As the body of world record holder Kelvin Kiptum, who aspired to smash the race’s historic two-hour mark, was brought to his hometown for burial on Thursday, hundreds of Kenyans came to pay their respects.
The runner lost control of the car he was driving in the Rift Valley earlier this month and collided with a tree, killing Kiptum, 24, and his coach Gervais Hakizimana. He died, according to the pathologist’s findings, from head injuries.
In the western Kenyan city of Eldoret, mourners held hands and sang hymns as the caravan carrying Kiptum’s flower-lined corpse left a morgue.
On the route to Chepsamo hamlet, the coffin was opened for a viewing in the county seat. Father of the late runner, Kiptum, held
Kiptum had only run three marathons, but each was among the fastest seven times ever recorded. He set the world record at the Chicago Marathon in October in two hours and 35 seconds, eclipsing the 2:01:09 run by compatriot Eliud Kipchoge in 2022.
Kiptum had hoped to break two hours in Rotterdam in April and was also expected to make his Olympic debut in Paris this year in what could have been his first head-to-head match-up with Kipchoge.
The casket will travel about 80 km (50 miles) on its way from Eldoret to Chepsamo, where Kiptum worked as a livestock herder before becoming a professional runner. He will be buried on Friday.
Kiptum is survived by his wife, his seven-year-old son and six-year-old daughter. Kenyan President William Ruto ordered a house to be built for the family.
His coach Hakizimana was buried on Wednesday in his native Rwanda.
