The Evolution of the Marathon World Record

Howard Calvert takes a look at how marathon times are inching towards the elusive sub-2 hour mark.

For those who’ve run a marathon, you’ll know that those 26.2 miles delivers agony, pain, and torture. So when you see a runner break the world record, you marvel at how they maintained such speed for so long to make history.

As runners line up this summer for another historic run, we’ve broken down how the fastest marathon times have been chipped away at over the past century, making marginal gains, decade after decade, towards the elusive sub-2 hour barrier. 

Whoever eventually officially breaks it will go down in history in the same way Roger Bannister did when he ran a sub-4-minute mile in 1954. But we’re closer now than we’ve ever been: it’s simply a matter of time. 

Here's how some of the biggest marathon barriers fell in the men’s marathon:

1896

Sub-3.00 Spyridon Louis, First Olympics, 1896

At 40km, it wasn’t quite a full marathon (42.2km), as the distance wasn’t standardized until 1921, but the Greek shepherd, aged 24, is credited as winning the first ‘marathon’ in a time under 3 hours.

Official sub-3

2:55:18 Johnny Hayes, London Olympics, 1908

The London Olympics saw the first marathon run at the official distance. Italian athlete Dorando Pietri entered White City Stadium first, but collapsed five times before being helped over the line one minute ahead of American runner Hayes. His result was declared void due to receiving assistance, and so the win, and the record, went to Hayes.

Sub 2.30

2:29:01 Albert Michelsen, Port Chester Marathon, 1925

Port Chester Marathon began in Manhattan and ended in Westchester County, and attracted big names in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. Michelsen was the first man in the world to sneak under 2.30, a record he held for 10 years.

Sub 2.20

2:18:40 Jim Peters, Polytechnic Marathon, 1952

Breaking 2.20 was seen as impossible at the time, just like the reputation breaking 2 hours has today. But British runner Peters smashed through the barrier in 1952 in this UK point-to-point marathon. Interesting fact: He used to run in plimsolls, swapping the feet over when the soles began to wear out.

Sub 2.10

2:09:36, Derek Clayton, Fukuoka Marathon, 1967

The first man to go sub 2.10 was Australian Derek Clayton, who worked full-time as a draughtsman while putting in 200 miles a week training. In 1967, he clocked 2:08:33, which took 12 years for another runner to beat.

Sub 2.09

2:08:18 Robert De Castella, Fukuoka Marathon, 1981

The Australian, also known aa ‘Deek’, holds the record for first sub-2.09 marathon time after Alberto Salazar’s 1981 New York Marathon time (2:08:13) was judged void following remeasuring of the course in 1984. 

“I always like to run hard in my races,” Deek said afterwards. “I have always believed that after a race you should know honestly within yourself that you couldn’t have run any harder.”

Sub 2.08

2:07:12 Carlos Lopes, Rotterdam Marathon, 1985

The first athlete to break 2.08 came not long after the 2.09 barrier had been broken. The Portuguese athlete maintains he could have gone faster if he’d had other runners with him when he broke ahead at the halfway point, claiming he would have set a time of 2.05.

Sub 2.07

2:06:50 Belayneh Densamo, Rotterdam, Marathon, 1988

A record that stood for 10 years, the Ethiopian went out hard in a battle with Hussein Ahmed Salah, both of whom were aiming to break 2.07. In the end, it was Densamo who triumphed with a heroic effort over the final two kilometers. 

Sub 2.06

2:05:42 Khalid Khannouchi, Chicago Marathon 1999

Averaging a shade under 4.48 a mile, Moroccan-born American athlete Khannouchi set a new marathon record and became the first person to run sub-2.06 at Chicago.

Sub 2.05

2:04:55 Paul Tergat, Berlin Marathon, 2003

The first officially ratified ‘world record’ – up until that point they were ‘world bests’. The Kenyan broke the 2.05 barrier on the notoriously fast Berlin course, setting up a run of records at the World Major Marathon over the next 20 years.

Sub 2.04

2:03:59 Haile Gebrselassie, Berlin Marathon, 2008

The next big barrier to go was 2.04 in 2008, when Ethiopian running legend Gebrselassie broke his own world record in Berlin. In fact, over the course of his career, Gebrselassie set 27 world records across various distances, earning him the nickname the ‘Emperor of Distance Running’. 

Sub 2.03

2:02:57 Dennis Kimetto, Berlin Marathon, 2014 

It was 11 long years until the next milestone was smashed, and it took Kenyan athlete Kimetto’s astonishing 2:02:57 to do it in Berlin. He said afterwards: “I felt good from the start and in the last few miles I felt I could do it and break the record. I believe I can improve it further. I’d like to return and try to break it again next year.” Sadly for him, the next big record went to his fellow countryman…

Sub 2.02

2:01:39 Eliud Kipchoge, Berlin Marathon 2018

Kipchoge was years into his dominance of 26.2 at this point, but this was the only time (barring his historic sub-2, see below) he broke a major time milestone, going under 2.02 in Berlin. He also set the biggest improvement in the marathon record since 1967, taking 1.18 off Kimetto’s 2014 time.  

Sub 2.01

2:00:35 Kelvin Kiptum, Chicago Marathon 2023

Kenyan runner Kiptum made history in 2023 by dipping under 2.01 in Chicago, getting closer to the mythical sub-2 than anyone in history. It was noteworthy for many reasons, not least as he was only 23 at the time, and this was only his third marathon. He shaved three minutes off the course record, and his record still stands. Sadly, after Kiptum tragically died in a car crash in February 2024, the world will never see if he could have broken that monumental barrier he was so close to.

Unofficial Sub 2.00

1:59:40 Eliud Kipchoge, Ineos 1:59 Challenge, 2019

Although technically Kipchoge’s sub-2 time can’t be officially ratified as a world record due to it breaking the rules regarding fluids and pacing, the GOAT still showed the world in a powerhouse performance that the seemingly impossible is possible.