The 24-year-old father of two, tragically died in a late-night car crash on 11 February, just months after setting a new marathon record in Chicago with a time of 2:00:35. 

His sudden loss reverberated globally, prompting sports fans to reflect on the last significant milestone in modern athletics and what could have been at the Paris 2024 Games this August.

"He was a young man; he was just coming up; he was only 24; and he had just broken the world record. And so everybody was really devastated," Athletics Kenya president Jackson Tuwei told AFP.

"What was so sad was that everybody was looking to him to do well in the Olympics and maybe lower the marathon record below two hours. Everybody was looking forward to having him in good shape so he could break another record. What we need to do now is to follow up and see how we can support the family," he added.

Despite only competing in three marathons, Valencia 2022, London 2023, and Chicago 2023, Kiptum won all three, recording three of the seven fastest times in history. 

Tuwei attended the World Health Organisation's annual assembly in Geneva, where he was joined by Kenya's 800 meters world record holder David Rudisha. Together, they advocated for clean air for athletes.

"Kelvin was such a wonderful athlete. He showed the world that there's still more that can be achieved," Rudisha told AFP. "He was very impressive. He came up within a very short time. Nobody really knew him that much until he broke the world record.

"It was really sad for Kenya, because when we have such athletes, who bring pride into our country, and especially in a year like this when he was at the top, we were expecting that he could win an Olympic medal. It was a great loss for Kenya and a great loss for sport."