Kenyan runner Sabastian Sawe breaks marathon world record in London

Sabastian Sawe blazed a trail to history in under 2 hours on Sunday at the London Marathon.

The Kenyan runner won the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, shattering the previous men’s world record by 65 seconds.

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Sebastian Sawe from Kenya crosses the finish line to win the men’s race at the London Marathon in London on April 26, 2026. (Ian Walton/AP)

“What comes today is not for me alone, but for all of us today in London,” Sawe said.

The long-distance runner is a decorated athlete who picked up wins in the 2025 London Marathon and 2025 Berlin Marathon. He won the 2023 Riga half-marathon and the 2023 World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst.

He added that Sunday was a “day to remember,” and credited the large crowds in London with helping him give the extra oomph he needed to keep up the world-record pace.

“I think they help a lot,” he said, “because if it was not for them you don’t feel like you are so loved … with them calling, you feel so happy and strong.”

Sabastian Sawe of Team Kenya poses with Yomif Kejelcha of Team Ethiopia and Jacob Kiplimo of Team Uganda at the presentation ceremony after the men’s 2026 TCS London Marathon in London, England, on April 26, 2026. (Alex Davidson/Getty Images)

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Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha also finished the course in under 2 hours but just 11 seconds behind Sawe. Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo finished behind them in 2 hours and 28 seconds.

The two-hour barrier had been broken previously, though unofficially.

Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge completed the feat in Vienna in 2019 in a race called the “1.59 Challenge.” The event was arranged by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe in favorite conditions on a 6-mile circuit and used rotating pacemakers.

Kipchoge’s time was at 1 hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds.

Sebastian Sawe from Kenya celebrates winning the men’s race at the London Marathon in London on April 26, 2026. (Ian Walton/AP)

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“The goalposts have literally just moved for marathon running,” former London Marathon winner Paula Radcliffe said on BBC’s broadcast.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.