For the first time since they each became 2:01 marathoners, Eliud Kipchoge and Kenenisa Bekele will square off over 26.2 miles as Bekele was announced for the 2020 London Marathon field that will take place on April 26.
It's happening. 🤯#LondonMarathon #EliteWeek pic.twitter.com/rQcmsUguTv
— Virgin Money London Marathon (@LondonMarathon) January 16, 2020
The 37-year-old Bekele, who stunned the running world last September with 2:01:41 performance in Berlin that missed Kipchoge’s world record by only two seconds, will race the Kenyan for the first time since 2018 in London.
Kipchoge, the winner of the last two London marathons and four overall, has never lost to Bekele in the marathon and will run his first race since his unthinkable 1:59:40 last October at an exhibition in Vienna. With his lone loss in the distance coming back in 2013, Kipchoge is as close to unbeatable as is possible in such a grueling distance.
But Bekele’s run in Berlin marked a career resurgence— it was his first marathon win since 2016— that seemingly puts him within striking distance of the greatest marathoner of all-time. Beating Kipchoge would be a colossal achievement for the three-time Olympic gold medalist on par with his bevy of hardware earned on the track.
A career that up until recently appeared to be fading into the sunset now has a chance to tack on a milestone that could define the event forever.
