Known as the "King of Marathons", Kipchoge is arguably the GOAT of long-distance running, with the Kenyan superstar winning two Olympic gold medals, breaking the marathon world record twice and winning six major marathons 11 times, and the 39-year-old is aiming for an unprecedented triple gold medal in Paris. However, Kipchoge's differential treatment of China and Japan has caused some controversy.
Kipchoge recently came to China as a brand ambassador for a vigorous "China Tour" and gave a touching speech: "I think China has a running culture, Chinese people like to run, I hope to be able to run with Chinese running enthusiasts." I want to tell them that the real benefit of running isn't running fast, it's about bringing all the Chinese together......"
However, the actions were more honest than the rhetoric, and Kipchoge still had no plans to run the marathon in China, instead announcing that he would run the Tokyo Marathon again next year, even though he had won the event just last year. According to normal logic, Kipchoge has already participated in marathons in Japan, and at the end of his career he should leave his footprints in Chinese city marathons before retiring, after all, there are many of his fans here, China is the country that hosts the most marathons, and the unstoppable "marathon fever" is sweeping the country.
Some runners will defend him, and Kipchoge's goal is to complete the six marathon majors, so the Chinese event is not his first choice. In fact, it is difficult to justify this statement, Kipchoge has already won the Tokyo Marathon, he is short of the New York Marathon and Boston Marathon champions, there is no need to run the Tokyo Marathon again, and looking at his resume in recent years, he is not a non-runner of the six marathons.
Kipchoge worked tirelessly to make the sponsor's trip to China, and the week in Beijing and Shanghai was full of schedules, which can be said to be very busy. But for China's urban marathon, Kipchoge didn't try it once. It's a bit ironic that China has become a marathon maniac, and marathons have become the standard in cities, attracting legendary black brothers to form a group to win prizes, but unable to attract a truly world-class marathon star.
Although China's urban marathons are flooded and chaotic in management, there are also some high-quality events, such as the Shanghai Marathon and the Xiamen Marathon, which are World Athletics Federation platinum label events, and there are only 14 platinum label events in the world.