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Popular Marathon record holder Kelvin Kiptum has tragically passed away at the age of 24 after a car accident. World Athletics president Sebastian Coe confirmed the news by stating that both Kiptum and his coach, Gervis Hakizimana died in the tragic accident that took place in Western Kenya on Sunday, February 11, 2024.
The World Athletics President also said in his statement:
"We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn of the devastating loss of Kelvin Kiptum and his coach, Gervais Hakizimana. On behalf of all World Athletics, we send our deepest condolences to their families, friends, teammates and the Kenyan nation.”
He also said:
It was only earlier this week in Chicago, the place where Kelvin set his extraordinary marathon World Record, that I was able to officially ratify his historic time. An incredible athlete leaving an incredible legacy, we will miss him dearly.”
As per CNN, Kelvin was driving a Toyota Premio at the time of the accident. Moreover, apart from Kelvin and his coach, there was also a third passenger in the car who survived the accident but is seriously injured.
Kelvin Kiptum’s record marathon time was 2:00:35
The world is mourning the sad passing away of Kiptum, who had set a benchmark for himself and other marathon runners as he had a record of 2:00:35 in the Chicago Marathon. With this new record, he took 34 seconds off another Marathon runner’s record.
Apart from this, he was also the winner of three marathons that he participated in from December 2022 to October 2023.
As per Daily Sport, Kelvin was only 13 years old when he started running and participated in a half marathon in Kenya. At the time, he finished 10th.
Thereafter, his first victory was recorded in 2018. He also participated in the Lisbon Half Marathon in 2019, which took place in Portugal. Kelvin Kiptum finished fifth in the Marathon and established a new personal best record of 59:54.
Furthermore, he won the 2022 Valencia Marathon and then the London Marathon, which was also held in 2022.
Apart from these, he also ran many other half marathons, where he established record timings of 60:48 and 59:53 in Copenhagen and Belfort respectively.
As per Olympics.com, Kelvin Kiptum became the first man to complete a 30 km mark in 59:45. With this record, he beat Geoffrey Kamworor, who was previously the record holder.
Born on December 2, 1999, Kelvin was only 24 years old when he passed away due to a tragic car accident.
Having grown up in Chepsamo Village, Chepkorio, Kelvin used to herd the family’s cattle as a teenage boy and started off his journey as a marathon runner after he used to run with other barefoot runners in the forests near his village.
As Kelvin Kiptum tragically passes away at a young age, family, friends, and social media users are mourning the loss of the marathon runners.
The internet is flooded with tributes for Kelvin Kiptum as many are remembering his accomplishments, while others are consoling the family for the great loss. At the moment, the family has not yet spoken up about Kelvin’s death.
