Marathon legend Eliud Kipchoge is set to make his debut in sports administration after being nominated to vie for the Male Athlete Representative position in the upcoming National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) elections slated for April 24, joining a competitive race that also features Kenya Sevens captain Grace Adhiambo Okulu in the women’s category.

Elucidating on the athlete representatives, Barnaba Korir, who is vying for the position of First Vice Chairman in Shadrack Maluki’s camp, explained:

“Concerning the nomination of athlete representatives, I think even before the declarations were made, there was a discussion on how athlete representatives would be picked, so this was given to the federations to nominate. The federations unanimously decided to nominate Eliud Kipchoge, having gone through all considerations, pros and cons.

The reason is self-explanatory: Eliud is an icon. And his presence in the committee will be an added advantage.”

Maluki, who is the outgoing First Vice Chairman of NOC-K, will take on outgoing Secretary General Francis Mutuku for the post of President.

Kipchoge is a two-time Olympic marathon champion in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, and was the world record holder in the marathon from 2018 to 2023, until that record was broken by Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon.

Kipchoge has run three of the 10 fastest marathons in history.

He claimed his first individual world championship title in 2003 by winning the junior race at the World Cross Country Championships and setting a world junior record in the 5000m.

Okulu was the only scorer against Fiji in their placing match at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast.

She also played a crucial role in her team’s qualification for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, as she was a dependable try-scorer during their qualifiers in Tunisia.

In 2021, Okulu made her fifteens debut in the Lionesses’ Rugby World Cup qualifying match against Colombia in Nairobi.

She scored five points from a conversion and a penalty in her side’s loss. Okulu signed with the Japanese, Kitakyushu-based club, Nagato Blue Angels, on a six-month contract at the beginning of 2023.

She was named in Kenya’s fifteens squad on 3 October 2023 for the inaugural WXV 3 tournament, which was held in Dubai.