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Sabastian Sawe has become the first person to complete a competitive marathon in under two hours, setting a new world record as he claimed victory in perfect weather conditions at the annual race in London on Sunday.
The Kenyan crossed the finish line near Buckingham Palace in 1:59:30, just 11 seconds ahead of Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha, who was making his marathon debut.
Kejelcha and third-placed Jacob Kiplimo from Uganda both joined Sawe in breaking the previous world record time of 2:00:35 for the marathon distance of 26.2 miles, set in Chicago in 2023 by Kelvin Kiptum, who died in a car crash in early 2024.
While Eliud Kipchoge completed a marathon distance in under two hours in 2019, it was done under controlled conditions and not as part of a race.
Sawe, who won the London marathon last year in a time of 2:02:27, made a previous attempt to break the two-hour mark in Berlin last year, but failed due to unusually hot weather. Speaking to the BBC after crossing the line on Sunday, the 31-year-old said: “I am feeling good. I am so happy. It is a day to remember for me.”
In the women’s race, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa broke her own world record, set last year in the same race, after finishing the London course in 2:15:41.
Elite marathon runners have been getting quicker in recent years, in large part due to advances in running-shoe technology.
Both Sawe and Assefa were wearing Adizero Pro Evo 3 shoes, which were only unveiled a few days before the race. Known as “supershoes”, such ultralight, high-tech trainers cost hundreds of dollars a pair, but are worn only once in competition races by elite runners.
Since the release of the Nike Vaporfly, the first supershoe, in 2017, the number of men and women breaking new time barriers has risen sharply.
Based on a UK size 8.5, the new shoes worn on Sunday by Sawe and Assefa weigh just 97 grams, according to Adidas, making them 30 per cent lighter than the German sportswear company’s previous design. They also cost $500 a pair.
More than 59,000 people took part in this year’s London marathon, a new record and a further sign of the post-pandemic boom in running. More than 1.1mn applied to participate, a record for a marathon and up from 840,000 a year earlier. Organisers are considering making the London marathon a two-day event next year, which would enable more than 100,000 to take part.
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