President William Ruto has extended his congratulations to Benson Kipruto following his impressive performance in the men’s marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Kipruto clinched the bronze medal with a time of 2:07:00, securing Kenya’s place on the marathon podium.
In a statement posted on X, President Ruto praised Kipruto for his remarkable achievement, saying;
“Bravo Benson Kipruto for your outstanding performance in the men’s marathon, successfully securing our position in the long-distance race. We salute you for bringing the bronze medal home.”
The marathon, which was won by Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola in an Olympic record time of 2:06.26, saw Belgium’s Bashir Abdi finishing second with a season-best time of 2:06.47.
Kipruto’s performance was notable as he outpaced many elite runners, including the defending champion Eliud Kipchoge, who struggled throughout the race.
Kipchoge, 39, began experiencing difficulties at the 15-kilometre mark and eventually fell from eighth to 16th position by the 19-kilometre mark, ultimately not finishing the race.
The competition was marked as one of the toughest in history, also proving challenging for other elite runners such as Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele, who finished in 39th place.
