‘MY FAMILY WAS THREATENED’ ELIUD KIPCHOGE ON ACCUSATIONS LINKING HIM TO KELVIN KIPTUM’S DEATH

Long-distance running icon Eliud Kipchoge, has for the first time, spoke about the challenging period following the tragic death of marathon star Kelvin Kiptum, during which he was falsely accused by sections of the public of being involved in the fatal accident.

While emotionally recounting the events, Kipchoge detailed how a moment of personal grief over the loss of a fellow athlete quickly spiralled into a nightmare of online conspiracy and threats.

The marathon hero explained that he first learned of Kiptum’s death through a conversation with a security guard. Misunderstanding the initial information, he thought the accident had occurred up-country. It was only upon checking his phone later that morning that the full weight of the tragedy and the accompanying horror of the accusations hit him.

“I opened my phone to see what’s happening social media everywhere was ‘Eliud killed Kiptum through a road accident and I was really down.”Kipchoge recounted.

The accusation, which spread like wildfire online, left the veteran athlete grappling with a sense of disbelief and hurt.  “How on earth can I kill a small boy? I am the oldest athlete in this country. The guy has only spent three years in running. I have spent 23 years in running.”

The rumours extended far beyond online abuse. Kipchoge revealed that his family was thrust into a state of fear and insecurity. He and his wife were forced to change their daily routines, specifically how their children traveled to school, due to direct threats.

“My family was threatened. We even changed how my boys used to go to school. My wife started to drop them to school because of a lot of threats,” he said.

The stigma followed him into his community, “For the last 20 years, I have never been tribal… But because I am a Nandi, I was discussed that ‘this is the man who kills people,’” he stated.

The following morning, people in his own town distanced themselves from him. “Everybody was actually running away. ‘This one might actually take our lives again,’” he recalled people thinking.

Having seen the rumours online herself, the 70-year-old matriarch called her son with a message of hope. “She told me, ‘A lot is going on, but take heart, these things will pass,’” Kipchoge shared his amazement that his mother had been exposed to the vicious online world.