Sebastian Sawi of Kenya crosses the finish line to win the men’s race at the London Marathon in London, Sunday, April 26, 2026. (AP)
For the first time in marathon history, the two-hour barrier has been officially broken.Kenyan Sebastian Sawi became the first person to officially break the two-hour barrier in the marathon after winning the London Marathon on Sunday in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds.It was an important moment in athletics as Sawi broke the men’s world record by 65 seconds. Ethiopian Yomif Kegelcha also finished the race in under two hours, crossing the finish line in 1:59:41 in his first ever marathon. Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo finished third in 2:00:28, also faster than the previous world record.
The previous men’s world record was 2:00:35, set by Kenyan Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023.Sunday’s three runners finished faster than that mark.Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge ran 1:59:40 in October 2019 and became the first person in recorded history to complete a marathon in under two hours.However, that time was not accepted as a world record because it used specialized shoes, standard competition rules for speed and fluidity were not followed, and it was not an open event.Sawi, who wore new Adidas Pro Evo 3 shoes that weigh less than 100 grams, had said before the race that he was aiming to set a course record or even a world record.
He was part of a leading group of six runners who crossed the halfway mark in 1:00:29.Later, Sawi and Kejelsha got ahead of the rest of the field and stayed together until the closing stages, before the Kenyan made his move and pulled away to take the win.