Nairobi — World marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge says his achievements thus far have been a product of his self-belief and determination in all he puts his mind to.
The double Olympic marathon champion was on Tuesday morning feted as the LG/SJAK Sports Personality for the month of September during a brief ceremony at the LG Showroom in Eldoret.
Kipchoge described the award as a due reward for all the hard work he has put in his art and craft, noting that the same remains true for everyone else who stays focused on their dreams.
"I am very happy and honoured to receive this special recognition from SJAK and LG. Winning this award once again is also a testament that we should always strive for more, there are no limits but rather everything is achieved through belief and determination. Breaking the world record in Berlin was very crucial for me as I wanted to inspire the human race," Kipchoge said.
The marathon great brought the world to its feet late last month when he ran a new world record of 2:01:09 at the Berlin Marathon, breaking his previous record of 2:01:39 he set in the same city in 2018.
In the process, Kipchoge clinched his fourth Berlin title and equalled the record set by Ethiopian Haile Gebreselassie who boasts the same number of victories in the marathon.
The first man to run a marathon under two hours - 1:59:40 in 2019 in Austria - credited a strong support system for having brought him thus far in his road race career.
"I would also like to thank my family, my training mates and also my coach who have really supported me and whom without them I would not have achieved all these in my career," he said.
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Speaking at the same ceremony, LG East Africa content manager William Kimore described Kipchoge as an inspiration to the human race, noting how his "No Human is Limited" slogan has reverberated beyond the sports sector.
"We at LG are very proud to associate with the accomplishments of Eliud who has really demonstrated that hard work and persistence pays with his record-breaking heroics. His mantra 'No Human is Limited' is a further inspiration to all of us that if we just push ourselves, we can achieve more than we have previously. We are thus happy today to award him this product as a token of appreciation and encourage him to continue pursuing his goals," Kimore said.
For his efforts on the road, Kipchoge received a personalized trophy as well as a LG refrigerator that doubles up as a water dispenser and mount freezer.
Others who were in contention for the award were Malkia Strikers' Sharon Chepchumba who starred for the national team at the recent World Volleyball Championships and top rally driver Karan Patel who clinched the Africa Rally Championships (ARC) Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally in Rwanda.
Commonwealth 5000m champion Beatrice Chebet and World 800m champion Emmanuel Korir - both of who claimed Diamond League trophies for 2022 - were also in contention as was world 10,000m silver medalist Hellen Obiri who successfully defended her Great North Run title in the United Kingdom.
Former Hit Squad captain Nick Okoth, who recently retired after winning silver at African Championships in Mozambique, completed the list of nominees for the award.
