WSJ (“Running’s Two-Hour Marathon Barrier Just Fell in London—Twice“):
Two men broke a previously inconceivable barrier at the London Marathon on Sunday, both running 26.2 miles in under two hours and smashing the world record.
Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe finished in 1:59:30, obliterating the previous record of 2:00:35 set at the 2023 Chicago Marathon by Kenyan Kelvin Kiptum. Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha finished in 1:59:41.
It was the first time any human had run a marathon in less than two hours in a record-eligible race. The astonishing results capped a decade of technological and training innovation that has pushed the sport into uncharted territory over road racing’s most iconic distance.
The world record has now been broken four times in less than a decade—lowering the 2014 record by a total of 3 minutes, 37 seconds.
On Sunday, the two men pushed each other along the flat, fast course, especially late in the race. Sawe actually gained speed, running the second half nearly 1 ½ minutes faster than the first half.
The first officially recognized world record was set by American Johnny Hayes in the 1908 London Olympics. He ran the event in 2:55:18.4. Times have gradually gotten faster ever since, with the 2:40 barrier broken in 1913, 2:30 in 1925, and 2:10 in 1967. The record has been reset eleven times since the turn of the millennium. Sawe’s 1:59:30 is more than five full minutes faster than Khalid Khannouchi’s 2:05:42, which is where the record stood at the end of the 20th Century.
Alas, it appears that more than sheer grit and willpower is at work.
Even London’s third-place runner broke the previous world record: Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo finished in 2:00:28 to complete the podium.
The London Marathon has long been known for record-setting performances. But Sunday also was the culmination of a decade of breakneck innovation across the sport. And nothing has propelled runners more than the revolution in footwear.
A decade ago, Nike created mysterious prototypes featuring giant soles and rigid interior plates that functioned like springs, unleashing the “super shoe” era across the sport. Since then, high-tech foams have been perfected to return more energy to the runner than ever and come in lighter than previous materials. Studies show super shoes can increase running economy by roughly 4%—a massive help during a 26-mile race.
In 2019, Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge wore a Nike super shoe called the Vaporfly to run a 1:59:40 marathon on a closed course in a specially tailored race in Vienna. Because of Kipchoge’s use of wind-breaking pacemakers and other measures, the mark wasn’t eligible for a world record.
Despite initial controversy that super shoes were fundamentally changing the sport, the world governing body of running, World Athletics, eventually legalized them with only a few limitations.
On Sunday in London, Sawe and Kejelcha wore Adidas’ lightest model yet. The Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 weighs just 3.4 ounces, barely more than a deck of cards, for a men’s size 9.
Kiplimo, the third-place finisher, wears Nike.
The blistering finishes in London could spur suspicion, since several marathon runners have been disqualified for doping offenses in recent years. So as Sawe began chasing the world record last year, he took the extraordinary step of undergoing extra drug testing. He underwent 25 out-of-competition tests in the two months before he won the Berlin Marathon last year. That extra testing has continued into this year, his support staff has said.
“I am so happy,” Sawe said. “It is a day to remember for me.”
One can’t begrudge competitors from using the tools legally available to them. Still, the whole point of keeping records in these events is to allow comparison over time. But we simply have no idea how Sawe’s performance compares to Khannouchi’s, let alone Hayes’.
