23-year-old Kenyan marathon runner Kelvin Kiptum set a new world record this Sunday in Chicago by completing the race in two hours and 35 seconds.
Kiptum surpassed the previous record by 34 seconds. The previous record was set by Eliud Kipchoge, who completed the race in Berlin in 2022 in 2:01:09. "I feel so happy, I wasn't prepared," Kiptum said after crossing the finish line in statements reported by ESPN. "A world record was not in my mind today."
WORLD RECORD: We have a new man in town. Kelvin Kiptum just broke Eliud Kipchoge's World Record with an unofficial time of 2:00:35! UNBELIEVABLE! pic.twitter.com/XfeMEzPveZ
— Chicago Marathon (@ChiMarathon) October 8, 2023
WORLD RECORD 🤯
🇰🇪's Kelvin Kiptum destroys the marathon world record* at the @ChiMarathon with 2:00:35 😵
He becomes the first man in history to break 2:01.
*Subject to the usual ratification procedures pic.twitter.com/gRYYzE89d0
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) October 8, 2023
This was Kiptum's third marathon. This year he ran the London Marathon (2:01:25) and finished with the second-best time in history. Last year, he completed the Valencia Marathon in 2:01:53. He finished both races in first place.
