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Sabastian Sawe made marathon history at the London Marathon by becoming the first athlete to complete a competitive marathon distance in under two hours. The 30-year-old Kenyan achieved an extraordinary time of 1:59:30, breaking the previous course record set by the late Kelvin Kiptum in 2023 by more than a minute. Although Eliud Kipchoge crossed the two-hour mark in 2019, his run was not classified as record-eligible as it took place under controlled conditions.
Sawe displayed remarkable consistency and strength throughout the race, maintaining world record pace at the halfway point with a split of 1:00:29. Rather than slowing down, he accelerated in the latter stages, ultimately surpassing Kipchoge’s time. Sawe’s pivotal surge happened just before the last 10 kilometers, where only newcomer Yomif Kejelcha could keep up. This effort earned Kejelcha a historic second-place finish with a time of 1:59:41, making him the second man to run under two hours in official race conditions. Completing the podium was half-marathon world record holder Jacob Kiplimo, who also bettered Kiptum’s previous record with a time of 2:00:28.
Reflecting on his achievement, Sawe shared his excitement with BBC TV: “I am feeling good. I am so happy. It is a day to remember for me.” He added, “We started the race well. Approaching finishing the race, I was feeling strong. Finally reaching the finish line, I saw the time, and I was so excited.” Beyond the men’s race, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa set a new women’s world record for a women-only marathon by finishing in 2:15:41, successfully defending her London title ahead of Kenyan competitors Hellen Obiri and Joyciline Jepkosgei.
In the wheelchair events, Swiss athlete Marcel Hug equaled the record for most London Marathon victories in the men’s wheelchair race by winning his eighth title and fifth consecutive one. Catherine Debrunner from Switzerland also retained her elite women’s wheelchair crown by narrowly defeating American Tatyana McFadden in the final stages.
Leading up to the marathon, all eyes were on Sawe as he aimed to surpass Kiptum’s London course record. Speaking to BBC Sport earlier, Sawe expressed a confident outlook, saying it was “only a matter of time” before he would break the world record, and he hoped to become the first sub-two-hour marathoner in official race settings. His previous attempt in Berlin last year was impacted by weather, but ideal conditions in London allowed Sawe to achieve the seemingly impossible on The Mall. Former world champion Steve Cram remarked on the historic event, saying, “There are things that happen in sport and you want to be there to see history being made… We said it was a day for records but I don’t think in our wildest dreams we could have foreseen this.”
Sawe’s pacing was extraordinary, with the first half completed in 60:29 and the second half faster at 59:01. His final segments were impressively quick, with the 30-35 km split clocked at 13:54 and the 35-40 km split at 13:42, averaging 2:45 per kilometer. Just 63 men in history have run a half marathon as quickly as Sawe did in the latter half of this race. Paula Radcliffe, former women’s marathon world record holder, highlighted the significance of this milestone: “The goalposts have literally just moved for marathon running and where you benchmark yourself as being world-class. It is a lesson to everybody out there… they went out smartly and paced it really well.”
Equipped with Adidas’s latest supershoes, Sawe has now won all four marathons he has entered, improving his marathon personal best by two minutes and 35 seconds. His commitment to clean sport is demonstrated by undergoing 25 drug tests before his Berlin attempt. Sawe credited the crowd’s support as a vital boost during his record-breaking run, saying, “I think they help a lot because them calling makes you feel so happy and strong and pushing.” British Olympian Mo Farah praised the milestone, stating, “We’ve waited long enough to see a human go sub-two. That’s always been the question that we’ve asked. We’ve just witnessed something incredible.”
In the women’s race, Assefa, the third-fastest woman ever, lived up to expectations as she outpaced her Kenyan contenders in the closing stages, improving her own women-only world record by nine seconds. The women’s elite race began 30 minutes before the men’s, classifying it as a women-only event. Obiri and Jepkosgei finished closely behind Assefa, in second and third place respectively. British athletes Eilish McColgan and Rose Harvey completed the women’s field with respectable finishes, while Mahamed Mahamed was the top British male finisher, placing tenth and becoming the second-fastest Briton in history.
In the wheelchair division, Marcel Hug reinforced his dominance by finishing well ahead of Chinese athlete Luo Xingchuan and fellow Briton David Weir, who completed the podium in his 27th consecutive London Marathon. Catherine Debrunner claimed her fourth London Marathon win after edging out McFadden by five seconds. British athlete Eden Rainbow-Cooper, hoping for a podium finish after recent successes, was unfortunately delayed at the start due to a puncture, hindering her performance
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