Eliud Kipchoge has quietly released the first episode of a new YouTube miniseries called Eliud’s Running World, published this week without prior announcement. The nine-minute film follows the two-time Olympic marathon champion as he made his African marathon debut at the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in May, marking the start of a three-year mission to run a marathon on every continent.
The 41-year-old Kenyan, who owns a personal best of 2:01:09 and holds 11 Abbott World Marathon Majors titles, has framed this new chapter as a shift away from chasing records. In the episode, he speaks directly to camera about why he is taking on the challenge now.
“It’s my time to actually give back and run for a purpose. It’s my time to go to all the continents, to promote running to the world. My time to go across the continents to raise funds for my foundation. To build libraries and do other things which can help an African child.”
He adds later: “I’ve been in the sport for the last 24 years, and it’s now time that I give back, and try to enjoy. Get out of the limelight of breaking records and winning medals, but at the same time, be on the platform of running, still enjoy what the sport is offering.”
What Happens In Episode 1
The Cape Town episode blends race-day footage with community visits. Kipchoge is welcomed at Cape Town Airport, greeted by cheering crowds, and taken to Langa, the oldest township in the city, where he tours a school feeding program.
“I visited Langa, that’s the oldest township here in Cape Town,” Kipchoge says in the film. “I saw how the education has impacted the vulnerable children, those who actually can’t access education, how they learn and how they love education. The feeding program in Langa is actually extraordinary.”
He also meets Springbok rugby captain Siya Kolisi and 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning captain Francois Pienaar. Kolisi’s own foundation focuses on gender-based violence, sports and education, and poverty. Kipchoge praises Kolisi’s work funding two meals a day and school fees for children across South African townships, and says he wants to “take a branch from it” for other African cities.
Of Pienaar, whose leadership alongside Nelson Mandela helped unite the country through the 1995 Rugby World Cup, Kipchoge says: “I like integrity and honesty. If you’re not honest with yourself, you can’t be a good leader. That was actually important for me to hear how a human being can sacrifice his thinking and his ego for the sake of 43 million South Africans.”
Pienaar’s personal motto, framed in his office and shown in the film, reads: “Determination, dedication, discipline.”
Race Day And A Family First
On race morning, Kipchoge lined up alongside roughly 15,000 runners. Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis held the peace flame at the start with Pienaar and Kolisi at his side. The Kenyan’s wife, Grace, also ran the race — her first marathon.
“I’m happy that Grace has joined the marathon, also to feel how it feels to run a marathon, to finish a marathon,” Kipchoge says. “She crossed the finish line, and I think she’s a different person. She’s well-accomplished now.”
Kipchoge is visibly moved by the course atmosphere. “It was a huge experience to run with 15,000 Africans, especially from South Africa,” he says. “Cape Town is a huge, huge difference to other marathons. South Africa is actually made and mold by singing. And all along the course, you heard people singing, dancing. Before you start anything, you need to sing. In order for you to get motivated and ready to go.”
He closes the episode with a reflection that anchors the series: “Humanity is about helping somebody else. Humanity is about giving a hand, to where you can see vulnerability. It’s being a human being. Another human for another human. And that’s how to live.”
Next Stop: Porto Alegre
The Cape Town film arrives days before the next leg of the project. Kipchoge is scheduled to race the NB42K Porto Alegre Marathon in Brazil on Sunday, 12 July, the second stop on the Eliud’s Running World tour.
The return to Brazil carries weight. Kipchoge won his first Olympic marathon gold there at the Rio 2016 Games, clocking 2:08:44 to win by 70 seconds. That time remains the fastest marathon ever run on South American soil.
“Running connects people beyond borders, cultures and backgrounds. Returning to Brazil after winning my first Olympic gold medal at the Rio Olympic Games is very special for me. The energy, the passion and the love for running here are extraordinary. I look forward to sharing this moment with the people of Porto Alegre. We may speak different languages, but when we run, we become one because I believe running is a universal language.”
The NB42K Porto Alegre Marathon, established in 2024, is the only marathon in Brazil holding World Athletics Elite Label status. The flat, fast course starts at the Monumento ao Expedicionário and finishes at Harmonia Park, with a 7 a.m. local start. The race will be livestreamed free on YouTube.
The Bigger Plan
After Africa and South America, Kipchoge plans to race marathons across Asia, Europe, Oceania and North America before closing the project with a marathon in Antarctica. The full arc is expected to take three years.
Beyond the racing, he plans to use each stop to fundraise for the Eliud Kipchoge Foundation, which supports library-building and education programs for children in Africa, and to meet local running communities along the way. It’s a very different chapter than the one that made him the first man to break the two-hour marathon barrier — and, based on this first episode, one he seems ready for.
Whether future episodes will drop with the same lack of warning as the Cape Town one remains to be seen. For now, the first film is live on YouTube.
RunClub
Get more running stories — join RunClub
Daily running news, a community of 300,000+ runners, free training plans for every distance, and a daily running game. Free to join — no card.
Already a member? Log in →
Start the conversation