They call Sabastian Sawe the silent assassin. But it was impossible to ignore the beautiful destruction on the streets of London as the 30-year-old Kenyan became the first athlete to shatter the two-hour barrier in an official race.<\/p>\n
As Sawe crossed the line on the Mall, the clock showed that he had run 26.2 miles in a staggering 1 hour, 59mins and 30 seconds \u2013 65 seconds faster than the previous best set by Kelvin Kiptum in 2023.<\/p>\n
The world record had not just been destroyed. It had been obliterated. He came. He Sawe. He conquered. \u201cI am feeling good, I am so happy,\u201d said Sawe. \u201cIt is a day to remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sawe\u2019s team had insisted their man was in shape, and that he would be helped by wearing the latest pair of Adidas Adios Pro 3 supershoes, which weigh in at just 97 grams \u2013 lighter than a baby kitten \u2013 and will retail for about \u00a3450. But no one expected this.<\/p>\n
Not long behind him was Ethiopia\u2019s Yomif Kejelcha, who was 11 seconds back in his debut marathon. His time would have also shattered the world record. Uganda\u2019s Jacob Kiplimo, who came third in 2:00:28, was also inside it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think today, it shows me a lot,\u201d Sawe told BBC Sport afterwards. \u201cThere is time for everyone. I think I was well-prepared because coming to London for the second time was so important to me. And that\u2019s why I prepared well for it. And finally, what I had done for four months, it has come today to be a good result.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI would like to help the crowds for cheering us,\u201d he added. \u201cThey help a lot because if it was not for them, you do not feel you are so loved. You feel so happy and strong, and that\u2019s why I can say \u2026 what comes today is not for me alone, but for all of us today in London.\u201d<\/p>\n
He came, he Sawe, he conquered: Kenya\u2019s Sabastian Sawe crosses the finish line. Photograph: Neil Hall\/EPA<\/p>\n
For the elite racers, the weather at the start was almost perfect for fast times: 11 degrees Celsius, sunny, and with a gentle tailwind over the crucial last few miles. And six men \u2013 including the favourites, Sawe and Kiplimo \u2013 were determined to take advantage.<\/p>\n
They hit the 10km mark, just before Cutty Sark, in 28 mins and 25 sec, a shade under world-record pace, and were through halfway in 60:29 secs, 12 seconds down.<\/p>\n
At this point the men\u2019s race looked like being fast but not record-breaking. When the last pacemaker dropped out, though, Sawe and Kejelcha suddenly charged clear at a drinks station, surprising Kiplimo who found himself unable to fight back.<\/p>\n
By now they were pouring the pace on. Between 30-35km they ran an astonishing 13:54 5km. To put into context, the time is just 12 seconds slower than the world record for a 5km parkrun, set by the Irish international runner Nick Griggs.<\/p>\n
Sawe and Kejelcha were still together in the last mile, and with Kejelcha having won a silver medal over 10,000m at last year\u2019s world championships, he might have been expected to have the quicker kick.<\/p>\n
Instead it was Sawe who was the fresher and along Birdcage Walk he put on another surge that finally broke his rival \u2014 and, staggeringly, the world record.<\/p>\n
Incredibly, Sawe\u2019s time for the second half of the race was just 59:01. And for good measure his overall finishing time was also 10 seconds faster than Eliud Kipchoge had run<\/a> in a special unofficial marathon in Vienna in 2019.<\/p>\n Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa repeated her 2025 success in the women\u2019s race, setting a new world-record time. Photograph: Justin Tallis\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n