Eliud Kipchoge’s approach to winning the Boston Marathon in a course record: “Boston needs a lot of patience”
The Kenyan double Olympic champion plans to run a sub 2:03 to better Geoffrey Mutai's course record of 2:03:02 that has stood for 12 years. The 2023 Boston Marathon will be live on the Olympic Channel via Olympics.com on April 17 in certain territories.
Athletics
Marathon runs are captivating.
And when the king of the marathon lines-up for the first time in Boston after winning 15 of his 17 starts at the 42.2km (26.2 mile) distance, there is a feeling that Eliud Kipchoge might again push the limits of what humanity can achieve.
He’s on a mission to win and set course record times in all the six World Marathon Majors Series races. He's achieved four wins and three course records already. Next up, it's Boston on Monday, April 17 before winding up his 2023 season in New York on November 5. The one remaining challenge, Chicago, is a race Kipchoge has won but without setting a course record.
“This is another challenge, it’s like a championship where one needs to win and get the gold medal,” the double Olympic marathon gold medallist told the Daily Nation of his intended plan to lower compatriot’s Geoffrey Mutai’s Boston record of 2:03:02 from 2011.
A welcome test after nearly 20 years of training on a similarly tough and tricky course at his renowned base located in Kaptagat. For their weekly long runs, Kipchoge and his teammates at their Kenyan high-altitude training camp designed a hilly route to simulate the American course.
“This is the right time to train on the course which we have nicknamed ‘Boston’ here in Kenya. It’s an uphill and tough course over 40 kilometres,” said Kipchoge who in his last race in Berlin lowered his world record to 2:01.09 shaving half a minute off his previous world best.
“I think I will benefit from it, this being my first time to put all my work on Boston marathon because I always train on a ‘Boston’ course in Kaptagat. It’s an uphill and tough course over 40 kilometres.”
Like his simple training methods, the world’s fastest marathoner's approach for his first Boston run is equally straightforward – “a lot of patience and hard work”.
Unlike Kipchoge's previous fast races, where he benefitted from pacemakers, Boston sticks to its tradition of holding the marathon under championship conditions. That means there will be no runners on the course who are contracted to push the pace for Kipchoge and the other elites.
Just like he did at his last two Olympic runs, the 38-year-old will count on his renowned, finely honed running skills that have made him the greatest in the marathon.
Winning is not the only thing, but it’s also about how fast the dominant marathon man can tackle the Newton Hills.
“Boston is uphill and needs a lot of patience, hard work to go through, hence unpredictable,” he said, comparing it to Berlin, where he won the title for the fourth time last September.
“Today can be windy but the weather might change completely tomorrow, but I am trying to be [an] all-weather man. If any challenge comes his way that morning, I will go with it.”
The weather forecast for the 2023 Boston Marathon according to racecast, includes a chance of some light rain with slightly warmer than average conditions of about 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius). This weather could be ideal for a sub 2:03 time.
Kipchoge struggled in cold and rainy conditions at the 2020 London Marathon, finishing eighth, more than a minute behind the winner Shura Kitata. The world’s best marathoner said he developed an issue with his right ear-that was blocked.
An upsetting loss that seemingly fired him for his breathtaking Olympic run at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021, in Sapporo, and his course record in Tokyo last year.
After lowering the world record in Berlin, Kipchoge, the only man to run the marathon in under two hours, made clear his targets. His main goal is to clinch an unprecedented third Olympic marathon title at Paris 2024, before then, he wants to complete his World Marathon Majors challenge.
In addition to his two Olympic golds, Kipchoge has 10 wins across the six World Marathon Majors courses; in Chicago (2014) London (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019), Tokyo (2021), and Berlin (2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022). He set the course records in London of 2:20:37 in 2019, Tokyo 2:02:40 and his latest of 2:01:09, was also Kipchoge’s second world record in Berlin.
His aim is clear: “I don’t even want to participate in the sixth World Marathon Majors, I want to participate and win all the six,” he said.