Sabastian Sawe Wins 2026 London Marathon In 1:59:30 To Set First Sub-Two-Hour Marathon World Record

Sabastian Sawe broke from a six-man lead pack in the final miles to win in 1:59:30, taking 1:05 off Kelvin Kiptum's world record. Yomif Kejelcha also went under two hours in 1:59:41. Jacob Kiplimo third in 2:00:28.

Last Updated: Apr 26, 2026 12:45 pm

Jessy Carveth

Jessy Carveth

Jessy is our Senior News Editor, pro cyclist and former track and field athlete with a Bachelors degree in Kinesiology.

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History. Sabastian Sawe has won the 2026 TCS London Marathon in 1:59:30 — the first sub-two-hour marathon ever run in a record-eligible race, and a world record by 65 seconds. Kelvin Kiptum’s 2:00:35 from Chicago 2023 had stood as the absolute world record for two and a half years.

Yomif Kejelcha also broke two hours, finishing second in 1:59:41. Jacob Kiplimo finished third in 2:00:28 — also faster than Kiptum’s previous world record.

Three men under the previous absolute world record. Two men under two hours. The day London became the fastest course in marathon history.

Sabastian Sawe Wins 2026 London Marathon In 1:59:30 To Set First Sub-Two-Hour Marathon World Record 1 — Photo: Shaun Brooks for London Marathon Events

How the race unfolded

The race was on from the gun. A six-man pack of Sawe, Kejelcha, Kiplimo, Amos Kipruto, Tamirat Tola and Deresa Geleta cleared 5K in 14:14 and 10K in 28:35, all within two seconds of each other. They were running on Kiptum’s exact course-record pace.

Kiplimo, the half-marathon world record holder, took a turn at the front through 15K in 43:10. The pack stayed six-strong. By Tower Bridge they had picked up the pace — six men through halfway in 1:00:29, projecting 2:00:57. The system already had them inside Kiptum’s London course record.

Through 25K in 1:11:41-42, the pack was still intact and Kejelcha had moved to the front. Six men, projecting 2:00:59. Nobody flinched. Nobody attacked. The pace simply kept dropping.

Then it happened. Somewhere between 35K and 40K, Sawe found another gear nobody else in the pack could match. He opened 11 seconds on Kejelcha, 58 seconds on Kiplimo, and never looked back. Kejelcha held second, his foot speed proving its worth in the back half of his deepest marathon performance ever. Kiplimo took third in his second career marathon.

The depth behind the podium tells the rest of the story. Kipruto finished fourth in 2:01:39, a personal best by over a minute. Tola held fifth in 2:02:59. Geleta rounded out the top six in 2:03:23. Six men under 2:04 in the same race. The previous world record was 2:00:35.