Kiptum and his coach, Gervais Hakizimana, 37, had been each killed within the accident, and a 24-year-old lady recognized as Sharon Kosgey suffered severe accidents and was taken to a close-by hospital, he stated. No different autos had been concerned within the crash.
Kiptum made worldwide headlines in October when he received the Chicago marathon in 2 hours 35 seconds, making him the primary man to run an official race in below 2 hours 1 minute, and overtaking fellow Kenyan runner Eliud Kipchoge’s file. A 12 months earlier than, Kiptum had by no means raced in a marathon.
“I didn’t know I’d be an excellent marathon runner,” he instructed a reporter after his Chicago victory, describing his ability as one thing that got here naturally.
Nahashon Kibon, a retired runner {and professional} coach in Kenya, instructed The Washington Publish that he had educated with Kiptum on Saturday.
“I’ll bear in mind him as an excellent man. He was very jovial. We laughed, we talked — he was an excellent man,” he stated. “He was nonetheless younger. It’s unhappy that we misplaced him.”
David Rudisha, a two-time Olympic champion runner for Kenya within the 800-meter race, wrote on social media that he was “shocked and deeply saddened” by the deaths of Kiptum and Hakizimana. “It is a enormous loss,” he stated.
Raila Odinga, the previous prime minister and a distinguished opposition chief in Kenya, known as Kiptum a “outstanding particular person” and a “Kenyan Athletics icon.”
“Our nation grieves the profound lack of a real hero,” he stated on social media.
Kiptum in April was slated to run the 2024 Rotterdam Marathon within the Netherlands and had stated he was aiming to run the race in below two hours. He additionally had his eye on the Paris Olympics this summer season.
“I’ve simply began my coaching, and I hope to go there and do my greatest,” he instructed World Athletics in an interview revealed in December. “Perhaps to beat my time. I believe I attempt every time to push my restrict.”
