Kiptum, who burst onto the marathon scene in October, was the heavy favorite to win the Paris Olympics.
Kelvin Kiptum, the world record-holding Kenyan marathon runner, has died in a car accident.
The death of the 24-year-old, who was driving in western Kenya on Sunday afternoon when his car overturned, has left the athletics world in shock.
Kiptum lost control of the vehicle and the young racer and his Rwandan coach, Gervais Hakizimana, died instantly, a local police officer said. A passenger who was injured was rushed to the hospital.
Kiptum burst onto the marathon scene when he ran a world record 2:00:35 in Chicago in October, taking 34 seconds off the previous record held by fellow Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge.
He was only 23 years old at the time and competing in only his third marathon. Kiptum also won his other two races: his debut in Valencia in 2022 and a follow-up in London the following year.
The Kenyan had announced that he would try to become the first man to run an official marathon under two hours in Rotterdam on April 14.
Kiptum was the big favorite to take gold at the next Summer Olympics in Paris.
Tributes
The tributes poured in following the news of Kiptum's death.
World Athletics remembered him as “one of the most exciting new prospects to emerge in road racing in recent years.”
“We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn of the devastating loss of Kelvin Kiptum and his coach, Gervais Hakizimana,” World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said in a statement.
“On behalf of all of World Athletics, we send our deepest condolences to their families, friends, teammates and the nation of Kenya.”
We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn of the devastating loss of Kelvin Kiptum and his coach, Gervais Hakizimana.
On behalf of all of World Athletics we send our deepest condolences to his family, friends, teammates and the Kenyan nation.
It was just earlier this week in… pic.twitter.com/dDBKgjXNKL
– Seb Coe (@sebcoe) February 11, 2024
Coe said just last week that he had been in Chicago “to officially ratify” Kiptum's record.
“An incredible athlete who leaves an incredible legacy, he will be greatly missed.”
Kenya's two-time Olympic 800m champion David Rudisha said he was “shocked and deeply saddened” by the news.
“This is a big loss,” he posted on social media platform X.
Former Australian marathon world champion Robert de Castella also paid tribute to the athlete.
“Shocking tragedy! Just like that, a rising superstar is gone. She highlights how precious life is and how vulnerable we all are,” de Castella said.
Kiptum came from Chepkorio, a town in the Rift Valley that is the heart of long-distance running in Kenya, and where his death ultimately occurred.
Ten years ago, just a teenager, he herded goats and sheep and then began following Hakizimana, who is from Rwanda, and other runners as they trained in the legendary high-altitude region.
In 2019, Kiptum ran two half marathons in two weeks, with a time of 60:48 in Copenhagen and 59:53 in Belfort, France. He began training with Hakizimana, who stayed in Kenya when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Kiptum's death is the latest in a saga of tragedies affecting Kenya's young athletics hopefuls.
In 2011, marathon great Samuel Wanjiru died at the same age after capturing the 2008 Olympic title in Beijing.
According to a pathologist, Wanjiru died after being hit in the head with a blunt object.
In 2021, long-distance running star Agnes Tirop was found stabbed to death at the age of 25 in her home in Iten, near Eldoret.
Her husband, Ibrahim Rotich, was tried for her murder in November last year. She denied the charge and was released on bail just before the trial began.
