World's greatest marathon runner drops out of Paris Olympic race

World's greatest marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge takes a TAXI to the finish line in Paris after he was forced to walk and then quit the race
Eliud Kipchoge is seen stopping during the Paris Olympic marathon, allowing the last-placed runner to overtake him before Kipchoge drops out and enters a van

Eliud Kipchoge bowed out of the race by handing out his shoes and socks to fans
The two-time Olympic gold medalist was reduced to walking before quitting
He allowed the last-placed athlete to get past him as viewers showed their love

Eliud Kipchoge, the world's greatest marathon runner, took a taxi to the finish line after quitting the event at the Paris Games.

The two-time Olympic gold medalist, competing at the age of 39, stopped to allow last-placed Ser-Od Bat-Ochir to overtake him after 31 kilometres.

He handed his shoes and socks to fans lining the road as the crowd cheered and clapped before disappearing into an Olympic van, perhaps the last glimpse of a legend at the Games.


Kipchoge had been in the leading pack in the first 10k and dropped back to around a minute behind the frontrunners at the half-way mark. He was one of 10 runners unable to finish.

Ethiopian Tamirat Tola claimed gold with an Olympic record time of 2:06:26, with Great Britain's Emile Cairess missing out on a podium spot by 27 seconds in fourth.