Kipchoge to carry flag at Milano Cortina 2026 opening ceremony

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge gestures to fans after crossing the finish line during the 2025 Sydney Marathon at the Opera House on August 31, 2025. (Photo by Saeed KHAN / AFP) 

Kenya’s legendary long-distance runner Eliud Kipchoge will return to the Olympic stage at Milano Cortina 2026, this time as a flag bearer for the opening ceremony.

The 41-year-old distance ace has been named one of eight bearers who will carry the Olympic Flag into the San Siro Olympic Stadium when the Games officially begin on February 6.

Kipchoge, a five-time Olympian and two-time Olympic marathon champion (Rio 2016 and Sapporo 2021), joins a diverse group of athletes and exemplary figures selected by the International Olympic Committee and Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.

The selection honours those whose personal and professional journeys embody peace, unity and solidarity. 

His Olympic journey began in Athens in 2004 with a bronze in the 5000m, followed by a silver in the same event in Beijing 2008. After clinching marathon glory in 2016 and 2021, he returned to Olympic competition at Paris 2024, continuing to push the boundaries of endurance.

Beyond his track and road triumphs, Kipchoge has twice broken the world marathon record, first with 2:01:39 in Berlin (2018) and most recently 2:01:09, also in Berlin, four years later.