Karen Nyamu reacts to Eliud Kipchoge’s loss at the Boston marathon

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Karen Nyamu reacts to Eliud Kipchoge’s loss at the Boston marathon

By Wangu Kanuri April 18th, 2023 2 min read

Nominated Senator Karen Nyamu has reacted to the defeat of record holder Eliud Kipchoge at the Boston Marathon.

The legendary Kenyan athlete finished sixth in the race, with a 2:09:23 timing in a race won by compatriot Evans Chebet who clocked an impressive 2:05:54.

Chebet thus becomes the first male runner to retain his title in the same race.

“What happened to our GOAT? Is it time to exit the stage and secure the legacy not witness worse days ahead?” posed Nyamu.

In his post-race comments, Kipchoge, 38, accepted defeat, adding he was looking to improving in the next race.

“I live for the moments where I get to challenge the limits. It’s never guaranteed, and it’s never easy. Today was a tough day for me. I pushed myself as hard as I could but sometimes, we must accept that today wasn’t the day to push the barrier to a greater height.”

Also read: Eliud Kipchoge speaks up after losing at the Boston Marathon

While Monday’s race could be categorised as an oops moment, Kipchoge has been breaking his own world record over and over. Before today, Kipchoge, 38, had lost only two marathons in 19 starts. In his second marathon, he finished second at the 2013 Berlin Marathon to the then-world record of 2:03:23 by Wilson Kipsang.

In 2020, Kipchoge finished eighth in the London Marathon in 2:06:49, more than a minute behind winner Shura Kitata of Ethiopia. He is expected to race two more marathons before the Paris Games. Kipchoge will be nearly 40 come Paris, more than one year older than the oldest Olympic champion in any running event, according to Olympedia.org. Kenya has yet to name its three-man Olympic marathon team.

His world record of 2:01:09, set at last year’s Berlin Marathon, will therefore likely remain untouched, but Geoffrey Mutai’s course record of 2:03:02 from 2011 is a target for the 38-year-old.

Also read: Kenya’s Chebet and Obiri win big at Boston Marathon