G.O.A.T. Eliud Kipchoge to make Boston Marathon debut

Eliud Kipchoge

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge celebrates after winning the Berlin Marathon race on September 25, 2022, in Berlin.

Photo credit: Tobias Schwarz | AFP

What you need to know:

  • “I am happy to announce in April I will compete in the Boston Marathon, a new chapter in my World Marathon Majors journey,” said Kipchoge on the Boston Marathon website.  “Good luck to all the runners running Boston in 2023.”
  • Chebet stormed to victory at the Boston Marathon on April 18 in 2:06:51 before the New York City Marathon in 2:08:41 on November 6to cap up a good year.

Double Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge is set to make his debut at the Boston Marathon on April 17 next year.

Kipchoge, who is fresh from breaking his own marathon world record in Berlin, will face three athletes who have won at the course before; defending champion Evans Chebet, the 2021 winner Benson Kipruto, and Ethiopian Lelisa Desisa, who won in 2013 and 2015.

It’s only in the Boston Marathon and New York City Marathon where the 38-year-old KIpchoge is yet to compete in the World Marathon Majors (WMM).

Kipchoge, the fastest marathoner in history, will take on the challenging course and a strong field with hopes of earning his 11th career win at the WMM.

In his last marathon, Kipchoge recaptured the Berlin Marathon title, smashing his own world record by 30 seconds on September 25 in the German capital.

The 2016 and 2020 Olympic marathon champion clocked two hours, one minute and nine seconds to win, beating his previous world record time of 2:01:39 set when winning in Berlin in 2018.

Kipchoge’s lifetime best is 1:59:40, run at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge exhibition event in 2019 where he became the first man ever to cover 42 kilometres in under two hours.

Kipchoge now looks to become the only man in history to have established a marathon world record, won two Olympic marathon gold medals, and break the tape first in Boston over the span of their career.

“I am happy to announce in April I will compete in the Boston Marathon, a new chapter in my World Marathon Majors journey,” said Kipchoge on the Boston Marathon website.  “Good luck to all the runners running Boston in 2023.”

Chebet stormed to victory at the Boston Marathon on April 18 in 2:06:51 before the New York City Marathon in 2:08:41 on November 6to cap up a good year.

Chebet became just the sixth man in history to win the Boston and New York City Marathons in the same year.

“To win in Boston is something very special and for me it has even more meaning because it took me quite some time during my career to be competitive enough to finally win the oldest marathon in the world,” said Chebet on the Boston Marathon website.  Chebet has a personal best 2:03:00 from the 2020 Valencia Marathon.

Chebet’s training partner, Benson Kipruto, who is fresh from winning in the Chicago Marathon on October 9, will be out to recapture the title. Kipruto clocked a personal best 2:04:24 to win in Chicago.

“Boston is more than simply a place for me to race,” said Kipruto. “It has become so familiar to me that just the idea of making the journey there once again gets me kind of emotional.”

Desisa enters Boston with vital experience, having placed in the top-two four times at the Boston Marathon (wins in 2013 and 2015 and second-place finishes in 2016 and 2019).

April marks the 10-year anniversary of his victory in 2013, one in which he donated his champion’s medal back to the City of Boston in recognition of the tragedy of April 15, 2013.