Eliud Kipchoge will race Berlin Marathon

The world’s greatest marathoner, Eliud Kipchoge, has announced that he will return to the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 25. Kipchoge has raced Berlin four times (winning three times) and broke the world record on this course in 2018, with a time of 2:01.39. If he wins again, he will tie the Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassie, who has won Berlin four times.

September 25. How excited are you? ?#BerlinLegend pic.twitter.com/WalrnhoKzc

— NN Running Team (@NNRunningTeam) July 8, 2022

Kipchoge, who lives and trains in Kaptagat, Kenya, called the Berlin Marathon the “fastest course” in a press release on Friday, NBC reported. “It’s where a human being can showcase its potential to push the limits,” he added. Kipchoge has traditionally run two marathons a year, often opting for the London Marathon, which is usually scheduled in the spring. This year’s London Marathon will be held in the fall for the third year in a row as a result of the pandemic, before returning to its usual April date in 2023. The athlete said it was a hard decision to choose Berlin over the other World  Marathon Majors, all of which he has said he intends to run. (Kipchoge has not yet run the Boston or New York City marathons, and many fans speculated that he might go to New York this fall.)

One of my favorite memories was made in this city.
Let's make some new memories together! ? pic.twitter.com/6W19zKG9vY

— Eliud Kipchoge – EGH?? (@EliudKipchoge) July 8, 2022

Defending champion Guye Adola of Ethiopia will also be returning; his winning time in 2021 was 2:05:45. Adola ran his marathon debut in 2017 at Berlin, managing to keep up with Kipchoge until the final mile and finishing only 14 seconds behind him.

Kipchoge could become the first marathoner to win three medals in an Olympic marathon event at the Paris 2024 Olympics, where he is also expected to race. The athlete announced on Friday that he may continue racing after the Paris Olympics and into his 40s. Kipchoge recently made news when he launched a cycling academy, based out of the NN Running Team training centre in his native Kenya.