There are quite a few knowledgeable companions in athletics to whom the long-distance runner Kelvin Kiptum seemed like a phantom until the end. The Kenyan first appeared in the world association’s well-maintained and watered databases five years ago, but no one really made sense of the notes – a few quick half marathons, a few aborted ten-kilometer runs. When Kiptum finished his first marathon in Valencia ten months ago in a dizzying 2:01:52 hours and a reporter asked who was actually training Kiptum, he shouted into the microphone: “I don’t have a coach!”
