How special Sawe broke iconic sub-two-hour barrier
Sawe achieved his world record in London despite suffering a stress fracture in his foot following Berlin, while a back issue which left him "almost giving up" in January delayed his preparations until early February. It is also notable that he ran the historic time in London, a course considered slower than Berlin and Chicago and which had not witnessed a men's world record since 2002. The great Eliud Kipchoge became the first man to run a marathon in under two hours in 2019, on a course with only 2.
4 metres of incline, which was not record-eligible as it was held under controlled conditions. Even more astonishing in London was that debutant Yomif Kejelcha also went sub-two, and half marathon world record holder Jacob Kiplimo also beat Kiptum's former record. Kipchoge wrote on Instagram: "Today is a historical day for marathon running!
"Seeing two athletes break the magical two-hour barrier at London Marathon is the proof that we are just at the beginning of what is possible when talent, progress and an unwavering belief in the human potential come together. "My deepest congratulations to both Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha. Breaking the sub-two-hour barrier in the marathon has long been a dream for runners everywhere, and today you've made that dream come true.
" Sabastian Sawe has run four of the 17 fastest marathons of all-time At the finish line, Sawe held up sponsors Adidas' latest 'supershoe' with his time written along the side, acknowledging the technology which had assisted him. The Adidas Adios Pro 3 shoes, available to purchase for an eye-watering £450, weigh just 97g - 30% lighter than the previous model. The company claims they deliver an 11% greater forefoot energy return and improve running economy by 1.
6% compared to its predecessor. Tigst Assefa also wore the shoes in breaking the women-only record on Sunday. To benefit from those statistics, however, Sawe runs about 200km per week - averaging almost 30km every day - at altitude, and credited his increase in volume as one of the key factors in his progress.