Eliud Kipchoge is probably one of the best-known Kenyan celebrities in China, especially among sports followers.

The double Olympic champion and long-time world record holder is widely considered the world's greatest marathon runner, not only because of his running performances, but also his contribution to the promotion of the sport and care for youngsters.

The marathon king's last visit to Shanghai was in October during which he interacted with primary school students, and led a group of local runners for a 2-kilometer run along Suzhou Creek in Putuo District. He also visited Beijing in the same week to promote running.

"It's great to be back in China where I have the opportunity to meet so many fans who share the same love of running," he said. "I get so much energy from meeting all of these wonderful people, which fills me with motivation when I start training for my next race."

Kipchoge said his visits to China were always pleasant and he had been impressed by its thrilling running culture and the increase in runners in China over the years.

In previous visits, he tended to talk more about his running and training regimes. But in his most recent visit, communication with local runners and encouraging more people into regular sports activity was his major interest.

"For me, marathon is life, and China is the future. With such a great population and the increasing runners, especially youngsters, it has to be the future," he said.

"One of my favorite things about running is that it unites us all. It fades differences, and sharing our passion brings us together," he added.

Though Kipchoge has yet to take part in a formal marathon competition in China, the 39-year-old expressed his interest in running on Shanghai streets, just like many of his compatriots.

With the Chinese public's recognition of healthy lifestyles, running has been attracting an increasing number of enthusiasts, and the number of running competitions has also soared.

Data released by the Chinese Athletics Association show that the number of marathon and related road running events nationwide has increased from 51 in 2014 to 1,828 in 2019 – an increase of more than 30 times in five years.

Inviting foreign elite runners to participate has become common practice for domestic marathon organizers. It can improve the overall performance level of the event, while help to motivate local runners and enhance international communication.

Kenyan runners are popular invitees, who frequently create new records for domestic marathon events. In the last Shanghai Marathon on November 25, Kenyan runner Philimon Kiptoo Kipchumba created a new course record of 2:05:35, breaking the previous record (2:07:14) held by his compatriot Paul Lonyangata since 2015.

Participating in marathons around the world, including China, can open up more possibilities for Kenyan athletes.

For a star runner such as Kipchoge, popularizing correct running knowledge and training methods has been an important task that he is also happy to participate in during his many trips to China.

The world's fastest marathon runner for a long period, Kipchoge's world record was broken by his 23-year-old compatriot Kelvin Kiptum earlier this year, with a new world record of 2 hours and 35 seconds in Chicago, beating Kipchoge's 2:01:09 that he set at last year's Berlin Marathon.

"I believe I can break the record again, because sports have no limits," said Kipchoge.

"Great runners like Kipchoge have set good models for us," local runner Gu Jini told Shanghai Daily. "Long-distance running requires great enthusiasm and self-discipline. Professional runners have to conquer pain and injury too."

Gu said he admired Kipchoge's courage in keeping challenging himself at a relatively old age for a marathon runner.

"I remember one of his quotes, which can be considered a life philosophy: Breaking the record itself is not the point, the effort put into it is," said Gu.