Kipchoge eyes World marathon title after win in Delhi

Kenya's Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge wants to go for a double in London next year following his victory in the Delhi Half Marathon last Sunday.

First he will put everything aside to focus on defending his title at the London Marathon in April 2017 and also hopes to return to the English capital in August next year to compete at the World Championships, reports Xinhua.

"I like running in London. It is a great city with the fans cheering you along. Retaining my title in April will be a great deal, but to win the World Championships will be a better reward," he said on Tuesday in Nairobi.

Kipchoge is back in the country after he won the Delhi half marathon on Sunday clocking 59:44, three months after taking the Olympic marathon title in Rio, and pocketed the winner's cheque of $27,000.

It was a good move for Kipchoge, who returned to the city after taking the 2010 Commonwealth Games 5,000m silver medal six years ago.

"The running conditions were good, my training was good and with the right guidance from my coach (1992 Olympic steeplechase silver medallist Patrick Sang), I was able to win the race," Kipchoge said.

"Along the route the crowd was also cheering us and that helped to further motivate us."

For now, he will take a deserved rest and hope to return to training later next month as he plans for another eventful season in 2017. But winning both the Olympic and world marathon title will be a major boost for the 32-year-old.

However, making the Kenyan squad to the World Championships in London is not purely his choice and he has to wait for the selectors' call.

--IANS

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