Eliud Kipchoge insists that he will use his Nike shoes at the London Marathon on Sunday
- Kipchoge has confirmed that he will be competing in the Alphafly Next shoe
- The World Marathon record holder used the same shoe when he attempted and completed the INEOS 1:59 challenge in Vienna, Austria in 2019
- Mental Health and Psychosocial considerations during the COVID-19 pandemic
Eliud Kipchoge insists that he will use his Nike shoes at the London Marathon on Sunday.
The World Marathon record holder has insisted that he will use the Nike shoes at the London Marathon, stating that the shoe is not a breach of the spirit of sport.
Kipchoge used the Alphafly Next% shoe that he wore in becoming the first athlete to break two hours in Vienna last October.
While the shoes are expected to be deemed compliant with World Athletics rules around sole thickness and carbon plates, there is a question of the ethics of trainers that improve running economy by an estimated five to eight per cent.
Speaking at the London Marathon pre-race press conference, Kipchoge said:
“We are now doing a press conference virtually. Is that not technology? We need to accept technology in our hearts and move on. We want development in the world and we should accept and marry technology,”
“We live in the 21st century whereby first we need to accept change. Secondly development goes hand in hand with technology. The shoe is good and an accepted technology pattern.”
Meanwhile, his biggest competitor of the day, Kenenisa Bekele, the man who came two seconds close to breaking his world record in Berlin last year will retain the Nike Vapor Fly shoe in the race.
The two will line up against each other in a bio-secure running loop at the St. James’ Park in London on Sunday morning, in what has been billed as the race of the century featuring the world’s two fastest marathoners.
