Legendary marathoner Kenenisa Bekele is not hanging his spikes anytime soon as he gears up for the Valencia Marathon. He is among the hot favorites and much anticipated for a surprise comeback.
The 41-year-old has been in the game for more than 20 years and he will be hoping to maintain his legacy once he takes on the starting line of the event.
He opened his season at the London Marathon where he failed to finish the race and he will be hoping to rise from the ashes in the streets of Valencia. The 2019 Berlin Marathon champion will be facing off against a very quality field.
Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei will be making his debut in the streets of Valencia with the hope of a podium finish.
The Kenyan charge will be led by former world half marathon record holder Kibiwott Kandie, Titus Kipruto, and Alexander Mutiso who triumphed at the Prague Marathon earlier this year.
Bekele will be joining his compatriots Sisay Lemma and Leul Gebresilase and the trio will seek to finish in the podium bracket.
Bekele will have his work cut out considering he is yet to win a race since reigning supreme at the Vitality Big Half Marathon in 2020. He finished third at the Berlin Marathon and sixth at the TCS New York Marathon.
In 2022, the Ethiopian legend finished third at the Great North Run and went ahead to finish fifth at the Berlin Marathon when Eliud Kipchoge broke the world record.
Kelvin Kiptum’s course record time of 2:01:53 that he set last year could be in danger with the quality field that has been assembled.
