This archive report was first published on 9 October 2019.
On Tuesday, Eliud Kipchoge arrived in Vienna, Austria, to prepare for the INEOS 1:59 challenge, a marathon attempt to complete the distance in under two hours.
As part of his training, Kipchoge held his first run on the challenge course, accompanied by several pacemakers, including Ethiopian teenager Selemon Barega, who won a silver medal in the 5000m at the World Championships.
Among the other pacemakers were Justus Kimutai, a 2013 IAAF World Cross Country Silver medalist, Ronald Kwemoi, and Lopez Lomong of the USA.
With the INEOS 1:59 challenge set to take place this weekend, Kipchoge is poised to shatter his own record of two hours, one minute, and 39 seconds, set at the Berlin City marathon last year.
However, this will not be Kipchoge's first attempt to break the two-hour barrier. In May 2017, he came close in the Nike's Breaking2 project held at the Monza Formula one track in Italy.
Meanwhile, Safaricom has announced that it will rebrand its M-PESA logo for seven days to support Kipchoge's attempt and to empower Kenyans to support him.
The company has promised its subscribers a free SMS line to send congratulatory messages to Kipchoge and free bundles to stream the INEOS 1:59 challenge on YouTube.
Don't miss the live updates on KBC Channel One this Saturday.
