Sabastian Sawe Breaks Two-hour Barrier To Make History In London Marathon

They telephone Sabastian Sawe nan silent assassin. But it was intolerable to disregard nan beautiful demolition connected nan streets of London arsenic nan 30-year-old Kenyan became nan first jock to shatter nan two-hour obstruction successful an charismatic race.

As Sawe crossed nan statement connected nan Mall, nan timepiece showed that he had tally 26.2 miles successful a staggering 1 hour, 59mins and 30 seconds – 65 seconds faster than nan erstwhile champion group by Kelvin Kiptum successful 2023.

The world grounds had not conscionable been destroyed. It had been obliterated. He came. He Sawe. He conquered. “I americium emotion good, I americium truthful happy,” said Sawe. “It is simply a time to remember.”

Sawe’s squad had insisted their man was successful shape, and that he would beryllium helped by wearing nan latest brace of Adidas Adios Pro 3 supershoes, which measurement successful astatine conscionable 97 grams – lighter than a babe kitten – and will unit for astir £450. But nary 1 expected this.

Not agelong down him was Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha, who was 11 seconds backmost successful his debut marathon. His clip would person besides shattered nan world record. Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, who came 3rd successful 2:00:28, was besides wrong it too.

“I deliberation today, it shows maine a lot,” Sawe told BBC Sport afterwards. “There is clip for everyone. I deliberation I was well-prepared because coming to London for nan 2nd clip was truthful important to me. And that’s why I prepared good for it. And finally, what I had done for 4 months, it has travel coming to beryllium a bully result.”

“I would for illustration to thief nan crowds for cheering us,” he added. “They thief a batch because if it was not for them, you do not consciousness you are truthful loved. You consciousness truthful happy and strong, and that’s why I tin opportunity … what comes coming is not for maine alone, but for each of america coming successful London.”

He came, he Sawe, he conquered: Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe crosses nan decorativeness line. Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA

For nan elite racers, nan upwind astatine nan commencement was almost cleanable for accelerated times: 11 degrees Celsius, sunny, and pinch a gentle tailwind complete nan important past fewer miles. And six men – including nan favourites, Sawe and Kiplimo – were wished to return advantage.

They deed nan 10km mark, conscionable earlier Cutty Sark, successful 28 mins and 25 sec, a shadiness nether world-record pace, and were done halfway successful 60:29 secs, 12 seconds down.

At this constituent nan men’s title looked for illustration being accelerated but not record-breaking. When nan past pacemaker dropped out, though, Sawe and Kejelcha abruptly charged clear astatine a drinks station, astonishing Kiplimo who recovered himself incapable to conflict back.

By now they were pouring nan gait on. Between 30-35km they ran an astonishing 13:54 5km. To put into context, nan clip is conscionable 12 seconds slower than nan world grounds for a 5km parkrun, group by nan Irish world runner Nick Griggs.

Sawe and Kejelcha were still together successful nan past mile, and pinch Kejelcha having won a metallic badge complete 10,000m astatine past year’s world championships, he mightiness person been expected to person nan quicker kick.

Instead it was Sawe who was nan fresher and on Birdcage Walk he put connected different surge that yet collapsed his rival — and, staggeringly, nan world record.

Incredibly, Sawe’s clip for nan 2nd half of nan title was conscionable 59:01. And for bully measurement his wide finishing clip was besides 10 seconds faster than Eliud Kipchoge had run successful a typical unofficial marathon successful Vienna successful 2019.

Ethiopia's Tigst Assefa repeated her 2025 occurrence successful nan women’s race, mounting a caller world-record time. Photograph: Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images

Naturally location will beryllium questions astir whether we tin spot Sawe’s record, fixed nan chequered history of Kenyans failing doping tests successful caller years. It should beryllium noted, however, that earlier nan Berlin marathon successful September, Sawe’s sponsors, Adidas, paid nan Athletics Integrity Unit £50,000 to trial him arsenic galore times arsenic imaginable because they wanted to show he was clean.

Not only was Sawe tested 25 times successful a fewer weeks, but his samples were besides scrutinised pinch top-end analysis, including isotope ratio wide spectrometry testing, which is overmuch amended astatine detecting mini levels of banned drugs. A akin protocol was successful spot for London, though it is understood that he was not tested arsenic galore times.

The women’s title turned into a three-way sprint down nan Mall, pinch nan Ethiopian Tigst Assefa defending her title aft kicking from location successful show of Buckingham Palace. Her clip of 2:15:41 was a women’s only-word world record, which applies to races pinch only women’s gait makers but is astir 5 minutes slower than nan charismatic women’s world record.

In 2nd place, 12 seconds back, was Kenya’s Hellen Obiri, while her compatriot Joyciline Jepkosgei vanished third.