, 2024, while speaking to Olympics.com where he said that he will not compete in any other Olympic Games after a surprising and disappointing performance at Paris 2024.
For the first time in his illustrious career, Kipchoge failed to finish a marathon race, a moment that has left fans and sports enthusiasts around the world in shock.
On whether he would attempt another Olympic race at Los Angeles 2028, Kipchoge said, “You will see me in a different way, maybe giving people motivation, but I will not run.”
“I don’t know what next. I need to go back [home], sit down, try to figure my 21 years of running at high level. I need to evolve and feature in other things.”
However, the Marathon great said that the defeat wouldn’t stop him from pursuing marathon running that began 11 years ago.
Also Read: Kipchoge Breaks Silence After Missing Out on Paris Olympic Podium
“It is a difficult time for me,” he admitted after dropping out just after the 30km mark after an hour and about 40 seconds of running, with a discomfort around his waist.
Kipchoge on Retirement
Back in April, Kipchoge had addressed questions about his retirement plans while speaking in Paris during a soft launch event of the 2024 Nike Olympic kit.
The marathon great back then said that the idea of retirement had not crossed his mind yet, adding that he expected to make history with his third consecutive Olympic marathon gold medal at this year’s sporting showdown.
“My huge expectation actually is to win the Olympics for the third time. If you can convince me that the moment, I will be crossing the finishing line the whole world has become a running world then I will retire,” said Kipchoge.
Also Read: Kipchoge Gets Emotional While Narrating Threats He Received After Kiptum’s Death
Eliud turns 40 in November and on Saturday recorded one of his worst performances when he failed to finish a marathon race.
Also, the double-Olympic champion finished 10th at the Tokyo Marathon in March.
In his crowning achievement, Kipchoge became the first person to cover the 42.2km marathon distance in under two hours in Vienna at the INEOS Challenge though the record was unofficial.
He shattered barriers by completing a marathon in an astonishing 1:59:06n time, marking the first sub-two-hour marathon in history.
Additionally, Kipchoge holds the record for the most wins at the Berlin Marathon which he has won in five editions including his latest one in September 2023.
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