Eliud Kipchoge Just Proved EVERYONE Wrong... 

Picking between these two is like picking between your 2 children. You just cannot pick one. Absolute legends 🔥

If there's anyone who could challenge Bekele as the GOAT, it's Kipchoge, but I'm gonna have to go with Bekele. That Cross Country streak has got to be the most insane feat I've ever heard of

It is such a specialized world today that it is hard to compare. Kipchoge has revolutionized the marathon but Bekele absolutely dominated cross country. It is almost like comparing apples to oranges. Both dominated at their preferred races.

Kipchoge's form is unfazed and solid at end of a marathon while still at fast, constant pace. Unbelievable beast in the long run.

Bekele wins at 10k and shorter, Kipchoge wins at the marathon, no one doubted that. The question is whose strengths outweighs the other. Bekele has more overall titles, taking into account track and XC, but it takes more fortitude and consistency to keep putting out truly world class marathon times without falter due to injury or burnout. It's a tough call, and that's why I can't make it definitively. Both men are extremely talented and gifted and have done wonders for influencing modern athletics.

Bekele- His dominance in two aspects rather than one does it for me. And he arguably showed just as much resilience as Kipchoge with his 2019 comeback

When kipchoge is running it looks like he’s out there having a good time because he loves to run

Bekele for 10km and below, Kichoge for anything else up to 42.195km. They are great at long distances, but their key strengths are rather segmented. There’s no need for a singles GOAT.

Everyone knows Bekele is the best to ever run track and cross country and Everyone knows Kipchoge is the greatest marathoner . Whomever you choose as YOUR goat,you won't get any complaints from me. At this point,it basically comes down to preference. Shout out to both those greats

Kipchoge is, by far, the greatest marathoner EVER. But Bekele's record on the track and XC give him an edge. But yeah, it's a tough call.

Being an avid Bekeli fan I must admit that I think Kipchoge is the actual Goat of distance running. He was brilliant on the track in his younger years, but it is his endurance, brilliance and longevity on the road that elevated him to greatness!!

Bekele the goat . A lot of ya'll that didn't watch track back the don't realize how dominant he was in his prime. And even after all his injuries he still came close to breaking kipchoges record.

Congratulations on 500k 🎉👍👏 I can’t wait to see how far this channel goes. This is def my fav running channel

For me personally I would go Eluid, whilst the shorter distances are impressive, for me, carrying that speed into the longer distances is more impressive, and whilst the 1:59:40 isn't an official record, it does put Eliud 2 minutes clear of everyone else, a phenomenal margin

You really can't go wrong with whoever you pick here, both are legends.

Bekele made me believe that it's possible for myself to take over Goat status as well🙌 He was just held back by injuries, otherwise his stretch from 02 was gon carry on. It's one of those things, I've learnt a lot from him.

We never saw the potential of Bekele in the 2000s. He could have broken every world record from 3000m to the Marathon and they would be still standing. I guess we will never know

Kipchoge is undoubtedly the GOAT of marathon... Bekele is the GOAT of long distance track and X-country.

Congrats on 500k, man. Every upload is consistent and entertaining. Been watching since 10k, keep it up!

KIPCHOGE is the GOAT in my opinion. He keeps beating his own records year after year..Insane 😍😍😍🌟🌟🌟

I just love Kipchoge and Bekele and of course I don’t know either of them…both men are nothing less than amazing!…they got me running again after 10 years of thinking I was done because of these two bad knees… That not withstanding I am running again 3-4 times a week not as much as years past, about 100 miles a month! Before anybody comes for me, I am just an ordinary 57 year old woman with a full time job and two bad knees…and glad to be running again. They are so motivating and inspiring to me and many! Thanks y’all. And thank you for this channel.

EK- Absolute God in the marathon and pretty good on the track HG- 27 world records KB- Goat of XC and track legend

For me /us in Kenya, we always respect our Ethiopian brothers, Keni Bekele is one of the greatest long-distance athletes in the world. There was a time when every long-distance runner in Kenya trained to compete Bekele. However kipchoge has motivated us more, he is our hero. He runs, mentors, and reminds us that we can truly do much better in life.

Still probably has to be Bekele. 3 Olympic golds, 5 World Championship golds and world records in the 5k and 10k, plus the second fastest marathon of all-time. Also easily the greatest cross country runner of all-time with 11 world titles. The cross country titles often get overlooked but are maybe his greatest feat. The only thing Kipchoge was better at is the marathon. Now his marathon accomplishments are jaw dropping, but I don't think it outweighs everything else, especially since Bekele has the #2 time behind him.

For me personally, Bekele's stranglehold over both cross country distances and both the 5000m and 10000m distances on the track gives him the edge over Kipchoge dominating a single event. You could argue about Kipchoge being very close to Bekele in all the events he dominated but Bekele also has run just 2 seconds outside Kipchoge's previous WR in the marathon. Kipchoge is pushing his case harder and harder with every race he runs, but Bekele's decade of dominance over multiple events on different surfaces takes it for me.

My hero....I love my Kenyan bro's

Kingchoge the myth the legend 👌💯

I love this channel! The amount of research and passion in it is great- especially as it’s not a country dominated channel (e.g just focusing on US athletes)!

Amazing, and 20 years into his career. So inspiring.

If Kipchoge had done most his accolades 10 years ago and instead we watched Bekele dominant cross country the way he did 2003-09 in 2013 to 2019 and then also run 2:01 at age 37 no one would even consider Kipchoge for GOAT. Bekele has more global gold medals even if you do count World major marathon win a global gold. Bekele has more World Cross Country Championships than Kichoge has World major marathon wins. He stopped in his last Cross World Championshipbecause he almost lost his shoe. He puts it back and proceeds to run the pass almost the entire field, catch the leaders and then punish them the last loop to win by 3 seconds. That's what the GOAT looks like.

500k subs!! very deserved, keep it up:)

Wow what a content ♥️🔥 Thank you man🏃

Kipchoge: training+training+training+concentration+concentration+concentration. Bekele: "I believe in myself."

amazing video, and congrats on 500k

I’m a Kipchoge guy. But as simple as I can say it, if Bekele hadn’t run that amazing Berlin where he was 2seconds off the WR I’d say it’s Kipchoge … but that one race looms large in my psyche, and for me it’s the tiebreaker in Bekele favor But if kipper goes on to win Boston & New York … or really anything else at this point … it’s his again. His new world record this year gave me pause for thought … and I’m not sure that he hasn’t taken back #1 yet. But in order to take #1 it’s gotta be conclusive. And that 2:01:41 makes it inconclusive

Kipchoge is definitely the GOAT no one can compete with him. His marathon streak is to impressive, he is the one and only GOAT.

While I am a total absolute fan of kipchoge , I worship him, but if I was to choose between the 2 for the greatest distance runner of all time it would be bekele, purely because of the varied distances and surfaces he has dominated in and for the number of years

The ultimate long distance discipline is a Marathon, Kipchoge wasn't also bad with the short distances. Kipchoge is the only true Long distance GOAT. Long distance is now more in the limelight thanks to Kipchoge

Congrats on 500k subs✌️💯

As much as I love Bekele, the strength Kipchoge has in the Marathon scene is unbeatable

*Marathon:* Kipchoge clear GOAT *XC:* Bekele clear GOAT *Track:* Bekele clear GOAT Whenever they went head to head on the track, Bekele crushed Kipchoge, just look at the 2008 Beijing 5000m. He led *every step* of the last mile, then dropped a 53 second last lap and beat Kipchoge by 5 seconds. While you could make the argument that the marathon is more important than cross country, it still has to be Bekele in my view.

The man cannot be denies. His consistency is incredible

IMO it's now pretty firmly 1. Bekele 2. Kipchoge 3. Gebrselassie Bekele is the best ever on the track and cross country and #2 in the marathon. While Kipchoge is #1 in the marathon and maybe top 10 on the track and cross country. Honestly not really sure where to place him for those. That gives Bekele 2 areas of dominance vs 1. But what really puts Bekele on top is that he became the undisputed GOAT so early in his career that I think he lost a little bit of that fire to keep pushing further. He accomplished so much in his career and I really don't think we even saw his full potential. This becomes more apparent when he transitioned to the marathon. I think he felt that he had already accomplished enough to cement his GOAT status and his marathon career took a back seat to running his businesses and other things in life. He put on some bulk which lead to his struggles with injuries and many DNF races. He then re-dedicated himself, slimmed down and just missed breaking the WR even after falling well off the pace in that race. On the flip side we've seen 10 years of dedication and very few injuries from Kipchoge which resulted in his incredible marathon career. Bekele basically matched Kipchoges 10 years of progress after less than 1 year of dedicated training. Which IMO clearly shows he has the higher peak of the 2, although we'll probably never get to see just how fast he could have gone at this point.

I think if you define a "distance runner" as fundamentally just a marathon runner then there is no contest. However not sure that being dominant in a single event "counts" here whatever you do in it. Also, when I checked, Kipchoge last raced something other than a marathon in 2016 and back to 2014 for something as "short" as 10K. And you have to go back to 2008 to when he last won a global medal in something other than the marathon.

In terms of athletics, I feel Bekele has demonstrated dominance over more distances and types of racing. In terms of the athlete, kipchoge is just so good for the sport

With his pretty good track and field performances (few gold medals, several silver medals and bronze medals) during a very competitive era that lasted almost 10 years and his unmatched performances in the marathon distance since 2013, Kipchoge can be argued to be the overall greatest. Especially when you look at sustained excellence over a long period. However, when he runs under 2 hours in an official race (the first in history), wins the remaining two world marathon majors (again, the first in history), and wins his third Olympic gold medal in the same race (again, the first in history), there will be no doubt about who is the greatest. This will be considered the single greatest level of dominance and excellent performance in any sporting event in history! Mostly because running is easily accessible to everyone regardless of their economic, educational or ethnic backgrounds or even age group. The great Haile Gebrselassie severally said, "The marathon is the king of all distances." My views might be subjective but that's what I think.

Bekele for me. I saw him in Dublin 2002 Cross Country when he was just 19 also! Crazy to think it was all this time ago! Congrats to Kipchoge too though of course!

The best runner in history

Isn't Joshua cheptegai in the top 5 yet? He already has the records. I believe he's the one runner who will enter the goat debate at the end of his carrer

Kipchoge is the goat with out question

Lets gooo, 500k!

If Kipchoge wins the Olympic marathon in Paris, you would have to give it to him...

Congrats on 500k

I look at both athletes with total awe as to what they have achieved. GOAT status could go either way, although I'd personally lean towards Kipchoge. Does ultra marathon's count towards your question on 'distance running'...? If so, Sorokin's achievements could come into play there as well - that man is insane!!!

The Goat of all running channels 🙌🙌

I do applaud your effort to truly try to make a solid detailed effort when it comes to this question of the GOAT. I don’t think I can ever answer this because as far as I’m concerned, the answer is ends up being too subjective. I would usually say Haile though because he really transcended the limits and upper echelon when it came to overall dominance as well as world records. All 27 of them. Even then though I still find myself skeptical given the nature of how undetectable EPO was during the late 90s and given that the late 90s was when there was this explosion of world records, I do find myself in need of having to pause. Not accuse. But pause. I find myself waiting to wait to answer this GOAT question for me once this new generation mid/long distance studs make their way to the marathon. Joshua Cheptegai, Jakob (if he ever does go to the longer stuff), and so forth. There’s a generation of talent right now where I really do want to wait and see. I understand the case to be made for Bekele as the GOAT but he just didn’t take the sport raise the standards to the level Haile did. He simply improved on his marks just a little more than Haile and they were about the same in terms of their sprinting prowess and Kenenisa was a better XC runner. The sport is definitely has been changing rapidly in the last couple years alone since around the time Cheptegai went on his WR rampage back in 2020 and now everybody is out there trying to win and win fast and it’s been truly exciting along with the evolution of technology. I think it’ll be exciting to see what is possible on not just the men’s side but the women as I think the women definitely deserve the conversation of who will be the first to break 2:10. With that said, may you all be well and run fast 🙏🏼

when u speak I believe....love all ur updates

Brilliant video as always, also always wondered why Kipchoge has never gone for another world title in the marathon at the world championships

Thanks for another great production. Bekele greatest on track and cross country. Kipchoge greatest marathon runner. I don’t know how you can compare the two and come out with a winner ?

i am gonna say kipchoge just bc of how STRONG his marathon career has been

They are both great!

Every now and then a great appears, and then even more seldom the GOAT appears. Kipchoge is the goat.

I still can't conceive of how fast these people are. I can't even run one mile at the pace these guys run for 26 miles, it's spectacular to watch

Great video :)

Haha I caught how your opening was borrowed from Jimmy High roller's video that compares MJ to LeBron. Great video though!

You turned me into a track fan 🔥🔥🔥

I’m gonna have to go with Kenenisa, mainly because of how close he comes to Eliud in the marathon especially when it’s not his best event and Kenenisa is good at track and xc not just one like Eliud’s career is pretty reliant on his marathon performances

Kipchoge is the GOAT at Marathon .

For now, Bekele. But if Kipchoge wins a 3rd Olympic title at Paris 2024 then I'll give it to him.

Even if I‘d go for Kipchoge, I think our image of the two athletes is very much influenced by Kipchoge being on top RIGHT NOW and Bekele more or less struggling RIGHT NOW, the same being true of track&field vs. the marathon having a greater appeal and higher status in the eyes of many observers. I wonder if we really have to lump them together into this one category „distance runner“, considering that a 5/10K race and a marathon a rather different cups of tea, as is 5K vs 800m. So it can be debated whether we can actually have more than just one goat here.

Kipchoge is the one because of the outlasting patience, perseverance. He has what it takes to truly go the distance beyond imagination.

“When an unstoppable force meets an immovable object”

Bekele - Track Kipchoge - Marathons Bekele - XC Bekele is the greater distance runner.

Honestly, it's possible Kipchoge hasn't even peaked yet. 19 years deep and he's still breaking his own world records is nutty. There's winning, then there's setting accomplishments that people didn't even believe possible for decades to come. So that's the real question, since Kipchoge is both still active AND still improving, what does he still have to do to end the debate? He will be the GOAT, but when?

It's gonna be ingeresting to see if Letesenbet Gidey and Joshua Cheptegei can achieve this kind of longevity. What Bekele and Kipchoge did is very impressive, but I think it's also good for the sport if there's some inconsistency amongst the top runners and you never know who's gonna be on top next season.

Kipchoge looks so much more relaxed running

Kipchoge GOAT of marathon running.

Bekele's XC results do it for me. The depth in the world XC championships is greater than any other distance running event in the world every year. All it would take is for someone to have their greatest day ever and they would win it and there are more top athletes fresh that day in top form than any other single running event, with no heats. No one ever has done better, in fact only John Ngugi with 4 wins has come closest. Bekele dominated on the track as well and his marathon performace is still among the all time greats (not in Kipchoge's realm) but overall Bekele dominates in 2/3 of the distance running arenas and is not embarrassed in the other. Kipchoge wins the next Olympic marathon will convince me to put him ahead of Gebresalasie but still not Bekele.

Keninisa is just the goat he was the who got me into running and was a huge inspiration to me

Kipchoge basically just better at marathon by a slight amount. Bekele has been better at everything else. Also have to wonder if Bekele had these new spring plated shoes when he was younger what he could have run in the marathon, the small gap in the marathon would be even closer.

Great

It's hard to choose who's the best. Two great athletes. But, for sure, I enjoy something unique about these two great athletes. Kenenisa: the way he shifts gears in the final 400m of a race (5000m or 10,000m) to run like a sprinter. Kipchoge: the way he runs at a very fast pace for a long time, like a train, yet it appears effortless. I find Haile, Bekele, and Kipchoge to have this distinct aura of heroism. Athletes who come along only once in a lifetime Each has inspired me on a different level. I have been inspired by Kipchoge by his tendency to test human limits in an event, especially in the marathon where he competes. This has resulted in him having a significant influence in the human family as far as inspiration is concerned. For example, in an attempt to test himself over the marathon distance in the 2018 Berlin marathon, he ended up breaking the world record by 1 min 18 secs, which was considered the single biggest world record improvement since 1967. If he had only focused on breaking the world record at the time, which stood at 2 hours and 57 minutes, he would have only improved it by a few seconds, which was a common phenomenon in the last 5 decades; breaking the world record by a small margin would not have inspired athletes and people outside sports that much. In the 2016 Rio Olympics, he also won by a margin of 70 seconds, the largest winning margin in Olympic marathon since 1972. In fact, in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games (held in 2021 due to COVID-19), he increased the winning margin to 80 seconds. He then returned to Berlin this year to take down his 2018 world record, which he smashed by 30 seconds. And then in 2015, in the Berlin marathon, when he had a problem with shoes (the insoles slipped out right at around 1 km, though people noticed half way through the marathon), he continued instead of stopping to fix them or even stop completely. He finished first with bloodied feet as the insoles flapped around his ankles the entire distance. The first time I saw Kipchoge's strong mental fortitude; that he couldn't allow external obstacles to stop him. The 2017 Monza and 2019 Viena experiments were also inspiring, especially when demanded to maintain the world's fastest pace over the distance. So, it is not about him winning that is so inspiring, but how he wins. But the same is witnessed with Haile and Kenenisa. For example, when Hail entered the 2000 Olympics and won the 10,000m, despite being expected to only watch the games because of his health condition at the time. He participated to give others morale and to see the Ethiopian flag raised at the Olympics in Australia. Or when Kenenisa lost his shoe at the World Cross Country Championships in 2008 and had to stop to put it back. He comfortably got past them all to win the competition. All are fascinating athletes, including Mo Farah of the UK, who won 4 Olympic gold medals and 6 Championship gold medals in 5,000m and 10,000m; Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco, the greatest 1,500m runner; Komen, the only man in history to run back-to-back sub-four-minute miles; and David Rudisha, the most dominant 800m runner. N/B, I know Hicham, Komen, and Rudisha were mostly middle-distance runners, but they are still among the greatest runners.

As a former long jumper, I never used to watch 5k/10k/marathon running, until KB - now it’s my favourite! That kick, the tactics, the domination - the guy was brutal!! He’ll always be my #1. But EC has made me start to watch marathons now and made me try to run his WR pace for 1 km is my current goal (no joke)! Haha anybody who’s career peaks in late 30s is biologically, mentally motivationally built different. Can we just have 2 GOATs please?

Exellent breakdown

Kipchoge is the greatest marathoner but Bekele is definitely the greatest distance runner. At age 37 he was the 5000m world record holder, the 10000m record holder and was 2 seconds away from being the Marathon world record holder concurrently. And that’s not including his XC accomplishments

I have a serious interest in watching distance running and my ex girlfriend's great great uncle used to train Emile Zatopek, to me the best ever was Haile Gebraselasie but it's all subjective :) this is a brilliant posting.

Both are legends with an amazing streak. What Bekele did in the track and cross country is from another world, and yet, he won Berlin with a 2nd fastest time ever. Eliud has a marathon streak that will be really hard to find again. Plus, Eliud has the “power” of being the Nike Boy since the Breaking2, receiveing a crazy amount of media. Hard to compare, but i would pick Bekele as number 1 of all time!

Bekele is without doubt the greatest distance runner....Kipchoge dominance over the marathon is simply brilliant and being selective in how he competes has helped keep him dominant in this event a long time...Bekele on the other hand dominated at most distances and on all surfaces..his weakness was he likely competed too much which lead to some fragility fater a long period of time and still he is the second fastest man in history over the marathon..like most things there will be a subjective view on this...but if you purely look at records overall in distance running Bekele and Haile are ahead and that takes nothing away from Kipchoge whose dominance in the marathon is astonishing.

I think Kipchoge is the greatest ever. Bekele's track career is at least comparable to Gebrselassie, whereas for Kipchoge there is 0 comparison. Also, Kipchoge's track career outshines Bekele's marathon career in my opinion.

Respectfully, it's not much of a debate and it doesnt matter how much Kipchoge accomplishes on the road. Bekele's exploits on the other 2 surfaces easily trump Kipchoge's marathon greatness. The only knock on Bekele's legacy is his lack of consistency on the roads, yet his peak on the roads nearly rivals Kipchoge's and both his peaks and consistency on the track and cross country are unrivaled.

Did Total Running Productions quote the opening of JxmyHighroller's goat debate video?

Congrats on 500k trp

Eliud's pacers are just amazing athletes i can't get over it

I would say that the two are VERY equally matched, and you shouldnt have to pick between the two of them. For myself though, i do favor Eliud. This is not because Bekele is inferior, i favor Kipchoge for different reasons. I watched breaking 2 in an area of my life where i really just wanted to stop everything. Eliud taught me that humans are capable of things nobody expected to be possible. Even though i did end up finding out that at that time, cross country really wasnt working for me, i did go on to be a swimmer. Kipchoge still holds a place in my heart, telling me that no matter what i do, to just keep calm, believe in myself, and hold on to the endurance i have gained while running the marathon called life. Eliud taught me more than i could ever give back to him.

The marathon has always been the flagship distance for the road running, the creme de la creme. The one distance everyone aims for. And Kingchoge is definitely the GOAT in that scene. As Kílian Jornet is the GOAT in the ultra-marathon scene.

Bekele- veristiy, longevity. I mean kipchoge is the best marathoner for sure. But bekele has great marathon success, way more track success and cross country success. I love the marathon but distance running is more diverse than one event.

I go with Haile Gebrselassie. Why? Because in his heyday, his rapid fire setting world records at every event from 3k, through 2 miles, 5k, 10k, 15 k, 10m, 20k, hm, 25k, to marathon is unmatched. By far the most versatile runner, he basically could pick his event and set a world record. Longevity? 1991 to 2012.

Kipchoge has translated running from 5k, 10k to a whole 42kms with a speed similar to a vehicle. He is definitely a GOAT.

I would be so interested to see how bekele would do running an ultra trail race

He showing off greatness