(WBBM NEWSRADIO) - The winner of last year’s Chicago Marathon has died unexpectedly.
Kelvin Kiptum was killed in a car crash in Western Kenya. It happened near his home in a high altitude area that’s known as a training base for long distance runners.
The 24-year-old won the Bank of America Chicago Marathon last October after setting a world record time of 2:00.35.
Executive Race Director of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon Carrie Pinkowski issued a statement on Kiptum’s death.
“We are shocked and saddened by the news of the recent death of Kelvin Kiptum,” Pinkowski said. “Kelvin was a once in a generation athlete at the front of his career and there is no doubt in my mind that his greatest achievements were ahead of him. We were lucky to witness his greatness on the streets of Chicago. While he will be celebrated for his record-breaking performances, I will remember him as an incredible talent and as an even more magnificent person. The sport of marathon running has suffered a tragic loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”
A third person, a 24-year-old woman, was also in the car and was taken to a hospital with serious injuries, police said. Kiptum and Hakizimana died at the scene.
Athletes and family members, including Kiptum's father, gathered at the hospital mortuary where the bodies of Kiptum and his coach were taken. One of the athletes, former women's steeplechase world champion Milcah Chemos, struggled to speak while breaking down in tears.
“I have no words to explain the loss of Kelvin,” she said.
Kenneth Kimaiyo, a friend of Kiptum, said he arrived at the crash scene soon after it happened and Kiptum had been thrown out of the car. Photos showed the silver car with a badly mangled roof and the windshield crushed flat.
Kiptum and marathon great Eliud Kipchoge were expected to provide an enticing all-Kenyan battle for marathon gold in Paris and Kiptum was due to start his season at the Rotterdam Marathon in April, which would have been his first event since breaking the world record.
“An athlete who had a whole life ahead of him to achieve incredible greatness,” Kipchoge said in a message paying tribute.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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