London Marathon: Sabastian Sawe breaks world record en route to victory

The Kenyan became the first athlete to run a sub-2-hour marathon.

Kenya's Sabastian Sawe became the first athlete to break the fabled 2-hour barrier in an official marathon.

In a huge, once-inconceivable moment in sports history, Sawe smashed the men's world record by 65sec in winning the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds on Sunday.

The 29-year-old broke the previous world record of 2:00:35 set by the late Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023, also surpassing Eliud Kipchoge’s 1:59:41 exhibition performance from 2019 to record the fastest marathon ever run.

"What comes today is not for me alone," Sawe said of his extraordinary feat, "but for all of us today in London."

Remarkably, the second-place finisher, Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia, also dipped under 2 hours by crossing the line in 1:59:41 in his first-ever marathon, while Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda broke the previous world-record time - set by Kenya's Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023 - by 7sec, finishing in 2:00:28.

Sawe, who retained his title in London, said it was a "day to remember for me" and thanked the huge crowds who lined the streets of the British capital to cheer him on.

"I think they help a lot," he said, "because if it was not for them you don't feel like you are so loved ... with them calling, you feel so happy and strong."

In an exhilarating sight, Sawe ran quicker as the race went on, covering the second half of the marathon in 59min and 1sec. He pulled clear with Kejelcha after 30kms and then made his solo break in the final 2kms, sprinting along the finish on The Mall to loud cheers.

Under two hours has been done before - unofficially. Breaking two hours in a marathon has been a long time coming - and has been done before.

However, when Eliud Kipchoge - the Kenyan long-distance great - achieved the feat in Vienna in 2019, it was in a specially tailored race called the 1.59 Challenge that was arranged by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe in favorable conditions, on a 6-mile (9.6-kilometer) circuit, and using rotating pacemakers.

That meant it was not classed as an official race setting, so Kipchoge's time of 1:59:40 did not go in the record books.

In any case, Sawe surpassed that time by 10sec on a mostly flat course across London in dry, sunny conditions.

At the turn of the century, the world's best time for the men's marathon was 2:05:42, set by Khalid Khannouchi in Chicago in 1999.

In the women's race, reigning Olympic and world silver medallist Assefa was locked in a three-way tussle with Kenyan pair Hellen Obiri and Joyciline Jepkosgei, but surged away in the closing stages to cross the line in a time of 2:15:41.

Switzerland's Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner ​won the men's and women's wheelchair events. Hug won for the sixth consecutive year and eighth overall, while Debrunner outsprinted American Tatyana McFadden to the finish for her third win in a row in London.

Results (Top 3)

Men
1. Sabastian Sawe (KEN) 1:59:30
2. Yomif Kejelcha (ETH) 1:59:41
3. Jacob Kiplimo (UGA) 2:00:28

Women
1. Tigst Assefa (ETH) 2:15:41
2. Hellen Obiri (KEN) 2:15:53
3. Joyciline Jepkosgei (KEN) 2:15:55

(With World Athletics Media inputs)