World record holder Sawe to defend Berlin Marathon title in September
Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe, who last month became the first man to run a marathon in under two hours in an official race, will attempt to improve on that record on one of the world’s fastest courses at the Berlin Marathon in September, organisers said on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old, who ran the London Marathon in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, will return to competition when he defends his Berlin title on September 27.
“After my victory in London and my sub-two-hour performance, I can only say that I will – as always – prepare as well as possible, come to Berlin to honour this great event and the organisation that invited me, and aim to run as well and as fast as I can,” Sawe said in a statement.
The Berlin Marathon’s flat course is regarded as one of the quickest in the world, with nine men’s world records being set at the event between 1998 and 2022. Sawe finished the Berlin Marathon in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds in 2025, clocking the world’s best time of the year despite temperatures reaching up to 25 degrees Celsius.
His compatriot Eliud Kipchoge still holds the course record, having clocked 2:01:09 in 2022 to set a previous world record.
“We’ll see what happens on race day,” Sawe said.
Organisers said the 2026 edition of the Berlin Marathon is expected to attract almost 60,000 athletes from around 160 countries.
Published on May 13, 2026