What’s next for the marathon GOAT after flopping in Boston? | CBC Sports

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Monday’s Boston Marathon was a memorable one. As the city marked 10 years since the deadly bombing that shook the world’s oldest annual marathon to its core, Eliud Kipchoge made his long-awaited Boston debut.

The 38-year-old Kenyan is widely regarded as the greatest marathoner of all time after winning back-to-back Olympic gold medals in 2016 and ’21 and running four of the six fastest marathons of all time — including the current world record of 2:01:09 last fall in Berlin. Kipchoge also broke the fabled two-hour barrier in 2019 under carefully manufactured conditions in Vienna, but it doesn’t count as a record because he was furnished with certain non-sanctioned advantages including a rotating cast of pacesetters and a lead car that used lasers to project the optimal path on the road.

It’s also worth noting that Kipchoge set his unofficial and official world-record times while wearing Nike’s cutting-edge racing shoes, which feature a propulsive carbon-fibre plate. But these shoes have been ruled legal by World Athletics, and virtually all elite marathoners now wear some type of carbon-fibre shoe — whether Nike’s or one of the other brands that have followed with their own versions.

Recently, Kipchoge has shifted his focus from lowering the world record, which he’s owned since 2018, to becoming the first runner to win all six World Marathon Majors. He’s already won Berlin and London four times each and Tokyo and Chicago once, leaving only Boston and New York to conquer.

Until Monday, Kipchoge had never attempted either of the two most prestigious U.S.-based marathons. So the hype was quite large when he tackled the granddaddy of them all in Boston.

It did not work out. On a drizzly but otherwise comfortable day for distance running, Kipchoge went out hard and fronted the lead pack for much of the early part of the race. But he fell off around the 19-mile mark of the 26.2-mile route, unable to keep pace with the leaders amid the notorious Newton Hills. Kipchoge finished sixth in 2:09:23 — a distant 3½ minutes behind fellow Kenyan Evans Chebet, who repeated as men’s champion. It was Kipchoge’s first marathon loss since October 2020 and just his third defeat in 18 career marathons.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Kipchoge said he developed a left-leg issue at around the point he faded from the lead pack. He dismissed suggestions that he could have altered his strategy by tucking back in the pack to conserve energy, and that perhaps he’s not suited for the hilly Boston course.

So, what’s next for Kipchoge? He said he hasn’t planned his next race, and that the Boston outcome “actually destabilized everything and I need to go back, rearrange again, and come back with a solid program.”

If collecting the six majors is still Kipchoge’s goal, then making his New York City Marathon debut in November would seem like the logical choice. But New York is a tough one too — not as hilly as Boston, but significantly less flat than the Berlin and London courses that Kipchoge likes best. Kipchoge also said yesterday that he’s not giving up on Boston and “absolutely” plans to run it again — and win.

Beyond that, Kipchoge confirmed last year that he wants to compete in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, where he can become the first person in history to win three Olympic marathon gold medals. He’s currently tied with Ethiopia’s Abebe Bikila (1960, ’64) and East Germany’s Waldemar Cierpinski (1976, ’80) for the record of two Olympic titles.

One last note on the Boston Marathon: With few elite Canadian runners competing this year, the fastest Canadian was Calum Neff — the guy who holds the world record for fastest marathon while pushing a stroller. Neff ran 2:22:11 on Monday (about nine minutes quicker than his stroller time) to finish 40th in the men’s race. Liza Howard placed 40th in the women’s in 2:40:14. Three-time Paralympian Josh Cassidy, who won the 2012 Boston Marathon wheelchair race, placed 19th in 1:47:02. Read more about Cassidy in this story by CBC Sports’ Doug Harrirson.