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Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe became the first person to ever crash the two-hour mark in a marathon on Sunday by winning the London Marathon in a record 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds.
Sawe, 29, celebrated as the fans along the route helped push him to the record.
“What comes today is not for me alone,” Sawe said according to the Associated Press, “but for all of us today in London.”
The late Kelvin Kiptum set the previous world record at the 2023 Chicago Marathon in 2 hours, 35 seconds.
Two other runners on Sunday in London also broke Kiptum’s previous world record: Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia in 1:59:41; and Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda in 2:00:28. Kiptum died in a car crash in 2024.
Sawe had the record in his sights as he ran the final split in a 4:17-per-mile pace.
“I think I was well prepared because coming to London for the second time was so important to me,” Sawe told BBC Sport after the race. “And that’s why I prepared well for it. And finally, what I had done for four months, it has come today to be a good result.
“I would like to help the crowds for cheering us. They help a lot because if it was not for them, you do not feel you are so loved.”
Advanced shoe technology — which also has reduced the weight of running shoes — has helped runners continue to lower the world record in recent years. Sawe ran in a pair of Adidas Adios Pro 3.
Sawe and Kejelcha were running together for part of the final mile before Sawe kicked ahead. Sawe ran the second half of the race in 59:01.
Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa also broke her own world record in a women’s-only race, winning in 2:15:41. nine seconds lower than her previous mark.
“To do that brought me a lot of satisfaction,” Assefa said via an interpreter after the race.
Continue reading...
Sawe, 29, celebrated as the fans along the route helped push him to the record.
“What comes today is not for me alone,” Sawe said according to the Associated Press, “but for all of us today in London.”
The late Kelvin Kiptum set the previous world record at the 2023 Chicago Marathon in 2 hours, 35 seconds.
Two other runners on Sunday in London also broke Kiptum’s previous world record: Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia in 1:59:41; and Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda in 2:00:28. Kiptum died in a car crash in 2024.
Sawe had the record in his sights as he ran the final split in a 4:17-per-mile pace.
“I think I was well prepared because coming to London for the second time was so important to me,” Sawe told BBC Sport after the race. “And that’s why I prepared well for it. And finally, what I had done for four months, it has come today to be a good result.
“I would like to help the crowds for cheering us. They help a lot because if it was not for them, you do not feel you are so loved.”
Advanced shoe technology — which also has reduced the weight of running shoes — has helped runners continue to lower the world record in recent years. Sawe ran in a pair of Adidas Adios Pro 3.
Sawe and Kejelcha were running together for part of the final mile before Sawe kicked ahead. Sawe ran the second half of the race in 59:01.
Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa also broke her own world record in a women’s-only race, winning in 2:15:41. nine seconds lower than her previous mark.
“To do that brought me a lot of satisfaction,” Assefa said via an interpreter after the race.
Continue reading...
