Sabastian Sawe runs first sub-2-hour marathon race, shatters world record in London

Kenyan Sabastian Sawe broke the two-hour barrier in the marathon, winning the London Marathon in an unofficial 1 hour, 59 minutes, 30 seconds. Sawe shattered the world record of 2:00:35 set by the late Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon. Another Kenyan, Eliud Kipchoge, ran the marathon distance in 1:59:40.

2 in 2019, but that did not come in a race under world record conditions. The runner-up on Sunday, Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha, ran 1:59:41 in his marathon debut. 2026 London Marathon Results 2026 London Marathon top 10 and notable results with a link to searchable results.

Nick Zaccardi , Ethiopian Tigst Assefa repeated as women's champion in an unofficial 2:15:41, breaking her own world record for a women's only race of 2:15:50 set in London last year. It's the 15th-fastest time in history overall, behind 14 times from marathons where women raced simultaneously with men and/or had male pacers. Assefa pulled away from Kenyan Hellen Obiri in the 385-yard finishing straight at The Mall, crossing 12 seconds ahead.

Obiri is a two-time winner of both the Boston and New York City Marathons. Another Kenyan, Joyciline Jepkosgei, was another two seconds back of Obiri. Jepkosgei was the world’s fastest female marathoner in 2025 with a 2:14:00 in Valencia, Spain, in December.