Tuesday morning marked a historic moment in the country’s
history when the Olympic marathon champ Eliud Kipchoge took a first direct
flight from Kenya to Austria.
The World record holder was picked from Eldoret International
Airport express to Vienna where he is scheduled to attempt running the marathon
in under two hours, with the “INEOS 1:59 Challenge”.
The flight is history in the making, considering Kipchoge,
34, as the first Kenyan to have flown direct from Kenya to Europe without making
a stop.
His flight was well orchestrated by the Kenya Airport
Authority staff at the Eldoret International Airport on Monday night, who received
Gulfstream G280, owned by one of Great Britain’s richest persons, Sir Jim
Ratcliffe.
The Marathon challenged is being bankrolled by Sir Sir Jim,
owner of chemical firm INEOS.
According to daily nation, Gulfstream was registered in
Britain on March 4, 2016, under registration number M-INTY.
The jet is valued at Sh2.4 billion and its last sightings
have been on the British Isles, the residence of Sir Ratcliffe.
“The call made to fly Kipchoge from Kenya to Vienna was the
first stage of a pre-agreed decision process by the INEOS 1:59 Performance team
to select the best date for the INEOS 1:59 Challenge,” read a statement by the
event organizers.
Therefore, Kipchoge’s window to run has now been narrowed to
October 12 to 14, with a target date being Saturday, October 12.
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