AthleticsAthletics world record

Marathon, men

Record

1 h 59 min 30 s

Holder
Sabastian Sawe
Date
Place
London
Standing since
2026

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Marathon, men
Photo: Leonhard Lenz · CC0 · Remove this photo

How the record evolved

Chart of the Marathon, men record, from 1909 to 2026 1909 2026 2 h 40 min 34.2 s 1 h 59 min 30 s

The last record set in each decade, up to the current record (highlighted).

YearRecordHolder
1 h 59 min 30 sSabastian Sawe
2 h 00 min 35 sKelvin Kiptum
2 h 01 min 39 sEliud Kipchoge
2 h 03 min 59 sHaile Gebrselassie
2 h 05 min 42 sKhalid Khannouchi
2 h 06 min 50 sBelayneh Dinsamo
2 h 08 min 33.6 sDerek Clayton
2 h 15 min 17.0 sSergei Popov
2 h 25 min 39 sSuh Yun-bok
2 h 26 min 42 sSohn Kee-chung
2 h 30 min 57.6 sHarry Payne
2 h 38 min 00.8 sUmberto Blasi
2 h 40 min 34.2 sThure Johansson

Put them in order

Sort these records from the oldest to the most recent.

  1. 2 h 25 min 39 sSuh Yun-bok
  2. 1 h 59 min 30 sSabastian Sawe
  3. 2 h 40 min 34.2 sThure Johansson
  4. 2 h 05 min 42 sKhalid Khannouchi

What to remember

On April 26, 2026, at the London Marathon, Sabastian Sawe covered 42.195 kilometres in 1 h 59 min 30 s, an average of 21.185 km/h. The Kenyan had made his marathon debut in Valencia in 2024, winning in 2:02:05, and the following year he won in London, then in Berlin.

In 1909, the record was 2 h 40 min 34.2 s, by Thure Johansson. Later record holders include Sohn Kee-chung (2 h 26 min 42 s in 1935), Derek Clayton (2 h 08 min 33.6 s in 1969), Khalid Khannouchi (1999), Haile Gebrselassie (2 h 03 min 59 s in 2008) and Eliud Kipchoge (2 h 01 min 39 s in 2018). Over 117 years the time came down by 25.6%.

The marathon was created for the 1896 Olympic Games in Athens by the French philologist Michel Bréal, inspired by a story from Ancient Greece. Its distance was not standardised until 1921. More than 800 marathons are held worldwide each year, most of their runners being recreational athletes.

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