Abel Kipchoge and Daniel Wanjiku had been rivals since secondary school in Eldoret, Kenya. They ran the same events, competed for the same spots on the county team, and pushed each other with the fierce intensity that Kenyan distance running demands.
The Rivalry
Their rivalry was respectful but relentless. At the 2022 Eldoret Half Marathon, they'd finished first and second, separated by three seconds. At the Nandi Hills 10K, Daniel edged Abel by one second. They rarely spoke outside of races — the competition was too intense for casual friendship.
Abel was a committed Christian who attended an AIC church in Eldoret. Daniel was not religious. He trained with a secular running group and considered Abel's pre-race prayers a waste of energy that could be spent warming up.
The Collapse
At the 2023 Kisumu Marathon, both runners were among the leaders at the thirty-five kilometre mark. The heat was brutal — thirty-four degrees with high humidity off Lake Victoria. Runners were dropping throughout the field.
At thirty-eight kilometres, Daniel collapsed. Not a stumble — a full cardiac event. He hit the tarmac and didn't move. Abel, running three metres behind, stopped immediately. Other runners passed them. The race continued.
Abel knelt beside Daniel. He was conscious but couldn't stand — his heart rhythm was erratic, his legs had seized. The medical team was a kilometre behind. Abel had two choices: continue running and win the race he'd trained six months for, or help his rival.
Across the Line
Abel lifted Daniel onto his shoulders. Daniel weighed sixty-one kilograms — light for a human, heavy for a man who'd already run thirty-eight kilometres in equatorial heat. Abel carried him.
Not to the medical tent. To the finish line. He carried his rival 4.2 kilometres to the finish, crossing the line in last place. Both were disqualified under race rules — assisted finishes aren't counted. Abel didn't care.
In the medical tent afterward, Daniel gripped Abel's hand and asked, "Why? You would have won." Abel said, "Because Jesus told a story about a man on a road who stopped for someone who was supposed to be his enemy. I couldn't run past you."
Daniel started attending Abel's church the following month. They now train together — not as rivals but as partners. They run side by side.
"I lost the race," Abel says. "But I gained a brother."