Yesterday’s post was about the triumph of the human spirit. Sadly, sometimes, that spirit is snuffed out too soon. Such is the case with men’s marathon world record holder Kelvin Kiptum, who died this past weekend in a car crash.

I mentioned Kiptum last fall in a racing-related post, when he set the current record of 2:00:35. That Chicago race will now stand as his final marathon, but before he had even turned 24 years old, Kiptum had taken first place in all three marathons he ran. Those were 3 of the 7 fastest marathons in history, including the world record.

That current record will eventually be broken, and I still believe we’ll see someone break 2 hours in an official race. Alas, it won’t be Kelvin Kiptum who sets those marks.