Kenyan athlete Athlethe Eliud Kipchoge has addressed the press for the first time since he left the country for Paris, where he was participating in the Olympics.

Speaking to the press at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport arrivals, Kipchoge opened up, admitting that he is also human and that losing doesn’t change who he is, as shortcomings are part of life and all they do is prepare you for what is to come.

Kipchoge used a rabbit narrative to explain the reason why he didn’t win the Paris competition, despite being a competitive athlete who has won gold medals over and over again.

“I am Kenyan and African… They say you cannot chase two rabbits at the same time. Paris was another rabbit, and I need to go back and check for another rabbit, which means I will go back to the drawing board and see what opportunities are there for me to grab.” Kipchoge started off.

In creating an emphasis to prove his point, he stressed the need for the public to understand that failure will always be a part of life, as what it does is remind you to always thread carefully and be prepared well next time.

“Failure must come in so that you realize success, and success must come in so that you realize failure is in, We need to bring all of that together, build a line, and resect all of our ideologies.”

Eliud emphasized further that the Olympics are not all about winning medals; they are about participation and representing your country first of all before everything else unfolds.

“Olympics is not about winning medals; it is about participation, First you participate, you represent your country, and then you compete to earn medals. That is why it is called the Olympics.” Eliud said.

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Why Kipchoge didn’t finish his race

On August 10, at the Paris Olympics final, Eliud Kipchoge failed to finish his race, saying the reason was because a back injury that forced him to drop out of the Olympic marathon in Paris 2024 in the first ‘DNF’ of his marathon career.

He dropped in the first half of the race, but pushed on to the 31 km before stepping off the course with further physical pain in his waist.

“I had a pain in my back at about 20 km and decided not to finish and try to get out,” he said.

He has however been backed by many Kenyans and the public at large with others telling him that one race will not define his career and all that he has accomplished as he should not give up on it yet.

Eliud Kipchoge, EGH, is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000 meters.