NAIROBI, Kenya, November 2, 2025 - Athletics lovers all around the world will be waiting with bated breath as one of the sport's most defining personalities prepares to make a huge announcement on Sunday evening.
Two-time world record holder Eliud Kipchoge will be making his debut at the New York Marathon in what could - sadly - be his last-ever competitive race.
Ahead of the battle in the Big Apple, Kipchoge hinted at an earth-shattering announcement after Sunday's competition.
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"I welcome all of you on Sunday afternoon...I will make a huge announcement on Sunday afternoon. There are beautiful programmes that I have in place for next year so Sunday will be that time," the double Olympic champion said.
Kipchoge was further unequivocal that he will be thinking of nothing short of victory when he lines up at the start line with other competitors.
"Absolutely, I still line up at the start with the intention of pushing myself. I am happy to still run at the age of 41 and still compete with the young people of 20 years. I am happy that my muscles still carry me through in training and in running," he said.
Kipchoge added: "I believe the younger people are better than me. I don't regret that I am not winning when running along the younger runners. The sport belongs to them and I'd love to leave it to them."
The 41-year-old is the personification of Kenya's storied reputation as an athletics powerhouse in the world.
Kipchoge is well-deserving of a museum of his own and more than one chapter in athletics history books because of the boundaries of impossibility that he has breached in his colourful career.
In addition to twice smashing the world record - 2:01:39 in 2018 and 2:01:09 in 2022 - both at the Berlin Marathon, Kipchoge made history as the only man to run the 42km in under two hours.
It was in 2019 in Vienna, Austria when he clocked 1:59:40 in INEOS 1:59 challenge, which was not officially recognised for not adhering to competition rules.
Nonetheless, it was an accolade that brought to fore the superhuman abilities of Kipchoge, fuelled by his hard work in training and passion for the sport.
This, to add to the two Olympic titles won Rio de Janeiro (2016) and Tokyo (2021).
So much so that his recent dry spell, as far as podium finishes are concerned, is not enough to dent the street cred of a man who has shown he is in a class of his own.
'Running is in my blood'
Kipchoge insists he will always be a runner to the death, even if he will not be doing it for competitive purposes.
"I may stop running competitively but I will not stop running. I want to be among the 60,000 people in New York, running in the future...just jogging and be with people...feeling that sweetness of running with people," he said.
The five-time Berlin Marathon champion further predicted that there will rise another athlete who will break the records he has set in his career.
The prospect of a first-ever sub-2 runner is not a wild thought; it is a possibility with all the right conditions in place.
"If you accept it in your heart, put it in your mind and have the right people around you...there's no reason why it is impossible. I think slowly by slowly it will come under two hours. When you get the right people to train for it, it will come down to under two hours," Kipchoge said.
Kipchoge's last win was at the Berlin Marathon in 2023 where he clocked 2:02:42 across the finish line.
Target for New York
Even before he steps onto the start line, Kipchoge will already be celebrating by virtue of having competed in the last of the World Marathon Majors.
It comes two months after he ran at the Sydney Marathon where he finished ninth after clocking 2:08:31.
Being awarded the Six-Star medal - for competing in all the World Marathon Majors races - is an accolade that Kipchoge says will top the list of his achievements.
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"I really want that medal because it is better than any other medal. Getting a six-star as a marathon runner is actually a very beautiful thing," the four-time London Marathon champion pointed out.
He added: "All my life I have been pushing the limits and I think this time I have pushed myself by running three marathons a year. Now I want to run in the streets of New York and experience it after hearing people talk about it."
Closer home in Africa, Kipchoge is praying that the continent will produce the next World Marathon Majors race.
Talk of Cape Town being incorporated into the elite club of races excites the marathon G.O.A.T (greatest of all times) who believes it will bode well for the plethora of talents across the continent.
"I am happy that they are considering Cape Town because Africa doesn't have a World Marathon Majors. It will encourage more youth to venture into sports in Africa. We have 300 million people in Africa and we need more high profile events to come to Africa. We have a huge talent that we have not exposed and this would be the right time to do that," he said.
