Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe has made marathon history after winning the London Marathon in a remarkable time of 1:59:30, becoming the first athlete to complete a sub-two-hour marathon in a competitive race.
Sawe’s performance also sets a new world record, beating the previous mark of 2:00:35 set by the late Kelvin Kiptum at the Chicago Marathon.
The sub-two-hour barrier has long been considered one of athletics’ most difficult milestones, often compared to the four-minute mile in track history. While Eliud Kipchoge previously ran under two hours in 2019, that achievement came in a controlled exhibition event and was not officially recognised as a record.
On Sunday, Sawe delivered the breakthrough in a fully competitive race, holding off strong pressure from Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha, who also ran under two hours with 1:59:41 before finishing second.
Speaking after the race, Sawe said he felt strong in the closing stages: “We started the race well and approaching the end I was feeling strong. I am so happy.”
The women’s race also saw a record broken, with Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa setting a new women’s world best of 2:15:41, improving on her previous record set in London last year.
