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Discovered by a University of Texas scout, he landed a running scholarship and eventually won a silver medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Spain. As a child, Kipchoge would gather with friends around a black and white television to watch Sang compete. By 2002, Sang had become a coach; Kipchoge, who made his living delivering milk on the back of a bicycle, decided to seek him out for advice on running.
Since then, Sang has been the architect and Kipchoge the contractor who follows his designs: the grueling workouts on the track in the early morning; long drives to the edge of the Rift Valley escarpment; six days a week in a Spartan camp away from his wife and children. (The camp, part of the Dutch athletics management group Global Sports Communication, closed in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, although Kipchoge and his teammates have continued to train in groups under Sang’s guidance.)
Kipchoge was among the best in the world on the track for a decade before finding his true calling in the marathon. In 2016 he won the Olympic marathon in Brazil. The following year, he missed breaking the two-hour barrier at a special event organized by Nike on a Formula 1 circuit in Italy.
After back-to-back victories in the London Marathon and his official world record of 2:01:39 in Berlin, Kipchoge accepted an offer from Jim Ratcliffe, the billionaire chairman of the British chemical company Ineos, to attempt another stab in what some called the last great barrier to running. The image of him, in white shoes and a T-shirt, floating through the streets of Vienna on his way to 1:59:40, is now engraved in the pantheon of sport.
Kipchoge has the raw physical talent needed for racing, but the qualities that put him above the rest, Sang and several teammates said in interviews, involve his unmatched combination of discipline, self-confidence and psychological mettle. Sang spoke of Kipchoge’s ability to “focus a little bit more” during training, at key moments in races, and to avoid the distractions of fame and wealth.
Many of Kenya’s stars have gone astray due to alcohol or bad investments. Kipchoge avoids nightlife for the tranquility of the camp, where he helps with daily chores and spends his free time reading books.
