Kipchoge to return to Hamburg

World marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge will be making a return to Hamburg, the place where he made his marathon debut for the NN Mission Marathon slated for April 11.

The one-off marathon organised jointly by Global Sports Communication, the NN Running Team and the Hamburg Marathon will represent the world marathon record-holder’s final outing over the classic 42.2km distance before the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics – where he will seek to become the third man in history to claim back-to-back Olympic titles.

Kipchoge made his debut over the distance at the German City in 2013 winning the annual Hamburg Marathon title in 2:05:30 and since then he has won an impressive 11 out of 13 career marathons.

The 36-year-old who will be leading Kenya’s marathon team at the Summer Games will be making his first competitive appearance after finishing a distant eighth at the 2020 London Marathon.

Regarded as the Marathon King, Kipchoge became the first human to break the 2 hour –barrier in a marathon when he clocked 1:59:40 at the historic INEOS 1:59 Challenge that was held in Vienna in 2019.

“I am going back to the genesis of my marathon career. For me, Hamburg is where it all began. I hope to inspire many people around the world by running a great race in the streets of this wonderful city,” Kichoge could not hide his delight on his imminent return to Hamburg.

Kipchoge resumed full training last month at his training base in Kaptagat after sessions of gym work in December.

The special race themed ‘The fastest way to Tokyo’ will also provide athletes with an opportunity to hit the qualification mark for the Olympics.

The race which will take place around a looped 10.5km city centre route, will attract around 100 invited elite athletes.