Legendary marathoner Eliud Kipchoge has been named the best male athlete of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Kenya's greatest of all times was feted at the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) Awards 2021 held in Greece on Sunday, October 24.
Kipchoge set a record, becoming only the third man to win gold back-to-back in the Olympic marathon. He joins Abebe Nikila of Ethiopia and Germany's Waldemar Cierpinski.
While receiving the award, Kipchoge stated that marathons mean life to him.
"When you win two Olympic gold medals back-to-back, its making history because only three people have done it, I'm happy to have done that in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics," he stated.
“The Tokyo 2020 Games was important Olympics ever because it brought hope to the whole world after the Covid-19 crashed the whole world. I enjoyed the track and field for 10 years and it is good I made a huge transfer to the road and make a huge mark and inspire the whole world to love the sport and spread positivity,” Kipchoge added.
Kipchoge was nominated for thee awards alongside Karsten Warholm, Damian Warner, Miltiadis Tentoglou, Daniel Stahl, Pedro Pichardo, Ryan Crouser, Joshua Cheptegei, Mondo Duplantis and Jakob Ingebrigtsen.
Kenyan athlete and reigning 1500m gold medalist, Faith Kipyegon, was nominated for the female world athlete of the year.
However, Canadian swimmer and three-time Olympic gold medalist, Margaret MacNeil, was announced the best female athlete of Tokyo 2020.
Kipchoge's win comes exactly 10 days after he landed a new role. On October 14, Kipchoge noted that he has been appointed as Ambassador for Paris 2024 Olympics games.
This will see him have a go at defending his marathon title for the second time in a row.
