Kipruto happy to play second fiddle in Berlin
Former Rome Marathon champion Amos Kipruto leads training partners Solomon Yego (left), John Chepkwony (partially hidden), Dickson Chumba (second right) and Daniel Too during a training session in Kapsabet, Nandi County, on September 4, 2018. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA |
What you need to know:
- Kipruto came fifth position at the Amsterdam Marathon last year after suffering blisters towards the end of the race.
- “I was in good shape last year and I knew I was going to be in the podium but I got some blisters in my feet towards the end of the race and it made it hard for me to increase my pace. That is why I managed to take the fifth position then,” said Kipruto, who won in his debut marathon at the Rome Marathon (2:08:12) in 2016.
- He then finished 12th position in the Amsterdam Marathon where he clocked 2:09:06 the same year.
Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge and former world record holder Wilson Kipsang may be providing the talking points for this Sunday’s Berlin Marathon, but also look out for Amos Kipruto.
Kipchoge and Kipsang will be chasing the world record with Kipruto happy to provide the supporting cast.
Based in Kapsabet, Nandi County, Kipruto might be the next world beater going by his record lately.
He will be up again Kipsang (with a personal best time two hours, three minutes), Kipchoge (2:03:05), Eliud Kiptanui (2:05:21) and Eritrea’s Zersenay Tadese (2:10:41).
In his first major marathon this year in Tokyo, the athlete didn’t disappoint after coming in third position with his compatriot and training partner Dickson Chumba winning the race.
Kipruto is happy his training session went on well without any incident and is optimistic he will do well on Sunday.
“I will be targeting to run well and I will be looking forward to lower my personal best because Berlin has a fast course and I know it’s every athlete dream to run faster,” said Kipruto who is under the “2 Running Club” banner.
When Nation Sport caught up with him alongside his training partners in Kapsabet, Kipruto said he admires the way Kipsang and Kipchoge compete in the marathon races.
“I will be running against the best athletes in the world and it really motivates me. I will not be going for the marathon record but I also want to be in the podium after 42km,” added Kipruto.
He also said that his main target in the races is to get experience so that he can calculate how he can also one day be a world record holder.
"Running in Berlin will help me gain some experience and I know my time will come where I also want to be a world record holder," he said.
Kipruto came fifth position at the Amsterdam Marathon last year after suffering blisters towards the end of the race.
“I was in good shape last year and I knew I was going to be in the podium but I got some blisters in my feet towards the end of the race and it made it hard for me to increase my pace. That is why I managed to take the fifth position then,” said Kipruto, who won in his debut marathon at the Rome Marathon (2:08:12) in 2016.
He then finished 12th position in the Amsterdam Marathon where he clocked 2:09:06 the same year.
In 2017, Kipruto won Seoul Marathon after running in 2:05:54 before coming in fifth position in Amsterdam Marathon where he clocked 2:05:43.
He started the season well after participating in his first World Marathon Majors race in Tokyo where he emerged third.
His coach, Claudio Berardelli, says Kipruto is strong and should perform well in the race. "Kipruto has shown capability in his training and I know he is going to perform well on Sunday," said the coach.
Iten-based Kipsang, who is managed by Volare Sports Management and Kipchoge, who is under Global Sports Communication in Kaptagat, are both eyeing a world record.
The two athletes, who also met last year before Kipsang dropping out after 31 kilometres, expect a fast pace as they eye to lower Dennis Kimetto's world record time of 2:02:57.
