Today at 20:35
Photo AP
Today (Oct. 12), Kenyan athlete Eliud Kipchoge became the first man to run a marathon in less than two hours.
Kipchoge ran the 42.2 kilometers in 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 40 seconds.
The four-time London Marathon winner hugged his wife Grace, grabbed a Kenyan flag and was in no short time mobbed by his pacemakers, including many of the world’s best middle and long-distance runners, BBC reported.
🇬🇧 1954 Roger Bannister breaks the 4-minute mile
🇺🇸 1969 Neil Armstrong walks on the moon
🇯🇲 2009 @UsainBolt runs 100m in 09.58
🇰🇪 2019 @EliudKipchoge runs a sub two-hour marathon#INEOS159 #NoHumanIsLimited pic.twitter.com/HMXnxRohE3
— INEOS 1:59 Challenge (@INEOS159) October 12, 2019
“This shows no-one is limited,” said Kipchoge. “Now I’ve done it, I am expecting more people to do it after me.”
While to complete a marathon is, in-and-of-itself, an achievement, Kipchoge finished the Ineos 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria in less than half of the time most marathon runners take to finish marathons.
Kipchoge’s achievement is not officially recognized because it was not in open competition and he used a team of rotating pacemakers.
Had it been, Kipchoge would, in fact, be facing up against his own record, which he set last year. At that time he ran the distance in 2 hours 1 minute and 39 seconds in Berlin, Germany.
“He has inspired all of us and shown that we can stretch the limits in our life,” Kipchoge’s coach, Patrick Sang, said.
Massive crowds in Kenya erupted in celebration before Kipchoge had even finished his race.
https://twitter.com/olympicchannel/status/1182969861519151104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1182969861519151104&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fabc7news.com%2Fsports%2Fkipchoge-becomes-first-athlete-to-run-marathon-under-2-hours%2F5613444%2F
