Kenya's Sebastian Sawe first to crack 2-hour marathon mark in London

TL;DR

Kenya's Sebastian Sawe has made history by becoming the first person to run a marathon in under two hours, finishing the London Marathon in 1:59:30. Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha also broke the two-hour barrier, finishing just 11 seconds behind.

Key points

Sebastian Sawe ran a marathon in under two hours.
Sawe's finish time was 1:59:30.
Yomif Kejelcha finished second, 11 seconds behind.
Jacob Kiplimo broke the previous world record by seven seconds.
The event took place at the London Marathon.

Mentioned in this story

London

Sebastian SaweYomif KejelchaJacob KiplimoLondon Marathon

A mark once thought untouchable in distance running has been shattered.

Kenya's Sebastian Sawe became the first person in history to run a marathon in under two hours when he crossed the finish line at the London Marathon on Sunday, April 26, in 1:59:30.

Runner-up Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia also eclipsed the two-hour mark in his first marathon, crossing the finish line just 11 seconds behind Sawe. And Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda broke the previous world-record time – set by Kenya's Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023 – by seven seconds in finishing in 2:00:28.

"I am feeling good, I am happy, it's a day to remember for me," Sawe told the BBC, holding up his shoe with "world record" and "sub-2" written on it in black marker pen.

Previous attempts to break two-hour marathon mark

The sub‑two‑hour marathon has been one of sport’s biggest obsession for years, pursued through a series of highly engineered projects aimed at redefining human limits.

Nike’s Breaking2 attempt at Monza in 2017 just fell short though Kenyan great Eliud Kipchoge ran under two hours in INEOS’s 1:59 Challenge two years later. Yet those efforts fell outside the sport’s official record books.

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