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FastestThings

Men's Marathon

Yomif Kejelcha

Ethiopian marathoner. 1:59:41 for second at the London Marathon on 26 April 2026, in his debut.

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Race time

1:59:41

Men's marathon, second place, TCS London Marathon, 26 April 2026.

OfficialWorld Athletics (opens source in a new tab)

This list

Why it's so fast

A marathon is an aerobic race. The fast times come from runners who waste very little energy at a pace they can hold for just over two hours.

  1. Running economy

    At this distance the limiter is oxygen and fuel, not the start. A runner who uses less energy at the same pace can stay there longer.

  2. The course and the day

    A record needs a legal course, pacers within the rules, and weather that is not fighting the runner. The entry names the race.

The record on this list is Kelvin Kiptum.

This is how the category works. A note written for this entry appears here once it is in the database.

Provenance

Every measurement

Claimed, measured and official figures side by side, each with its source. The ranked figure is marked.

  1. 1:59:41Ranked figure

    Men's marathon, second place, TCS London Marathon, 26 April 2026.

    Official
    World Athletics (opens source in a new tab)

Reference

Specs

Country
Ethiopia
Event
Marathon
Mark
1:59:41
Race
London, 26 April 2026

Context

Background

The World Athletics results page for the 2026 London Marathon prints 1:59:41 for Yomif Kejelcha in second. The race report calls it the second-fastest time in history and the fastest marathon debut. Olympics.com prints 1:59:41 as well.

The time is his debut marathon, so it is also his personal best. It is a legal race, not an exhibition.

Spot a wrong number?

Every report is read by a person, and corrections are dated on the page.