So much for wanting to win all the majors and prove he can win a non-flat course: Kipchoge to Berlin

I'm sure some care because they want him to do a US marathon. For me it really isn't about that. It's about doing the same marathons, that are all flat, over and over outside of the Olympics and I look at the Olympics as somewhat separate. If there were/is a major marathon similar to Boston/NYC outside of the US in terms of hills/difficulty, I'd be just as excited to see him do that. His marathon's have been a one trick pony and its just boring. Doesn't change that he's a great guy and all of that. Just disappointed as a fan

I think this is the difference between a being a fan of the sport and sports fans in general or even the general population. As a fan of the sport, it will be amazing if he breaks the wr again or if he wins in NY. However, nobody outside those very focused on competitive running are going to care if he breaks another wr in Berlin. My family are good all around sports fans. They know Kipchoge. I promise you they don’t care about a new wr. However, when he runs NY there will be enormous hype beyond the running world. He’ll be on the cover of the NY papers and USA Today, he’ll be interviewed on all the national news shows, he will be on the Today show and GMA, maybe even Saturday Night Live. At least for the American media, Kipchoge in NY, especially winning NY is a FAR bigger story than another wr in Berlin. I realize this is an American centric view of things, but I’m American.

For crying out loud, can't the man live his own life? Would you change your tune if he set another WR?

Unless he is going for a WR (which he might be), this is about money, which he, his team, his coach, his training camp, etc., got offered. Not even a cynical person, and I don’t object to what he is doing at all, but you’re delusional if you think it’s for some other reason.

The man has two Olympic gold medals, the WR and the most incredible incredible marathon record ever. He doesn’t need to prove anything to you or anyone else. He can run whatever course he wants and chase whatever goals he wants.

Unless Nike has some new pogo shoe made of aerogel, he's not touching sub 2.

London and Tokyo are fast courses too and he's a consistent 2:02 guy there.

"Think about it. The original marathon was not flat."

The original marathon wasn't 26.2 either. Let Kipchoge do his thing.

This sort of post is precisely the reason why many pros don’t take Letsrun seriously as a media/journalism outlet. The dude just annihilated the rest of the world by 1:20 less than a year ago at the Olympics and now you’re accusing him of ducking competition because at 37 he’d rather attack his world record while it’s still attainable than compete on a course that’s more “challenging”. Not only has he smashed top NY and Boston finishers in other races, but the implication that Kipchoge is somehow afraid to run races with hills is a supremely embarrassing take. But yeah, good luck with your shirts.

Some of the takes in this thread are so stupid that only Americans are capable of them. The amount of global press coverage a world record gets is far more than winning an American major marathon. Not to mention if he manages to break 2 hours. Then he would be front page news in every country once again. Winning NY? Not so much

Also Kipchoge is at least 40, this is well known. Western beliefs about the decline of endurance running performance with age are slightly mistaken, the decline comes later than most people think.

You may be right. He is getting up there and definitely doesn't have 10 years left. I would personally love to see him go for it. This is probably the best chance we will have at seeing a real sub 2 in the next 7-10 years. Why not be excited at the possibility?

Reasons for going for it at Berlin:

He did set the current WR in Berlin, he's comfortable running fast there. He probably knows where he could make up time. He'll get the right pacers who can bring him through the half under 60 minutes. I'm sure this is going through his mind now.

Or, maybe they just offered him more money to seal the deal. that's cool too.

As I referenced above, my view is an American centric view. Yes, in the United States, even just competing in NY for the first time is a far bigger deal than winning in Berlin (again) and setting the wr by a few seconds (again). I guess in Oslo that’s not true. How about if he falls short of the wr and just wins Berlin for the 5th time. C’mon, that’s a snooze fest. Don’t you think most Norwegian marathon fans would prefer to see him take on a new challenge? Yes, if he breaks two hours in a real race, any race, people will go bonkers. Do you really think that’s on the table? Maybe he’ll set the wr in NY. That’s about as likely….

Valencia is the fastest and best organised marathon.

Well, Kipchoge is not American so why is everyone expecting him to view this through an American lens. And breaking a WR is really, really hard. Even for a GOAT. I would say it's a lot harder than just winning NY.

Any even if he can't break 2 maybe it's still about putting the record out there so it won't be broken for a long time. Twenty years from now sports fans will be more likely to know who holds the current marathon WR than who won NYC in 2022. The records of Bolt, El G, FloJo, Rudisha, etc. all have a life of their own. Anytime someone gets close it serves to remind everyone how great the record holder was.

I think he is going for the record figuring it is probably his last opportunity and he will still have a few more years to win NYC or Boston. Makes sense to me.

A random win in NY is nothing compared to the wr. That’s true. Winning all the majors, however, that’s different AND he already holds the WR. Regardless of how fast he runs, someday his wr will fall. Being the first to win all the majors, that can never be taken from him. If he does all of it, so much the better, but again, if this decision amounts to trading his best chance to win all the majors versus shaving a few more seconds off the record, “hitting for the cycle” is more important for his legacy. If he did break 2 in a race, that would be different, but this seems very very unlikely.

The name of the game is Money, he most likely got more from Berlin, also NYC and Boston, the weather can be a factor and we all saw what happened in London a couple of years ago, he did not fare well in wet cold conditions.

he won the 2 last Olympics by more than a minute, dropping people in the 2nd half. he's the only person to have broken 2 hours. what more does he have to prove?

It is stretch to say that NY and Boston are "majors" in the same sense as Wimbledon, the French Open, or frankly the Masters, or British open in Golf. EVERYONE who is great in golf or tennis plays those events every year. Are Boston and NY historic events and courses? Absolutely! Are all the greats there every year? Far from it. There is nothing to call Kipchoge out for, he is not avoiding competition. If his priority is chasing world records, that is every bit if not more valid than running and winning on a particular course? The reality is NY or Boston wouldn't validate Kipchoge's greatness, he would validate their importance. He has no responsibility to do that.