Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge received a special surprise by British billionaire ahead of his historic feat in Vienna, Austria.
On Monday, October 7, Kipchoge was treated to the opulence of travelling in a Ksh1.4 billion jet, owned by one of Great Britain's richest citizens, Sir Tom Ratcliffe.
Daily Nation reported that Kenya Airport Authority staff at Eldoret International Airport received and saw off Ratcliffe's Gulfstream G280, which had been flown by two pilots from his home country.
It then flew Kipchoge and his technical staff to Vienna, where they were scheduled to land on Tuesday, October 8.
The Gulfstream, M-INTY, was registered in Britain on March 4, 2016, and is valued at Ksh1.4 billion. After taking off from Eldoret, the plane flew through Cairo, Egypt, where it fuelled.
Kipchoge, 34, has been rehearsing for the upcoming 42-kilometre marathon challenge dubbed the INEOS 1:59 Challenge, in which he will try to break the 2-hour record time.
This will be Kipchoge's second attempt at the challenge.
Kipchoge was only 26 seconds shy of breaking the 2-hour world record in 2017 back in Italy and expressed optimism in the upcoming challenge.
The marathon legend will run on October 12 but the time of the race is yet to be announced.
"Once the date is set, the exact start time for the INEOS 1:59 Challenge will be confirmed the day before.
"The start time will be between 5 am – 9 am local time (6 am - 10 am, Kenyan time)," read a statement from the organisers on Monday, October 7.
National Olympics Committee (NOC) Secretary-General, Francis Mutuku, wished the national hero success in his historic feat.
"We are very proud of him as Kenyans. He is such a great athlete, a person, and a role model to very many youngsters especially at this time the country is gearing towards Olympics. We wish him success. We believe he has trained and prepared himself well and we believe the environment will be okay.
"This milestone will maintain our status as a great nation. It is a story that will be told for years to come. Whichever way it goes, it will be in everyone's mind across the world. We should seize this moment to increase the stature of Kenya," Mutuku asserted while speaking to Kenyans.co.ke on phone.
In September 2019, a Spanish athlete, in the company of her friends, flew into Kenya to give support to and declare her love for Kipchoge.
Speaking on Wednesday, September 25, Paula Cobo affirmed that she was in love with the marathon champion in the full glare of cameras.
"I'm in love with him. I wish him all the luck in the world. I would love him to beat the record," admitted the already blushing Spaniard.
