Kipchoge ‘sad for two weeks’ after London Marathon postponement

World record holder Eliud Kipchoge has said the postponement of the London Marathon left him sad for two weeks before he came to terms with the decision provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kipchoge said his fitness was at peak level for a showdown that would have pitted him against Ethiopian rival Kenenisa Bekele, the only other man to go under two hours, two minutes over the distance.

Due to the pandemic, the April showdown never came to be, as the race was rescheduled for October 4th and yet it still remains far from certain it will take place.

Kipchoge is the defending champion and would have been chasing a record fifth London title.

“It was painful for me when London was postponed,” Kipchoge told Runner’s World. “I was at peak fitness before that race. I took two weeks to be sad, and then I went back to training. This is life.”

While racing is off the table for now, we have another chance to watch the distance running legends perform from afar. On the first weekend of June, Kipchoge and his NN Running Team teammates—including Bekele, half marathon world record holder Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya, and Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda—are participating in a new virtual marathon relay, “MA RA TH ON.”

The race is free to enter and participants began online registration at nnrunningteam.com/marathon from May 30, with leaderboards also available to view on the website.

Participants, who must be aged 18 and over, will need a Strava account to join in and the winners will be announced on June 9.