T-shirts bearing the image of the shooting star of world athletics, prayers, tears: Kenya paid final tribute on Friday to Kelvin Kiptum, marathon world record holder who died in a car accident, in the occasion of a national funeral.
Head of State William Ruto and President of the International Athletics Federation Sebastian Coe traveled for the funeral to Chepkorio, in the Rift Valley (west) where Kelvin Kiptum was born, raised and died.
In front of the open coffin, near which the head of state paid his respects, a bouquet of flowers had been placed.
The disappearance of the 24-year-old athlete “was a very heavy moment for us because we saw in him the future of athletics in Kenya”, regretted William Ruto, adding that Kiptum “had more reasons not to not succeed than succeed, but he worked against all odds.”
A rising star of Kenyan and world athletics, Kiptum made a thunderous entry into the world of marathons by beating the world record (2:00:35) held by the legend of the discipline, his compatriot Eliud Kipchoge.
“I miss you and you are the love of my life forever until we meet again.” I promise to gather my strength for the good of our children,” said Kiptum’s wife, Asenath Rotich, overcome by tears and emotion.
“Indelible”
“Kelvin, we will miss you,” assured Sebastian Coe, before concluding: “Our grief and sadness will take time to dissipate. But be sure that your achievements are precious, indelible and inscribed in the annals of our history and will never be forgotten.”
Athletes, most dressed in jerseys bearing the image of the marathon runner, knelt and briefly prayed, before throwing rose petals at the coffin.
Several hundred people attended the ceremony, including the Kenyan champion Faith Kipyegon, holder of the 1,500 m world record, and who briefly held the 5,000 m record last summer, and the champion of the 800m world (2012, 2016) David Rudisha.
Jackson Komen, Kiptum’s neighbor, paid tribute to the memory of a “very generous” and “down-to-earth” man: “During his short life as an athlete, he helped finance the education of some children from the Chepsamo primary school which he himself had attended,” he assures AFP.
Favorite of the Paris Olympic Games, Kelvin Kiptum, married and father of two children, killed himself on the night of Sunday February 11 after leaving the road in the town of Kaptagat, in the Rift Valley, not far from his venue residence and training. His trainer, Rwandan Gervais Hakizimana, 36, also on board, was also killed instantly.
Thunderous entrance
After the announcement of the death of this eternal long-distance running comet, the government promised a “heroic farewell”.
The image will remain that of a slender athlete (1.78 m, 59 kg), flying with a powerful stride on the Chicago asphalt, even accelerating in the second half of the race, where most marathon runners of all levels falter. .
On Thursday, hundreds of people paid tribute to Kiptum in the streets of Eldoret, a mecca for running. Their passage in front of the marathon runner’s coffin was accompanied by songs, or respectful silence.
In the fall, the athlete announced that he was going to try to become, during the Rotterdam race on April 14, the first man to run an official marathon under two hours.
Kiptum started running regularly in 2016. In 2019, he completed two very fast half-marathons in two weeks (60 min 48 sec in Copenhagen then 59 min 53 sec in Belfort in France). Gervais Hakizimana had offered to coach him for the marathon, their collaboration taking off during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
According to a forensic doctor, Kelvin Kiptum, whose toxicological analyzes are still in progress, died following serious head injuries.
A training convict, Kiptum regularly ran more than 250 kilometers per week, and sometimes more than 300, rare distances even at a very high level, assured his trainer, a French resident and national level runner who had met Kiptum during his stays in training in Kenya.
Hakizimana was buried in Rwanda on Wednesday.