Eliud Kipchoge Inspires His Wife to Complete Her First Marathon
Eliud was there to greet her with a hug as she finished the Cape Town Marathon.
Eliud Kipchoge hasn’t exactly retired from competitive running yet. The 41-year-old “GOAT” of the men’s marathon is still training and racing, but now with more of a focus on inspiring others to run and being an ambassador for the sport.
You can count Kipchoge’s wife, Grace Sugut, among those he has inspired to run 42.2 kilometres. Sugut completed her first marathon at Sunday’s Cape Town Marathon. She crossed the finish line in a time of 4:29:59, placing 2,353 out of the 6,914 women in the field.
Kipchoge himself turned in yet another impressive marathon performance, finishing 16th overall, running a time of 2:13:29. He’s in the process of running a marathon on each of the seven continents over the next three years, and he checked Africa off his list with his finish on Sunday.
As Sugut crossed the finish, her husband was right there waiting to give her a big hug.
As Sugut crossed the finish, her husband was right there waiting to give her a big hug. It was a bit of a reverse situation to what we saw in 2019, when Sugut greeted Kipchoge with a hug at the finish line of the INEOS 1:59 Challenge, where Kipchoge broke two hours in the marathon.
“I ran my first marathon 13 years ago,” Kipchoge wrote on Instagram. “It has brought me to where I am today, but I could not do this without the support of many, including my family. My heart is filled with pride, for my wife Grace completing her first marathon in Cape Town.”
Before the race, Kipchoge gave some advice to Sugut. “My advice actually is to line up at the starting line,” he told the media. “Enjoy the whole race, feel that pain all through the race, cut through the finishing line, and, you know, she will be accomplished. She will not be the same.”
Next up for Kipchoge this year is the Porto Alegre Marathon in Brazil on 12 July, followed by the Melbourne Marathon in Australia in October. We’ll have to wait and see if Sugut will join him on the starting line at either of those races.
This article was first published on the Runner’s World USA website.
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