Kiptum's world marathon record ratified

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.

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.

Kelvin Kiptum obliterates World Marathon record in Chicago

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.”

The youngster has since joined forces with wearables company Amazfit ahead of this year’s Rotterdam Marathon and Olympics as he looks to go under 2 hours in an official race in the classic distance.

Kiptum eyeing sub 2 hour marathon record in next year's Rotterdam Marathon

On April 14 in Rotterdam, Kiptum will attempt to become the first man to break the two-hour barrier in an official race.

Kiptum will be wearing the Amazfit Cheetah Pro watch in training and races plus the Amazfit Helio Ring to optimize his recovery.

Additional reporting by World Athletics.