Rumors have been growing on the Internet since the car accident which claimed the life of Kenyan Kelvin Kiptum on February 11: his compatriot Kipchoge, double Olympic marathon champion, is accused without any proof of having any responsibility in the death to the young world record holder (2:00:35, set in Chicago in October 2023), who should have been his main opponent at the Paris Games.
In a video broadcast Tuesday May 7 on BBC Africa, Eliud Kipchoge said he was “very worried” by the wave of cyberharassment he has suffered since the tragedy and the suspicions that social networks have placed on him. “I received a lot of bad news saying that my training camp, my investments in the city, my house and even my family were going to be burned,” explains the 39-year-old former world record holder with emotion. I do not have the power to go to the police and tell them that my life is in danger. So my concern is to tell my family to be extremely careful… I have asked my children to stop riding their bikes outside. »
His former competitor Kelvin Kiptum was cut down in his prime at the age of 24. The athlete, who vowed to be the first to run the legendary distance (42.195 km) in less than two hours, died near Kaptagat (Kenya), where he lived and trained. He lost control of his vehicle and left the road, driving “for 60 meters before hitting a tree,” according to local media. His trainer, Rwandan Gervais Hakizimana, was also killed. A woman who accompanied them emerged unhurt from the blue car, whose windshield was crushed by the impact, the roof and doors flattened.
The circumstances of the accident have not yet been precisely established. “According to the statements of the young woman who accompanied them, Kelvin Kiptum fell asleep at the wheel,” says a source. But there remain gray areas. Part of Kiptum's family demands that the investigation be thorough. » Questioned in April by Le Parisien, her mother was fatalistic: “I don’t care what is said. We'll never know. This was the route my son took all the time. But I don't ask questions of the government, of the police... I ask questions of God. Maybe it’s Kipchoge, maybe it was an accident… God only knows. »
Preparation for the Games affected
The day after the tragedy, Eliud Kipchoge published a message of condolences on X and regretted the death “of an athlete who had his whole life ahead of him to achieve great success”. In his video, the marathon runner today claims to have “lost around 90%” of his friends because of this cyberharassment campaign.
“It was really painful for me to learn from my own people, my training partners and everyone I come in contact with that negative messages were circulating about me,” he lamented. I learned that friendship cannot last forever. »
The affair has already affected the preparation of the Kenyan, who dreams of a third Olympic gold medal, on August 10 in Paris, after those obtained in Brazil (2016) and Japan (2021). On March 3, as part of his preparation, he ran the Tokyo Marathon. “But I didn't sleep for three days and I've never been so bad,” he lamented, finally finishing in tenth place – the worst ranking of his career, launched in 2013 –, two minutes of the winner, his compatriot Benson Kipruto.
“Since the start of this affair, Eliud Kipchoge is no longer the same man,” regrets Philippe Plancke, former coach of Gervais Hakizimana. The death of Kelvin caused trauma in Kenyan athletics, where everyone hoped to see a duel between the two champions in Paris. Instead, we witness a sad spectacle made of rumors and controversies. »
