Kelvin Kiptum's world marathon record ratified
6th February 2024
The Kenyan athlete set the record at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on 8 October.
- Kiptum clocked 2:00.35 at the 2023 Chicago Marathon to set the new marathon world record.
- He took 34 seconds off the world record set by Eliud Kipchoge in Berlin on 25 September 2022.
- The previous world record was 2:01:09.
It is now official. Kelvin Kiptum’s world marathon record of
2:00:35 set in Chicago last year has been ratified.
Kenya’s Kiptum became the first athlete to break 2:01 in a
record-eligible marathon, taking 34 seconds off the world record at the Bank of
America Chicago Marathon on 8 October.
With that performance, Kiptum improved his PB by 50 seconds
to surpass the world record of 2:01:09 set by his compatriot Eliud Kipchoge in
Berlin on 25 September 2022.
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Kiptum pushed the pace throughout the race in Chicago. He
broke away from a seven-strong lead group after reaching 5km in 14:26, joined
by his compatriot Daniel Mateiko.
They were on world record pace at 10km, passed in 28:42, but
the tempo dropped a little and they reached halfway in 1:00:48.
After 30km was passed in 1:26:31, Kiptum kicked and dropped
Mateiko. A blistering 5km split of 13:51 took him to the 35km checkpoint in
1:40:22 and he was on sub-2:01 pace, 49 seconds ahead of Mateiko.
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Continuing to run with urgency, Kiptum passed 40km in
1:54:23 – after a 27:52 10km split. He went on to win the race by almost three
and a half minutes, crossing the finish line in 2:00:35.
“I knew I was coming for a course record, but a world record – I am so happy,” he said. “A world record was not on my mind today, but I knew one day I would be a world record-holder.”
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Reporting by World Athletics