In October 2023, Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum came incredibly close to breaking the two-hour marathon barrier, setting a new world record of 2:00:35 at the Chicago Marathon. He missed the historic sub-2 mark by just 35 seconds.
The previous record holder, also Kenyan, Eliud Kipchoge, had run 2:01:09 at the Berlin Marathon in September 2022.
Back in October 2023, we asked ourselves: how long until we see a sub-2-hour marathon? It seemed like only a matter of time. Kiptum was just 24 years old at the time, and had only started running official marathons a year earlier — yet his progress was extraordinary.
But life took a tragic turn. In February 2024, just four months after setting the world record, Kelvin Kiptum passed away. The running world was shocked. Expectations of new records faded into the background, and for a while, it seemed like the dream of breaking two hours had been put on hold — especially since no obvious contender was in sight.
As it turned out, that assumption was wrong.
The First Official Sub-2 Marathon
On April 26, 2026, Sebastian Sawe reminded the world of the depth and talent of the Kenyan running system. At the London Marathon, he ran 1:59:30 — the first official marathon world record under two hours.
To put that into perspective, Sawe’s pace was 2:50 per kilometer, or 21.18 km/h. For runners, that’s an extreme pace — especially sustained over 42.2 kilometers.
118 Years to Break Two Hours
The first official men’s marathon world record was set in July 1908 at the Olympic Games in London. It already stood under three hours — 2:55:18 — by American Johnny Hayes.
It took 118 years and 52 world record improvements to shave nearly an hour off that mark. That’s why Sawe’s result is not just another record — it marks a new era in marathon running: sub-2 hours.
Shoes Don’t Run — Legs Do
What made this record possible? Many would point to so-called “super shoes” — like the Nike prototype (NikeDev163) worn by Kiptum, or other models often credited with delivering a “2% performance boost.”
But Sawe ran in the Adidas Adios Pro 3.
These are undoubtedly great shoes — but the real difference is still in the legs.
Train in shoes that work for you. Don’t obsess over brands. Your best race will come from consistency, effort, and determination — not marketing.
Congratulations on the sub-2-hour world record — and see you in training!