Sabastian Sawe breaks two‑hour barrier

Sabastian Sawe ran 1:59:30 at the London Marathon on Sunday, becoming the first athlete to break two hours in a record-eligible marathon. (worldathletics.org) The Kenyan won the 26 April race on The Mall after pulling away from Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha in the closing mile. Kejelcha finished second in 1:59:41, and Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo took third in 2:00:28. (worldathletics.org) (olympics.com) World Athletics said Sawe’s time cut 65 seconds from Kelvin Kiptum’s 2:00:35 world record from Chicago in 2023, pending ratification. Sawe also turned the second half into a 59:01 split after reaching halfway in 1:00:29. (worldathletics.org) The sub-two mark had already been crossed once before, when Eliud Kipchoge ran 1:59:41 in Vienna in October 2019. That run was not eligible for records because it used a controlled exhibition setup with rotating pacemakers. (skysports.com) London produced another record in the women’s race. Tigst Assefa defended her title in 2:15:41, a women-only world record, with Hellen Obiri second in 2:15:53 and Joyciline Jepkosgei third in 2:15:55. (worldathletics.org) (olympics.com) The men’s race was fast from the start, with the lead group through 5 kilometers in 14:14, 10 kilometers in 28:34, and halfway in 1:00:29. Sawe and Kejelcha then covered the 5-kilometer segment from 35K to 40K in 13:42 before Sawe made the decisive move. (worldathletics.org) Sawe won London in 2025 in 2:02:27, and this year’s race became his second straight title in the event. After the finish, he said, “It is a day to remember for me.” (worldathletics.org) The wheelchair races also had repeat winners. Marcel Hug won the men’s race in 1:24:13 for his eighth London title, and Catherine Debrunner won the women’s race in 1:38:29. (paralympic.org) (olympics.com) By the finish, London had three men under Kiptum’s old world record and the top two under two hours. A barrier that had stood in official racing was gone by 30 seconds. (worldathletics.org)