Biography of Eliud Kipchoge [Age, Height, Wife, Kids, Family, Salary, Award & Net worth ]

Eliud Kipchoge is a Kenyan world record holder long-distance runner. With a record of 2:01:39 at the 2018 Berlin Marathon, Kipchoge set a world record by breaking the previous world record by 1 minute and 18 seconds.

With such performance and record, he has been given the title of “the greatest marathoner of the modern era.”

Eliud Kipchoge, the greatest marathoner of the modern era. 

At the young age of eighteen, in the 2003 Championships in Athletics, Kipchoge became the senior 5000 m world champion.

Before diving into the achievements and career journey of the renowned Eliud Kipchoge, here are some interesting quick facts.

Eliud Kipchoge: Quick Facts

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Eliud Kipchoge: Early Life

Kipchoge was born on 5 November 1894 in Kapsisiywa, Nandi County, in Kenya. He was born to Janet Rotich and had no memory of his father as he passed away when the runner was very young.

He was the youngest of five brothers and was raised by their mother, a nursery school teacher.

While on the way to school, Kipchoge used to run two miles daily, and later, in 1999, he graduated from Kaptel Secondary School.

At the age of 16, he met his trainer Patrick Sang, who guided him through his career in 2001.

Career

When Kipchoge was 17 years old, he won the Kenyan trials for the 2002 IAAF World Cross Country Championships junior race.

Similarly, he also came fifth in the World Cross Country Championship held in Dublin and was involved in the Kenyan junior team on gold.
At the 2003 Bislett Games, Eliud Kipchoge set a world junior record in the 5000m with a finished record of 12:52:61 minutes. Until 2012, his record stood as the world and African junior record.

In 2003, he won the gold medal at the 2003 World Championships, and he also won a bronze medal at the 5000 m final in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

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World Championships & Olympics

During the 2006 World Championships held in Moscow, he won the bronze medal in the 3000 meters.

At the New Year’s Eve 10 km road race, Eliud Kipchoge won the San Silvestre Vallecana in a time record of 26:54 minutes, beating his own record by 40 seconds.

Likewise, in the final of the 2007 World Championship held at Osaka, he won a silver medal at the 5000m race with a time of 13:46:00.

He won a silver medal in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, in the 500 m event with a time record of 13:02:80.

During the 2009 World Championships in Athletics, he could not reach the podium leading him to finish fifth. Similarly, he also came ninth in the 300 m at the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final.

Half Marathon Debut and World Records

With victory in the 5000 m Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix, Kipchoge debuted the 2010 IAAF Diamond League.

Later, he went on to participate in the Carlsbad 5000 in CA, USA. To participate in the Belgrade Race through History, he flew back to Europe. During the race, his shoe fell off, and after putting it back on, Kipchoge came second place.

Later, Kipchoge made his half marathon debut in the Lille Half Marathon with a new course record with a time of 59:25, which earned him third place.

With such a new record, he has been named the second-fastest Half Marathon debut. He also participated in the 2012 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships on 6 October 2012 in Kavarna, Bulgaria.

Eliud Kipchoge started his 2013 season with a victory in the Barcelona Half Marathon with a time record of one hour and four seconds.

In April, he made his debut, demonstrating a smooth transition to the longer distance winning the Hamburg Marathon title in a time of 2:05:30 hours, setting a new course record.

During the Berlin Marathon, he came second with a time record of 2:04:05, making the fifth-fastest time in history. This was one of the 11 world records set at the Berlin Marathon since 1977.

Rio Olympic Games

Kipchoge took part in the 2015 Ras al-Khaimah Half Marathon and came in sixth place with a time of 1:00:50.

He won the 2016 London Marathon for the second consecutive year with a record of 2:03:05. This performance broke the course record in London, making it the second-fastest marathon time in history.

Kipchoge in the Rio Olympics Games.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Eliud Kipchoge won a gold medal in the marathon event. On 21 August 2015, the last day of the Rio Olympics, he won the medal in a time of 2:08:44.

Despite winning the medal, the time record of 2:08:44 was Kipchoge’s slowest marathon time. With this victory, he became the second Kenyan male after Sammy Wanjiru to win an Olympic marathon gold medal.

IAAF World Athlete of the Year & Achievements

For the Nike Breaking2 project on the Monza Formula 1, Kipchoge and Zersenay Tadese, and Lelisa Desisa participated in the first sub-two-hour assisted marathon near Milan, Italy.

He also won the Berlin Marathon with a record of 2:03:32 in September 2017. After participating in the 2018 London Marathon, he won against various other well-known racers.

With a new time record of 2:01:39, Eliud Kipchoge won the 2018 Berlin Maraton, breaking the previous world record by 1 minute and 18 seconds.

Due to his outstanding performances in the 2018 season, he received numerous awards and accolades. That year, Kipchoge was honored as IAAF World Athlete of the Year.

Likewise, Eliud Kipchoge came first in the 2019 London Marathon with a time record of 2:02:37, making it the second-fastest marathon of all time.

Later, after the London Marathon, he participated in the Ineos 1:59 Challenge, the sub-two-hour marathon.

Guinness World Records recognized the achievement in this race with two different titles of ‘Fastest marathon distance (male)’ and ‘First marathon distance run under two hours.’

Similarly, he also took part in the 2020 London Marathon and came in 8th place with a time of 2:06:49.

While preparing for the 2021 Olympics on 18 April, Kipchoge won the Enschede Marathon in an airfield in the Netherlands.

Eyeing on the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics 2021

The world record holder Kenyan, Eliud Kipchoge is looking forward to running at the much delayed Tokyo Olympics 2021 and become the third man after Cierpinski and Ethiopian legend Abebe Bikila (1960, 1964) to win back-to-back Olympic marathon gold medals.

Kipchoge is all set to do his on 8th  August 2021 at the Tokyo Olympics Games men’s marathon which is going to take place in Sapporo.

Additionally, when asked if the race in Sapporo would be his last or not, Kipchoge replied,

“The end of my career will come automatically that’s for sure, that’s in front of my mind, but for now I still want to compete for more. Moreover,  I still want to go around the world and run, inspire people.”

Kipchoge added on with the disappointment he has with fans not being around, cheering for the players, and giving tremendous hopes.

Eliud Kipchoge 1:59 documentary

Kipchoge has braced himself to celebrate his victory after winning Tokyo Olympics 2021 gold medal with a documentary that will tell the story of how he prepared for the colossal events.

The trailer for the Kenyan’s new film has just been out. Kipchoge took it to social media and wrote: “I hope by watching this film you will also feel inspired to run.”

Ridley Scott Creative Group, the movie’s producers, said in a statement that the film will allow people to have exceptional access to Eliud.

“The movie also includes footage from his home in Kenya, interviews with those closest to him, minor and vague details of the daily rituals of his life and the dynamics within his team and community.”

Eliud Kipchoge Shoes

The Kenyan’s famous shoes he wore during that history-breaking attempt have since been placed in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

The art and design museum got the Nike AlphaFly shoes for a new permanent gallery called “Design 1900-Now”.

Eliud Kipcohoge: Diet and Training

The Olympic medalist Eliud Kipchoge’s diet and training are simple compared to many other athletes. His diet consists mainly of fruit and vegetables.

Rather than indulging in protein shakes, he prefers to drink two liters of tea with sugar. Kipcohoge gives as much time to rest as he gives to running. In his rest time or break time, he relaxes and sleeps.

Kipchoge does not focus on intense training and workouts; and rather, he engages himself mainly in the running.

Along with running, he also works a significant amount on strength and core work.

Eliud Kipchoge and his wife

The world record holder racer, Kipchoge is married to Grace Sugutt. According to his wife, Grace, they were schoolmates and neighbors, and she fell in love with the racer when she was 19 years old.

After dating for a year, the couple started living together solemnized in a traditional ceremony. Not long after their married life, the couple was blessed with their firstborn Lynne.

Eliud Kipchoge with his family.

Later, they were blessed with two other wonderful children. But nothing has been revealed when it comes to their names and whereabouts.

Eliud Kipchoge: Net Worth

The phenomenal athlete has a whopping net worth of $3 million. Every bit of his success is earned through hard work and perseverance.

Most of his earning is through his primary career as a racer; however, he also earns well through his sponsorship with the famous sports brand Nike.

Non-Fungible Token

Kipchoge was part of Kenya’s first considerate NFT – non-fungible token – auction. NFTs are special digital items stored online on blockchains, which sounds much like cryptocurrency.

The top-ranked runner sold two high-quality videos of his biggest accomplishments, the Ineos 1:59 run and his 2018 Berlin Marathon world record run (2:01:39).

He also sold a personalized message for U.S. $37,351.07 – around 31,300 euros.

Eliud Kipchoge: Social Media

The Olympic CHampion and world record holder Eliud Kipchoge is active in social media such as Instagram and Twitter. He has a roaring amount of followers.

In his social media accounts, he updates his fans and followers about his daily lifestyle and various activities he gets himself involved in.

One can follow him to know more about his achievements and activities.

Instagram: 1.4m followers with 1,765 following

Twitter: 406.4k followers with 5,461 following 

Frequent Asked Questions

Did Eliud Kipchoge break 2 hours?

The world record holder attempted to become the first human in history to run 26.2 miles in under two hours in a test that took place in Vienna.

Eliud Kipchoge completed this breathtaking record by finishing the test in 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 40 seconds.

How fast can Kipchoge run a mile?

The Olympic gold medalist Euild Kipchoge can run 4:34 minutes per mile or 2:50 minutes per km.

He also admitted that he would like to run even longer miles, beyond the marathon’s 42.195km.

“I would love to try 80km, 60km. I need to go to California and hike for six hours,” he said to Flotrack.