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In a stunning turn of events, Kenya's top marathon runners, including Kelvin Kiptum, who was hailed as "the next Eliud Kipchoge," have decided not to participate in the upcoming 2023 Budapest World Championships.
In a stunning turn of events, Kenya's top marathon runners, including Kelvin Kiptum, who was hailed as "the next Eliud Kipchoge," have decided not to participate in the upcoming 2023 Budapest World Championships.
The world championships is scheduled to take place from August 19- 27 in Budapest, Hungary.
London Marathon champion Kelvin Kiptum, women's marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei, and three-time world half-marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor have withdrawn their participation.
The elite athletes reportedly chose to opt out of the Budapest World Championships in favour of more lucrative marathons.
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According to Standard Sports, Kiptum and his compatriots prioritised their participation in the Berlin Marathon, scheduled for September 24, followed by the Chicago Marathon in October and the New York City Marathon in November.
Kiptum astounded the world with his remarkable performance at the London Marathon in June, achieving an impressive time of 2:01:25, making him the second-fastest marathoner of all time, second only to Eliud Kipchoge.
His record-breaking time was a mere 17 seconds behind Kipchoge's fastest official time in marathon history, set during the 2022 Berlin Marathon (02:01:09).
It is worth noting that the London Marathon was only Kiptum's second marathon, following his victory at the Valencia Marathon last year.
They have been replaced with less accomplished athletes.
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