Eliud Kipchoge Becomes First Ever To Run Sub-Two Hour Marathon

On Saturday in Vienna, Austria, Kenyan-born runner Eliud Kipchoge became the first person ever to run a marathon in under two hours. At the conclusion of his groundbreaking run, Kipchoge clocked in at 1:59:40.

In order to achieve this milestone, Kipchoge solicited the assistance of pacemakers to keep him on track during the run, 41 in total plus a pace car. Out of those 41, he was the center of a “V formation” at any given time, often spearheaded by long-distance runners and even some former Olympians.

However, since the marathon was not an open event and included the use of rolling pacemakers, the time will not be counted as an official world record. That being said, this epic run is already being considered a historic milestone, often likened to Sir Roger Bannister breaking the threshold of four minutes when running a mile.

When asked about this triumphant moment, Kipchoge responded with three simple words: “Anything is possible.”

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Another headline-grabbing aspect of this marathon was the shoes worn by Kipchoge, newly designed by Nike. In order to garner the most media attention possible, Nike waited until the buildup to the Vienna marathon to unveil their new running shoes to be worn by Kipchoge, which they claim can improve athletic performance by 4%.

When asked what this historic moment meant to him, Kipchoge answered, “I want to inspire many people, that no human is limited.”

He overcame the major psychological hurdle that had plagued marathon runners for decades, the absolutely daunting task of completing it in under two hours. Kipchoge hopes to inspire generations of runners to come, letting them know not only through words but also his actions that they can push themselves further than they had ever thought.

“Together, when we run, we can make this world a beautiful world,” Kipchoge said after finishing.