Celebrated Kenyan athlete Eliud Kipchoge has reunited with UK Billionaire and Chairman of INEOS, Jim Ratcliffe to launch a cycling academy called Ineos Eliud Kipchoge Cycling Academy.
In a statement, Kipchoge expressed gratitude for the opportunity for the growth of the sports industry.
He added that expanding the training camp to include a cycling academy would incorporate more athletes into the fray and thus raise the bar for the country's talent pool.
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"I'm proud that we are expanding our Kaptagat-based training camp from a purely athletics focussed training camp towards a wider kind of sports academy. The INEOS Eliud Kipchoge Cycling Academy is a very natural fit with great potential!" Kipchoge stated.
The Ineos Chairman, who visited the camp alongside Kipchoge, noted that the academy would produce exemplary results in terms of building the sports talent in the country.
His sentiments were echoed by Ineos’ Director of Sport and the Ineos Grenadiers Team Principal, Dave Brailsford, who lauded the significant development.
"We all know the talent is there – we’ve seen it this year with Biniam Girmay’s history-making successes at the Giro d’Italia and Gent-Wevelgem, and I saw it first-hand in the inspiring young athletes I met in Kaptagat."
"Their passion, dedication and love of sport is a perfect fit with the Ineos Grenadiers’ spirit of giving it all to race and be your best."
"Together I believe we can achieve something unique and important for cycling in Kenya, Africa, and the sport itself.” he stated.
Ratcliffe appointed seasoned coach Valentijn Trouw to run the academy. The coach has amassed over 3 decades of experience in nurturing long-distance runners in Kenya.
"We work with the great potential of east African long-distance runners for over 30 years, and I believe the exceptional local endurance talent combined with the great training environment at Kaptagat will be perfect for developing quality cyclists," Trouw stated.