Police have arrested four people who visited marathon world record holder Kelvin Kiptum's house just four days before he died.
The 24-year-old and his coach, Garvais Hakizimana died on Sunday in a road crash in Kaptagat, while a female passenger, Sharon Chepkirui Kosgei, has since been discharged from a local hospital. Police said he had "lost control [of the vehicle] and veered off-road entering into a ditch on his left side" before driving "in the ditch for about 60 metres before hitting a big tree”.
Local reports say that police in Kenya's Keiyo South made the arrests in the days after Kiptum's father Samson Cheruiyot highlighted a visit by four strangers. The car Kiptum and Hakizimana were travelling in has also been recovered by police and moved to Eldoret to be examined, with autopsies being performed on the deceased.
Cheruiyot called on police to thoroughly investigate what happened to his son. Those arrested were initially held at Kaptagat police station in Elgeyo Marakwet County and have since been sent to Iten town for further questioning.
“There are people who came home a while back who were looking for Kiptum but they refused to identify themselves,” the marathon star's father told Citizen TV. “I asked them to provide identification, but they opted to leave. It was a group of four people.”
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He added: “I got the news of my son’s death while I was watching the news. I went to the scene of the accident but the police had taken the body to Eldoret. Kiptum was my only child. If he was alive, we would have great opportunities ahead. At our age, we don’t have any help and he has left children.”
Four individuals were summoned by the Elgeyo Marakwet County Criminal Investigations officer, Nation.Africa reported. Cheruiyot positively identified three of the men at Kaptagat police station, while their vehicle has also been seized.
Kelvin Kiptum ran the fastest ever time in the marathon in Chicago in October (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)Kiptum rose to prominence when he became only the third man ever to break two hours and two minutes for the marathon in Valencia in 2022. Less than a year later, he broke Eliud Kipchoge's world record during the Chicago marathon with a time of two hours and 35 seconds.
While describing his grief, Cheruiyot noted that his son believed he was capable of breaking the two-hour barrier.
"He said that his body is now fit, and he can now run for 1:59," said the runner's father, "Kiptum was my only child. He has left me, his mum, and his kids. I have no other child. His mum was sick for a while. Right now I’m deeply saddened.”
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