Fact Check: Viral photo of Eliud Kipchoge street in Germany's Berlin is fake

Eliud Kipchoge’s glorious win at the 2023 Berlin Marathon has driven social media berserk. Amidst the congratulatory messages for the 38-year-old, fans were excited to come across a post which indicated that a street in Germany has been named after Kipchoge. However, it turns out that the news is fake.

Kenyan runner Kipchoge recently made history by winning the Berlin Marathon for the fifth time in his career. The two-time Olympic gold medallist ran the men’s marathon in a time of 2:02:42, surpassing the legendary Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassie, who previously boasted four wins at the championship. With this, Kipchoge has become the only runner in the world to win the title five times.

Kipchoge at 2023 BMW Berlin-Marathon

Vincent Kipkemoi of Kenya was placed second with a time of 2:03:13 while Tadese Takele of Ethiopia came third in 2:03:24.

After Kipchoge’s great win, a user shared a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) and wrote,

“Eliud Kipchoge has a street in Germany named after him. He is the GOAT”

In no time, the internet was awash with congratulatory messages for the athlete. However, a section of X users clarified that the image was an edited one.

In fact, a Kenyan journalist named Abuga Makori debunked the news, while sourcing a Berlin-based researcher, who first clarified the information.

"There is NO such street in Germany in honour of the Greatest Marathoner of All Times Eliud Kipchoge. Such recognition can only be found in brands such as Nike and Adidas, says @johnnjenga. However, Kipchoge is cherished everywhere. Congratulations Eliud Kipchoge for making us proud though."

Here’s the post shared by the Berlin-based researcher:

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Eliud Kipchoge makes a strong comeback at 2023 Berlin Marathon

Kipchoge at 2023 BMW Berlin-Marathon

Undoubtedly, Eliud Kipchoge is one of the greatest long-distance runners of all time. However, the four-time winner of the London Marathon also had a bad day at the office at the Boston Marathon in April this year.

The 38-year-old who has a record of winning major international marathons, came sixth in Boston. Kipchoge clocked 2:09:23, which is the slowest marathon of his career. However, after the race, Kipchoge revealed that he developed an upper left leg issue about 18 miles into the marathon that led to his sixth-place finish.

However, Kipchoge committed in an Instagram post that he will return to his ‘special place’ in his next competition. True to his word, the athlete bounced back in style at the Berlin Marathon, where he had won previously in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022.