Meet the team behind Eliud Kipchoge at Paris 2024 Olympics
Eliud Kipchoge is the most decorated marathon runner on the planet.
He is a man of immense talent and discipline, but behind his dominance there is a team of people who are extremely important to the double Olympic champion.
The Kenyan World Record holder relies on their expertise and guidance in training, during races, and even in his recovery.
Let’s take a closer look at ‘Team Kipchoge’ as he prepares to race at his third consecutive Olympic Games at Paris 2024, scheduled for for 10 August.
There is his long-time coach and mentor Patrick Sang, his physiotherapist Peter Nduhiu, his nutrionist Armand Bettonviel, and his Global Sports Communication management led by Valentijn Trouw.
Kipchoge coach and mentor: Patrick Sang
For the last 23 years, there has been one constant figure in Kipchoge’s life: Patrick Sang, the 3000m steeplechase Olympic silver medallist from Barcelona 1992.
Kipchoge first met Sang at the age of 16. The determined teen would always approach the coach and ask for training programmes.
“After he had done this a few times, I finally said ‘who are you?’ and he replied ‘I’m Eliud’. I gave him a two-week training programme and off he went. He came back two weeks later and said ‘what’s next?’ and that’s where it all began,” Sang shared in an interview with INEOS ahead of their 1:59 challenge in 2019, when Kipchoge became the first man to run a sub-two hour marathon.
Sang began training athletes in Kenya in 1997 at the end of his track career. Over the years, the 58-year-old has become more than a coach for the now legendary marathoner.
“What has happened between the two of us is that we've developed an element of serious trust to the point whereby he knows I'm there for the good of his development - for the development of his career and holistically as a person,” Sang told Olympic Channel in an interview ahead of Kipchoge’s historic run in Vienna.
“For 18 years, there is no day Eliud has asked me anything about training…he's never asked for the plan for the year, the plan for the week, the plan for the month, no.”
"He's given me that trust and it's a big mandate. In itself, it's a challenge because you have to think and go the extra mile not to disappoint."
Sang, who’s guided Kipchoge to three Olympic medals, two podium finishes at World Championships and 12 major marathon victories, feels that their relationship has changed.
“I was a role model to Eliud for many years and played the role of teacher because, for many years, it was possible to teach him something new. Before, I learned about the strength of the mind,” Sang said.
“Longevity is the new lesson. I'm learning that it makes a difference to give back to society, by really sticking longer in the sport because you will address different people in different segments of society, the longer you stay in the business.”
Sang is the founder of a training camp in Kaptagat where he trains Kipchoge alongside other athletes.
Kipchoge's physiotherapist: Peter Nduhiu
Recovery is very important for Kipchoge.
It is so crucial for him that - besides coach Sang - his other long time support staff has been his physiotherapist Peter Nduhiu.
The physio first worked with Kipchoge at the 2003 World Championships in Paris. Back then the youngster surprised Kenenisa Bekele and Hicham El Guerrouj to win 5000m gold.
Besides overseeing more than 20 athletes staying at the training camp, the highly respected veteran has been Kipchoge’s trusted physiotherapist.
“My role in the sporting life of Eliud is to make sure that I minimise the risk of injury, put in place programmes and systems that are able to minimise the risk of injury,” he told Olympics.com.
The Kenyan, who has accompanied national teams and star athletes to various top events around the world, believes Kipchoge’s strength of character and physical fitness have kept him relatively injury free since the slight discomfort that threatened his participation at the Beijing 2008 Olympics.
“I give it to him, if you tell him what to do, he will do exactly how you've prescribed it. He will take care of himself and if he feels something he will say, ‘Hey I felt this today in training, do I need to worry?’ then you tell him, ‘This we need to address or this is no problem’.”
Valentijn Trouw - Manager
Valentijn Trouw has been Kipchoge’s long-time manager and trusted confidant for the last 16 years.
The Dutchman has managed East African runners for over three decades.
In the lead up to Kipchoge’s major races, including the two world records in Berlin and the sub-2-hour marathon challenge, the athlete representative was the man tasked with leading the performance team that ensured the champion runner stayed fit and healthy.
Trouw works under the leadership of compatriot Jos Hermens, a former long-distance runner, who is the CEO of Global Sport Communication, the company that formed the NN Running Team in 2017.
When Trouw is not handing over water bottles, he is cycling alongside the 39-year-old, cheering him on and making sure he runs within the set split times.
Team Kipchoge: Nutrionist Armand Bettonviel
Elite runners follow a strict diet in order to deliver peak performance. Nutrition expert Armand Bettonviel guides the marathon king in this area.
The Dutchman is a known figure in the sporting world and has been involved in many Olympic medal winning campaigns.
His biggest challenge working with Kipchoge was designing a drinking plan for his sub two-hour run in Vienna, and ensuring the diet was ‘right for optimal metabolism’.
Claus-Henning Schulke: 'The bottle man’
He may not be constantly called upon, but Claus-Henning Schulke or better known as the ‘the bottle man’ has played a role in Kipchoge's world record races in Berlin.
The amateur triathlete, who’s worked as a volunteer at the Berlin Marathon for more than 25 years, first hooked up with Kipchoge in 2018 ahead of his 2:01.39 world record.
“We met in 2018 at the lobby of the hotel and trained the passing of the water bottle with a flower vase,” recalled Schulke in a video interview with NN Running Team.
“The day after the race, Eliud’s management called me and told me to go to the hotel. There his coach, Patrick Sang, came to me and said, ‘you have been so enthusiastic, and you have really been a part of this World Record’. At that moment, I recognised for the first time what my role was in this game.”
The 56-year-old German was again called upon to assist when Kipchoge returned for another World Record attempt in September 2022.
Schulke gladly accepted.
The project manager for a construction company explained how he individually handed the star each of his 13 bottles, saving him crucial milliseconds that may have helped Kipchoge reach his new mark of 2:01.09.
“There is a box with 40 bottles at every water station and you have to find Eliud’s bottle. Then you have to find your position at the aid station. Then I have another 20 seconds until he arrives. It’s always action, action and I like this very much. The best time is when he really grabs the bottle, and drinks and gets support from this.”