- Kelvin Kiptum died in 2024 in a road accident which also caused the death of his coach Gervais Hakizimana, and saddened the world of athletics
- Shortly after his death, there were widespread allegations that marathon world record holder Eliud Kipchoge played a role in his death.
- After years of silence, Kipchoge, in a new video, addressed the false accusations and their impact on him and his family
A famous athlete Eliud Kipchoge has addressed the rumors surrounding him after the death of athlete Kelvin Kiptum who died along with his coach Gervais Hakizimana on February 11, 2024.
Source: Facebook
The 24-year-old Kenyan star lost control of his car, which veered off the road and hit a tree, killing him and his coach instantly while the third passenger survived with injuries.
His death came just days after his world record time of 2:00:35 was officially approved, ending his historic career that was expected to challenge the two-hour marathon barrier at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
While giving a speech on Engage, Kipchoge revealed that he was shocked when people claimed that he had anything to do with Kiptum’s death.
According to him, when he heard the news for the first time, he thought it was Kiptum from his village until they told him it was the famous athlete.
When she looked on social media, she was shocked at the things people were saying and left her heartbroken.
Source: Facebook
What did Eliud Kipchoge say about Kiptum’s death?
He added that his family was also facing many threats that forced him and his wife to change the way his children were going to school.
“I was very depressed. I was the oldest athlete in this country. I spent 23 years running, a relative had only spent three years running, how can I finish a young boy? I was threatened, my family was threatened. My boys used to ride bikes to school, we even changed and my wife started dropping them off at school because of threats in the area and in the whole community,” he said.
According to Kipchoge, people started referring to him as a finisher and that whenever he walked in town, people would run away from him in fear.
“A lot happened. What made me happy was that my boys didn’t know what was going on. My girl was in the fourth form at the time, a good thing for students they don’t carry phones, so she didn’t hear anything. One morning I received a call from my mother that a lot is happening and this too will pass, I didn’t know a 70-year-old woman could get all this from social media but she did,” he added.
Watch the video:
What is Kipchoge after?
After finishing 17th in the 2025 New York City Marathon, Kipchoge announced that he is transitioning from professional running to an international “World Tour”.
He revealed that he was planning to run marathons on all seven continents over the next two years, including a grueling race in Antarctica, to inspire people and bring the sport back.
This new phase of his career focuses on using running as a movement to support his foundation’s work in education and environmental conservation.
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