In this week's WTW, we start with a hypothetical - who would win at 250 miles - Rachel Entrekin or Sabastian Sawe? Plus we tell you why Marco Langon should be happy he didn't break the collegiate 1500 record and hop on the Emma Grace Hurley hype train.
*MB: Sabastian Sawe vs Rachel Entrekin at 250 miles. Who would win in the ultimate battle of the sexes?
Video Of The Day
Our Weekly Written Recap
If Sabastian Sawe had skipped the London Marathon and run the Cocodona 250 instead, who would have won?
-
%
Your vote has been counted. Thank you!
Road News - USATF 25k Champs
Hurley won by 43 seconds in 1:22:51 (5:20 pace) while Colley ran 1:14:00 (4:46 pace) to beat Mo Bati (1:14:19) and Casey Clinger (1:14:32).
- 2020 Olympic 10,000m champ Selemon Barega will defend his title at the 2026 Great Manchester Run 10k He faces last year's runner-up Santiago Catrofe and 2024 winner Vincent Ngetich plus Brits Marc Scott and Andy Butchart. The women's race has Boston Marathon champ Sharon Lokedi vs US's Weini Kelati and former NYC Marathon winner Sheila Chepkirui.
- Kenyans Collins Kemboi (2:08:52) and Patience Kimutai (2:30:45) win Geneva Marathon
Weekend NCAA / HS Action
- MB: Marco Langon runs NCAA #2 All-Time 1500m at Franson Last Chance Meet (3:32.79) *Results
- Simeon Birnbaum leads trio of Ducks under 1:46 at Oregon Twilight (link fixed) He won in 1:44.67 ahead of true freshman Bodey Lutes (1:45.62). Silan Ayyildiz won the women's 1500m in 4:06.07 as two-time NCAA mile champ Wilma Nielsen (4:11.78) was only third in her outdoor debut. Benjamin Balazs took the men's race in 3:36.23 ahead of Thomas Ratcliffe (3:36.53). *Results
*MB: Simeon Birnbaum 1:44.67 at Oregon Twilight tonight - Arkansas' Brian Masai runs 3:33.17 at Arkansas Twilight finishing runner-up to former OSU runner Fouad Messaoudi (3:32.25) The time is joint #2 in the NCAA this year and broke a 27-year-old Arkansas school record.
- MB: Quincy Wilson makes 300 hurdles debut - wins in 38.77 For comparison, the high school record is 34.72. Wilson ran this doubling back after winning the 400m in 45.88.
On The Boards
On The Boards
Distance News
- Drew Hunter blog post: "Rethinking my entire running career" After doing well in three back-to-back races including winning USATF 5k Champs, Hunter has a new found love for the roads.
- MB: Emma Coburn returns to racing after 15 months - racing the steeple at Trackfest (May 23) This will be her first steeplechase in over two years.
- MB: No cross country at 2030 Winter Olympics This is a bummer for running fans, but the IOC hasn't ruled it out completely, so it could still happen at future Winter Olympics.
International Results
- Henry McLuckie breaks Steve Ovett's 39-year-old Belfast stadium 3000m record He ran 7:43.64 breaking the 1980 Olympic 800m champ's 7:44.83 mark from 1987. Melissa Courtney-Bryant set a stadium record in the 1500m, winning in 4:04.50 and 2023 world 800m bronze medalist Ben Pattison won the men's 1500m in 3:37.96.
- World 10,000m champ Jimmy Gressier wins French 10k champs in 27:47 He won the race by nearly a minute. 19-year-old Louisa Bailly won the women's race in 32:34.
- Italy's Nadia Battocletti opens outdoor season with 1500m win in Florence (4:03.75) She dominated the race by more than 12 seconds. 800m wins went to GB's Jemma Reekie (2:01.26) and Spain's David Borroso (1:44.56).
- Brit Clare Elms runs W60 five mile best of 29:53 (5:59 pace) She crushed her previous world best of 30:44.
- Philemon Kiriago and Ruth Mwihaki Gitonga lead Kenyan sweep at Transvulcania World Mountain Running race They each won the long distance races, with their compatriots, Richard Omaya Atuya and Joyce Muthoni Njeru won the uphill races two days earlier.
Worth A Read
(link fixed) Michael Crawley and Geoff Burns write in a fascinating long essay entitled "The Ethiopian running secret" on Aeon.co, "For a long time, African knowledge has been seen by the West as intuitive, superstitious and practical, and some might view the Ethiopian methodology as unscientific. We argue it may be just the opposite."
International News
- British sprinter CJ Ujah arrested for cryptocurrency fraud He is alleged to have been part of an organized crime group which scammed people over the phone to steal their currency, with one victim apparently losing over $300,000. Ujah was infamously banned for doping at the Tokyo Olympics which led the UK 4x100 to be stripped of their silver medal. GB sprinter Brandon Mingel was also arrested.
- Olympic pole vault bronze medalist and OnlyFans model Alysha Newman gets 20-month ban for whereabouts failures She was home for the third missed test, but told the tester she had to leave immediately to film a television game show. She received less than a two-year ban because the AIU accepted that she had decided to end her career, although in a follow-up statement, she said she wasn't done with track.
- Keely Hodgkinson signs with WME Sports talent agency This is the same talent agency as British star tennis player Emma Raducanu and Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton.
- India javelin star Neeraj Chopra nearing comeback from injury after being out since last year
Sprint News
At the time, it was written it was "greater than Randy Matson’s 21.52m shot put and Ron Clarke’s 27:39.4 10,000m, according to the Portuguese Scoring Tables.” Smith was quite the athlete as he held 11 different world records at once.
- Gabby Thomas, Oblique Seville and Quincy Hall to headline inaugural Lone Star Grand Prix on June 6th in Texas
- 3-time NCAA champ Peyton Bair's younger sister Karlie is quite the athlete - just like seemingly everyone in the family All three of her older brothers are NCAA athletes and she scored 36 points at the Idaho state meet last year as a sophomore.
- Two-time European 200m champion and two-time world 60m champion, Mujinga Kambundji, who is getting ready to compete again after giving birth, compares pregnancy comeback to coming back from injury
Random News That Passed Our Human Vetting Test
- Wilma Nielsen to make outdoor debut at Oregon Twilight on Friday The women's 1500 is loaded with Nielsen and 9 others who have broken 4:10. Simeon Birnbaum is in the 800 with Elliott Cook. Justyn Knightis in the 1500.
- Mondo Duplantis has moved to Monaco and he hopes to break the pole vault world record there at the Monaco DL on July 11th
- Femke Broeders-Bol announces she'll make her outdoor 800m pro debut in Hengelo on Sunday, June 21
- World Athletics 5th Kids’ Athletics Day is hoping to inspire 700,000+ kids to be active
- World Athletics rejects the IOC's request to allow Belarus to compete again "Our council has made a clear decision that when there is tangible movement towards peace negotiations it can begin to review its decisions. We all hope this will be soon, but until that happens the council continues to be united in standing behind the decision it made in March 2022 and revisited in 2023 and 2025."
- Jimmy Gressier will try to break Mo Farah's one-hour record at Brussels Diamond League Final in September To do it, he'll essentially have to run a little faster than a 59:20 half marathon on the track and keep going for a little bit longer.
- Nike opens its 1st store in East Africa in Kenya and Eliud Kipchoge was there to celebrate it "This is a massive achievement for the citizens of this country...This is the first shop in East Africa, and it’s a huge milestone. I’m a really happy man because this is also the first shop in Kenya, and I believe I have left a legacy,” Kipchoge said.
Ultra news
The 34-year-old from Birmingham, Alabama, took advantages of great condition in the 4th edition fo the race and crossed the line in a new overall course record with an official time of 56:09:48, smashing the previous mark of 58:47:18 in the race that goes from Sedona to Flagstaff, AZ and was watched by more than 20,000 people live online. Kilian Korth was second overall and the first man to finish, crossing the line in 57:28:36 *Outside
*MB:The official Cocodona 250 2026 thread. 345,000 people watched the live stream on Wednesday. Wow.
*MB: Runner drops dead in middle of Cocodona 250 Mile. Race goes on.
- BBC: Mashed potato & 19 minutes' sleep - The secrets to Entrekin's epic race "Somewhere around mile 200, I slept for five minutes at an aid station," said the 34-year-old, speaking to BBC Sport the morning after her success. "Then around 230 miles, I took two seven-minute naps on the floor. And food, it's impossible to say how much I ate but as far as real food goes, I had a lot of mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes are the best. You get tired of chewing and you don't want to expend any extra energy doing that."
More Sub-2
Adidas reveals to the NY Times the secrets behind the 1:59 marathon super shoe: From ‘unreasonable ambition’ to ‘actual magic’ The magic seems to be in the foam and in moving from the energy rods to a carbon rim around the perimeter. By changing the “formulation” of the foam, "they reduced its weight by 50 percent and increased forefoot energy return by 11 percent."
Rojo On NPR
NPR radio devoted one hour to what made sub-2 possible. Was it the athlete, the shoes, nutrition, etc? Full transcript at the link above or you can listen to it on your favorite podcast player.
Upcoming Action
- June 28: Grant Fisher vs Jimmy Gressier set for Paris DL 5000m
*Gressier announcement here - June 16: Noah Lyles vs Gout Gout over 150m set for Ostrava Golden Spike meet
- May 10: MB: Evan Jager making his marathon debut in Copenhagen this weekend
- May 10: Jimmy Gressier is a late entrant to the French 10km Championships on Sunday
- May 23: Preview - 9 stars to watch at the 2026 Sound Running LA Track Festival Donavan Brazier vs Josh Kerr in the 800m; Cooper Lutkenhaus makes his pro 1500m debut.
- May 23: Four global medalists set for Xiamen women's HJ
High School Stuff
- High school mid-d star Paige Sheppard commits to Stanford The 2:01.50 800m and 4:33.67 mile runner is only in her junior year.
- Last week Natalie Dumas raced four days in a row in three different states She ran four races at her two-day conference meet on Wednesday and Thursday in NJ, then an 800m in NYC on Friday (where she finished 3rd in the race won by Paige Sheppard) and ended with a nation-leading 58.78 400H on Saturday in Maryland.
- A West Virginia high school meet was cancelled last weekend after shots were fired nearby The shots were fired outside the stadium and no one was hurt.
- Texas high school coach is in intensive care after being struck in the head by a shot put We wish him a speedy recovery. You can donate to help with his medical expenses here.
Collegiate News
- TFN's 2026 NCAA Men’s Formchart #2 — Arkansas is favored They have them beating Oregon, 54 to 48.
- TFN's 2026 NCAA Women’s Formchart #2 — Georgia is still their #1 In the women's 1500, they have Rosemary Longisa of Washingotn State #1.
- Texas Tech Athletics renames Drive of Champions after Wes Kittley “I say something to my kids all the time – be humble and hungry,” Kittley said.
- Arkansas men stay #1 in updated NCAA rankings; Georgia and Oregon move up to 2-3 LSU dropped to #4.
- Georgia women remain #1 in latest NCAA rankings; Florida jumps three spots to #2 BYU and South Carolina are ranked 3-4.
- Japan Golden Week track roundup Collegiate runner Ko Ochiai broke his own 800m national record with a 1:43.90.
- Simeon Birnbaum becomes the 500th athlete ever to be named to the Bowerman Watch List You can see the men's current watchlist here and the women's here.
GB News
- Laura Muir wins Millicent Fawcett Mile in Oxford (4:34.05) Muir, the 2020 Olympic 1500m silver medalist, said she may step up from the 1500m to longer distances this year. 17-year-old Freddie Rowe won the men's race in 4:00.88.
- UK names their marathon squad for 2026 European Championships The team includes 2:06 man Weynay Ghebresilasie who was the Eritrea flag bearer at the London 2012 Olympics, but defected and applied for asylum.
- London Marathon has a record 1.3 million apply for the 2027 race Over one million of the entries were from UK runners (1.8% of the UK adult population). Of all those who apply, usually only 20,000 get in through ballot entry, but London is still considering making next year a two-day race which would double the number of runners.
- Some interesting stats from the 2026 London Marathon mass race The median finish time was 4:15:41 (3:59:06 for men and 4:39:28 for women). Millennials were the fastest generation (4:08:00 median) and 45% of runners "bonked" in the second half of the race (men were more likely to bonk than women).
- UK government considering bidding to host the Olympics again in the 2040s If London hosted again, it would be the first city to host the Olympics four times. (They hosted in 1908, 1948 and 2012.)
More From World Relays
The crowd in Gaborone was sensational as Botswana's stars Letsile Tebogo & Collen Kebinatshipi put on a show.
- The US women withdrew from the 4x100 repechage round at World Relays due to an injury This means no auto spot for the US at 2027 Worlds and they'll have to run a time qualifier next year.
- Botswana fumbled the baton exchange in the men's 4x400 on day 1 after taunting the Australian team Australia ended up finishing ahead of them in the heat after Botswana's Collen Kebinatshipi "stared down" Australia's Matthew Hunt at the end of the third leg.
- First qualifiers for Budapest Ultimate Championships and 2027 World Champs locked in at World Relays
More Results From The Weekend
- Georgia freshman Jonathan Simms runs 44.02 at the Torrin Lawrence Memorial meet (#6 NCAA all-time) The time is also #2 on the world U20 list and he just barely beat out Alabama's reigning NCAA outdoor champ Samuel Ogazi by 0.005 of a second.
- Arkansas' Kaylyn Brown triples at LSU Invite winning the 400m in 50.09, 2nd in the 200m in 22.57 (+3.5) and splitting 49.84 on the winning 4x400
- Ethiopia's Berehanu Wendemu Tsegu (2:05:51) and Kenya's Millicent Jelimo (2:24:19) win at the Prague Marathon
- UCLA men and USC women come out on top in 92nd edition of USC-UCLA dual meet The UCLA men won 87-76, while the USC women scored 93 to 69.
- MB: 11 year old kid runs 1:20 half marathon in Indianapolis Ben Dick was running with his dad, but dropped him mid-race to run a world best for his age, 1:20:14 (6:07 pace).
- Blair Bartlett breaks NJ 3200m record with 9:45.29 at NJISAA Prep A Track Championships This broke the 9:46.78 record Allison Lee had set less than a week before.
Weekend Big Talk
Nico reflects on his indoor campaign and has a big plans for the sumer: 5ks in Oslo & Paris, a 1500m in Stockholm, and a 10k road debut at Peachtree. Plus he explains why he views his 12:45 as an American record.
*T&FN Interview — Nico Young
Fireworks on final day of World Relays:
Botswana ran 2:54.47 (.18 of WR). On leg #2, South Africa's Lythe Pillay ran 42.66, the fastest split ever. Races were at 3300 feet of altitude. *WA recap
*MB: South Africa's Lythe Pillay 42.66 4x400 split at World Relays
- Multi-time Olympic champ Elaine Thompson-Herah anchors Jamaica to women's 4x100 title They ran 42.00 to just beat out Canada (42.17).
- USA regain men’s 4x100m title with 37.43 win over South Africa (38.49)
- Norway run world lead to win women’s 4x400m Their 3:20.96 was also a national record.
- MB: World Relays 4x400 start was in the wrong position in lane 3 on day 1 Teams running in that lane ran less than 400m on their first leg.
- Jamaica improve mixed 4x100m world record to 39.62 The time is now 1.20 seconds quicker than the women's 4x100 record. Canada took silver (40.23) and the US bronze (40.33).
- Team USA run 3:07.47 to break meet record in mixed 4x400 They were just .06 off the world record Team USA set at the 2024 Olympics.
Coe Speaks
- Seb Coe praises IOC gender testing decision: "I'm delighted that the world is beginning to see it the way we did" World Athletics deserves credit for being on the forefront of this issue, fighting legal battles to protect women's sport for years while the IOC and other sports federations let biological men compete with women.
- Seb Coe says World Athletics won't "strangle innovation" with super shoes Yeah, the worms are already out of the can with this one. It's kind of hypocritical though that World Athletics allows these shoes on the roads, but then bans them on the track
More Sub-2 Marathon Talk
- Athletics Weekly: "From Jim Alder to Sabastian Sawe: the two-hour barrier, then and now" Back when the marathon WR was just 2:12, the two-hour run was a "legitimate record- chasing format." GB's Alder set a WR for the 2 hour run in 1964 at 23.608 miles.
- Both Sabastian Sawe and Eliud Kipchoge give credit to writer Brad Stulberg for help with their marathon mental preparation Stulberg's books talk about "mental health, well-being, and sustainable excellence" and Sawe's coach, Claudio Berardelli, reached out to Stulberg after the 1:59:30 to thank him.
- The Irish Times: Does the fact that Sabastian Sawe felt he needed extra testing to prove his record was clean mean people don't have confidence in the current anti-doping process? An interesting stat from the article: Irish taxpayers paid over $3 million in 2025 for 1,827 tests, only four of which came back positive.
USATF 5k Champs
Cooper Teare (13:28.04) and Gracie Hyde (15:03.59) were the third place finishers in the race where the top 2 won spots to the World Road Running champs. Abdihamud Nur was only 7th (13:34.87) and Shelby Houlihan was only 15th (15:50.13). Katelyn Tuohy isn't in the results.
World Relay Championships Day 1
- Jamaica set mixed 4x100m world record of 39.99 at World Relays; Team USA fails to make women's 4x100 final This is less than a second faster than the women's 4x100 WR; there are probably more prestigious costume marathon records. Jamaica, lead by Shericka Jackson, had the top women's 4x100 while the US women finished 4th in their heat and didn't make the final. Canada, anchored by Andre De Grassee, set a men's 4x100 world lead (37.56) while the US won their heat in 37.77 and this time it was Jamaica's turn to miss the final.
- All three world leads fall in men's, women's and mixed 4x400m heats In the men's race, Australia ran 2:57.30 to break the 42-year-old Oceanian record. The GB women ran 3:21.28 (second fastest time ever at the World Relays; #4 on the GB all-time list) and the US won their mixed 4x400 heat (the US didn't send a team in the men's or women's race).
- First 48 relay teams qualify for World Champs from World Relays All teams that make the final at World Relays automatically qualify for Worlds. Teams that didn't make the final get a chance if they finish top-2 in Sunday's repechage round.
More Weekend Track Action
- MB: Riley Chamberlain beats Jane Hedengren handily in BYU Invite mile (4:25.27 to 4:31.10) In the men's race, Tayvon Kitchen ran 3:59.17 to beat Jane's brother, Isaac Hedengren (3:59.69). *Results *Race Video
- MB: Liam Murphy wins Payton Jordan 5000m in 13:12.02; Hobbs Kessler 6th place in 13:13.94 Sam Gilman (13:12.19) and Ethan Strand (13:13.11) were 2nd and 3rd. *Results
- Paige Sheppard comes out on top in competitive girls 800m at Track Night NYC Sheppard ran 2:02.37 to beat out Jane Hickey (2:03.68) and Natalie Dumas (2:04.00). Abigail Hennessy won the girls mile in 4:35.87 while Nathan Lee took the boys race in 4:05.25 after a premature celebration from Abdi Hassan (4:05.29).
*MB: Abdi Hassan loses NY Track Night Mile by 0.04 after celebrating at the line - MB: Emily Mackay 1:59.21 at altitude
Too Good To Be True
Sawe's 1:59:30 was real, but analysis from LetsRun.com and German timing ace Helmut Winter reveals his 24th mile was almost certainly slower than 4:12. The race's official timing company has told LetsRun it has removed the time for mile 24 from its list of splits to prevent confusion.
Be inspired / 3 Recommended Reads / Listens
- The Seth O'Donnell Story: From non-runner and Australian rules football player to Australian 5000 champ in 2 years, meet the Aussie 5000 sensation What a story. "Two years. From not being a runner at all to being the best cross country runner in the country. The cognitive recalibration required for that shift is enormous. The story you tell yourself about who you are and what you can do has to be completely rewritten. And when you rewrite it, the next chapter gets bigger."
- ‘How I ran a sub-2:30 marathon for the first time as a 47-year-old’ 22-years ago, Howard Calvert ran his 1st London in 3:30.17. Ten years ago, he first broke 3:00. Now thanks to super shoes and better fueling, he's run 2:29:01. Amazing. Be inspired.
- Sports science writer Alex Hutchinson podcast on how the high-carb craze has changed fuelling Shakeout Podcast host John Gay speaks with sports science writer Alex Hutchinson about the current high-carb fuelling practices in running and cycling. "Alex Hutchinson: Studies have shown that even the people on a high-carb diet only have about 60 per cent of fuel in their tanks the morning after a hard workout the day before. It takes maybe 24 hours to restock. For most of us, we’re doing another run before that, so there’s this constant battle to stay fuelled."
Post-London News
Want to go behind the scenes of human history? Adidas has released a new 12-minute documentary, "Chasing Sub 2," following Sebastian Sawe’s monumental 1:59:30 run at the London Marathon. Narrated by the legendary Haile Gebrselassie, the film explores the fusion of supreme talent, relentless hard work, and cutting-edge lab technology that broke one of the sport's most iconic barriers.
*MB: Adidas releases 12-minute short film chronicling Sabastian Sawe’s historic sub-2-hour marathon
- Kenyan president gives Sawe a car and 61k
- Kenyan tourism board gives Sawe a "four-night luxury getaway"
- BBC Sport's London Marathon social media engament increases from 9 millionto 47 million and the social media team appears to be taking credit Lol. As if all videos of a human running 1:59:30 weren't bound to go viral.
Meet Vinny Mauri
Neal, who coached Mauri at Notre Dame from 2023-25, said he thought he might be able to break 2:08 in Toledo based on the training Mauri had done before the race. "We kind of always knew if he could ever stay healthy, he’d be real dangerous.... He’s just a tremendous kid and has worked his butt off for this."
- MB: Unheralded American Vincent Mauri runs 2:05:54 at Glass City Marathon in Toledo.
- MB: Notre Dame coach Chris Neal RAVES about Vincent Mauri and talks about his 2:05 breakout marathon.
- Runner's World: Who is Vinny Mauri? Some interesting insights into his training like he ran 90 to 110 miles a week leading up to the Glass City Marathon, but about 90% of it was on the treadmill because of the harsh Ohio winter. He also runs many of his easy days fast, starting at 6 minute pace and getting down to 5:40
This Weekend's Action
- Natalie Dumas (2:00.11 pb), Paige Sheppard (2:01.50 pb), & Jane Hickey (2:03.61 pb) to battle in epic girls 800m at Track Night NYC on Friday night Track Night NYC presented by New Balance will bring some of the best high school distance runners on the East Coast to Icahn Stadium on Friday.
- MB: USATF Road 5k champs are Saturday in Indy Lots of 'names' are entered including Houlihan, Tuohy, Schweizer, Nur, Teare, etc. Who is your favorite?
- World Relays is this weekend: *Mixed 4 x 400 preview *W4 x 400 preview *M4x400 preview *Mixed 4 x 100 preview *M4x100 preview *W4x100 preview *
- More than 300 sanctions have been handed to Russian athletes following the seizure of Moscow laboratory data in 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) says. 93 of them have come in athletics.
- The new Pac-12 conference looks like it will be good for women's distance "Everybody in the conference does track, which is great," Oregon State coach Louie Quintana said about the new conference which will include Boise St., Colo. St., SDSU, Texas St., Utah St., Oregon St. and WSU. "On the women's side, six schools have sent teams to (NCAA Cross Country) nationals in the last five years. It's highly competitive."
Non-London News
- Meet 16-year-old Abdinasir “Abdi” Hassan, a US 10th grader, who ran 13:52 at Bryan Clay earlier this month His father ran in the 1996 Olympics for Somalia in the 5000 and he may be going for the US in 2032.
- MB: Gjert Ingebrigtsen suing Norwegian state for ‘unjustified criminal prosecution’ in abuse case Even though he was convicted of one charge, "the defence team are now arguing that the “the indictment should never have been brought." "The lengthy criminal prosecution has had significant consequences for Ingebrigtsen, both personally, familially and financially. The case has been very burdensome over time, with extensive public exposure and large costs,” they added in the statement.
- Wharton grad and testicular canceer Sam Mattis is the 1st new American record holder in the discus in 40+ years.
- 400m World champ Kebinatshipi says Olympic medallist Isaac Makwalaa was his inspiration "My role model from a young age has been Isaac. "[He] has also been close to me and guiding me. That's why I had that motivation and belief that I can also do this and be like him.
- USC and UCLA to meet for 92nd time this weekend Last year, for the first time in 12 years, UCLA won both the men's and women's titles.
The Sub-2 News Keeps Poring In
- Kenya gives a hero's welcome to marathon record breaker Sabastian Sawe
*Sawe airplane gets ceremonial water cannon when it touches down in Kenya - After running 1:59 in his debut, Yomif Kejelcha declares: "The marathon is much easier than the… half marathon." He also called his new racing shoes "magical."
- Kiplimo says 1:58 (or faster) is coming: "I think maybe it's possible to run under 1:58. In some year, for me, it's just a matter of time."
- TCS London Marathon broke finisher world record with 59,830 That's 604 more than NYC had in the fall.
- British reporter gets shipped new adidas super shoe to try out, the shoes were so light the receptionist almost reported them stolen as she thought nothing was in the box
- Australian economist says the stats reveal the human limit in the marathon in 1:54:00 Of course, when he first made his predicitons in 2019, he said the limit was 1:58:05 and that we wouldnt see sub-2 until 2032.
- If it's good enough for Sawe... the Garmin watch used to break the two-hour marathon barrier at London is actually super cheap And you can buy the Garmin Forerunner 55 here (and support LRC in the process) for just $169.
- A British journalist ran London in the cheapest carbon-plated super shoes on earth -Lidl’s £39.99 Crivit CarbonLite 1.0 - ANd he managed to run 2:58 in them. Meanwhile, his colleague spent £230 for some New Balance shoes and ran over 5 hours.
- Sawe: "The two hour wall was never a limit. It was a rumour.”
Previous Sawe's Sub-2 Coverage
- WSJ: "The 2-Hour Marathon Barrier Gets Smashed. Is It the Shoes—or the Sugar?" While everyone has been talking about the shoes, possibly just as important is the fueling. New fueling tech lets elites taking in way more carbs before and during a marathon than they used to. (Sawe had a total of 230 grams of carbs during his WR run, which this article says is twice as much as elites might have a "handful of years ago.")
- How long could you last at Sabastian Sawe's marathon pace? 4:34 mile pace is 14:10 for 5k, but at that pace Sawe is still settling in.
- The Guardian's Sean Ingle: "Sabastian Sawe’s sub-two hour marathon is the Roger Bannister moment of our time"
- The Irish Times' Ian O'Riordan: "Have super shoes changed the face of marathon running forever?"
- Sean Ingle: "Bread and honey for breakfast and 150 miles a week training: secrets of Sawe’s world record"
- The Telegraph: "Sabastian Sawe: The secrets of my marathon world record"
- BBC: "Lighter than a bar of soap - the shoes worn to shatter marathon record"
GB News
- Good Read: The Times' Matt Lawton gets an inside look at the M11 Track Club's (Keely Hodgkinson and Georgia Hunter Bell's group) South Africa training camp Hodgkinson talks about the benefits of doing hard workouts with Hunter Bell. "I don’t get offended if Georgia is better at what she’s better at because I just try and work off that. ...You can’t have an ego in this group. There are so many good athletes and if you have a bad day, you’re going to look absolutely shite." Hodgkinson says she wants to go to five Olympics (she'll be 34 in 2036), but she might have to take a break when she's 30 to start a family.
- Mo Farah helped a random runner with a leg cramp during the London Marathon A runner pulled up on sidelines at mile 24 with a severe leg cramp and Farah saw him and showed him how to stretch it out.
- The Telegraph: "West Ham asked if they have ‘heart and soul’ to vacate London Stadium" The UK soccer team has been asked to give up the stadium for three weeks in 2029 so London can host World Champs, but that would mean they have to play three consecutive matches away from home which they are reluctant to do.
Catching Up On Some Recent Results
- Gabby Thomas finally breaks the 11 second barrier for 100m with 10.95 victory at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix Canada's Jerome Blake won the men's 100m in 9.93 ahead of Kenya's Ferdinand Omanyala and Canada's Andre de Grasee (both timed at 9.95).
- Community college runner Raynier Galvez runs 1:44.14 at Arkansas It was an almost three second PB and is the fifth fastest time ever by a collegian. He just barely beat out Arkansas' Rivaldo Marshall by .01.
- Kenyan duo Michael Selelo Saoli and Joyce Muthoni Njeru win Beijing Changping Classic mountain race in China Part of the race actually runs on the Great Wall which is pretty cool.
- Kenya's Mathew Kipchumba Kipsang and Italy’s Nadia Battocletti won the overall titles for World Athletics' 2025/26 World XC Tour Kipsang actually tied with Burundi's Rodrigue Kwizera for overall points, but won on the tie-breaker which was overall world ranking.
- April Japanese Road Roundup
Upcoming Track / Diamond League Action
- MB: Cooper Lutkenhaus will make his pro 1500m debut at the LA Track Festival on May 23rd Previously announced, the men's 800m will have Donavan Brazier up against Josh Kerr and Jake Wightman. *More announced stars listed here
- MB: Hobbs Kessler racing the 5000m at Payton Jordan on Friday *Full Entries Ethan Strand is also in the 5000m and Cam Levins is in the 10,000m. *Live Results
- Cooper Lutkenhaus will face Olympic and world champ Emmanuel Wanyonyi in the Oslo DL 800m on June 10 2023 world champion Marco Arop and Olympic bronze medalist Djamel Sedjati are also in the field.
- Faith Kipyegon to open her season at the Keqiao DL 5000m on May 16
- July 4: Sha'Carri Richardson added to Pre Classic 100m field against Melissa Jefferson-Wooden
- Olympic champion Winfred Yavi vs world champion Faith Cherotich duel set for Xiamen steeplechase on May 23 Their rivalry has seen them go head-to-head 14 times since 2022 with Yavi coming out ahead in 9 of those contests (according to tilastopaja.com).
- Olympic final rematch set for London DL 400m on July 18 US's Olympic champ Quincy Hall will go against GB's Olympic silver medalist Matthew Hudson-Smith.
NCAA / HS News
- Huge change if this happens: DI board of directors directs cabinet to advance age-based eligibility rules These new rules would start an athletes' 5-year eligibility clock when they turn 19 or graduate from high school (whichever happens earlier), but they could use up to five years (not just four as they do now). This would mean no more 26+ year-olds in the NCAA.
- Arkansas men move a spot up to #1 in updated NCAA rankings LSU jumped five spots up to #2 and Georgia and Texas A&M moved down to 304.
- Georgia women stay #1 in latest NCAA rankings; South Carolina moves three spots up to #2 BYU and LSU are ranked 3-4.
- Allison Lee breaks NJ 3200m record with 9:46.78 at Homdel Twilight Meet The time puts her #4 fastest prep in the country this year.
- Fredonia opens new track and field facility, hosts first home meet since 2008 Fredonia, NY is 2012 Olympic pole vault champ Jenn Suhr's hometown.
The Myth Of The Sub-2-Hour Marathon
13-years ago, Rojo wrote the original The Myth Of The Sub-2-Hour Marathon and claimed we were nowhere close to a sub-2 and that we likely wouldn't see it in his lifetime. Well now that it has happened and everyone on the Internet is dunking on him, how does he feel? He's not backing down and claims the logic of his original column was right on the money.
Post-London Analysis
How in the world did Sabastian Sawe turn was looked to be a 2:01 race into a historic 1:59:30 marathon world record? Did adidas' new 3.4 ounce shoe -- the Adios Pro Evo 3 -- tip the scales? What about the wind?
Their Pro Careers Didn't Work Out How They Wanted
The reviewer states that Cain "writes that (in HS) she was taunted for her physical appearance and badgered by her petty teammates, their overbearing parents and her creepy coach, who took perverse interest in the sex lives of his female runners."
*MB Mary Cain makes more allegations: Claims her HS coach took a perverse interest in the sex lives of his female runners
- MB: Abby Steiner sues Puma (and Mercedes), claims their spikes ruined her careerFront Office Sports has the story on how Steiner is suing as she says the spikes Puma designed with help from Mercedes were dangerous. "Puma knew that their products were defective, and yet promoted them as safe to wear and did not inspect them."
More From The London Marathon
- MB: Elish McColgan’s foot ‘explodes’ during London Marathon, still finishes 7th (2:24:51) She got a blister on her foot that "exploded" just past halfway with a ton of blood and affected her running form. She still managed to finish almost as fast as her 2:24:25 debut from last year.
- Sabastian Sawe's sub-2 boosts Adidas share price 1.5%
- Sabastian Sawe isn't done breaking barriers; he and his coach believe he can run 1:58 Talking about his post-race celebrations, Sawe said, "I didn’t drink anything to celebrate, just water. I ate rice and a piece of chicken for dinner. It was very simple."
*MB: Claudio Beradelli: "Sebastian has not reached his peak yet" - How did the celebrities and other notable runners do in London? Des Linden raced for the third straight week after placing third at the Marathon des Sables and 2:35 in Boston. She ran 3:04 in London while pacing a friend.
- The Irish marathon record went down in London with Peter Lynch running 2:06:08 in 9th place He broke the previous record by 1:46.
- London reclaims record for most marathon finishers with 59,830 They broke NYC's record of 59,226 finishers from last year. (NYC and London always trade back and forth with this record.)
Felix Is Back Baby
Felix is hoping to make the relay pool for what would be her 6th Olympics at the age of 42. She'll start her full training schedule under her longtime coach Bobby Kersee in October and return to competition in 2027. Felix said, I totally get the person who sticks around too long and you’re like, ‘What are they doing?’ I know, at 40, I am not at my peak. I have no illusions about that. I’m very clear in what it is and what I want to see. And so I hope it's seen that way."
American Marathon News
Mauri, who had a best NCAA XC finish of 68th in 2023 while at Notre Dame and doesn't even have a PB longer than 5000m on the World Athletics database (13:34.03 from 2025), came out of nowhere to break the American marathon debut record.
- Vincent Mauri: “I wasn’t planning on running that fast. I kind of told a couple of co-workers I was like 'if I don't go under 2:16, then I'm not a marathoner', but I think I went under 2:06 today, so, I think we're a marathoner."
- Phoenix is bidding to host the 2028 Olympic Marathon Trials The Trials would be in March and Phoenix has the potential to be hot at that time of the year. USATF is expected to make a decision on the host by June 2026; St. Louis is also bidding.
London Marathon
Sebastian Sawe has run a 59:01 second half in London to break the 2:00 barrier and Yomif Kejelcha in the greatest marathon ever run. What. A. Race.
Assefa successfully defended her title and lowered her own women's-only world record to 2:15:41, prevailing in a tactical battle that saw an unprecedented three women break the 2:16 barrier.
- MB: Sabastian Sawe (with help from Yomif Kejelcha) has just BROKEN the marathon. 1:59:30!!! 59:01 2nd half!! With a 4:12 24th mile, Sawe completely demolished the WR, the field and the sub-2 hour barrier. Yomif Kejelcha also went sub-2, finishing in 1:59:41 in his marathon debut and Jacob Kiplimo was under the previous WR with 2:00:28. In the women's race, Tigst Assefa broke her own women's only world record with 2:15:41. She beat out Hellen Obiri who ran 2:15:53
- MB: Official 2026 London Marathon Live Discussion Thread\
- Anyone else feel kind of deflated now that the 2hr barrier has been broken?
- Yomif Kejelcha Appreciation Post
- Is kejelcha the best distance runner of all time?
- WSJ: The newest marathon super shoes are here and seem AMAZING. One weighs less than 4 ounces, one doesn't have laces.
- Is Sabastian Sawe showing that the sport is cleaner than we thought
- If These 7 Men All Run Sub 2 Marathons in the Next Six Years, How Many Women Will Run Sub 2.10?
- Unheralded American Vincent Mauri runs 2:05:54 at Glass City Marathon in Toledo
Penn Relays
NAUA's Colin Sahlman got the stick with a 2-second lead but Marco Langon and Simeon Birnbaum were in hot pursuit. This time Langon turned the tables on Birnbaum and got sweet revenge, splliting 3:55.94 to give Nova a victory by 0.05 over Oregon in 16:18.52 after a 53.6 last lap. Watch the last leg (or full race) in the video above. In other action, NC State ran away with the women's 4 x 1500 (16:59.86) and Michigan broke a 41-year old Penn Relays record in the men's 4 x 800 by running 7:09.24, just missing the 7:08.96 CR.
- MB: Michigan breaks 41-yr-old Penn Relays 4 x 800 record, just misses NCAA record. Should Trent McFarland been DQd for taunting?
- Quincy Wilson anchors Bullis to Penn 4x400 victory, ending Jamaica's 18-Year winning streak In cold and rainy conditions, Wilson got the baton in the lead and ran 45.58 to give Bullis the win in 3:10.15. Jamaica College finished 3rd in 3:13.15.
Drake Relays
- MB: All-time showboat backfire at Drake Relays 4x1600 Iowa State's anchor started celebrating on the final turn while running in second place behind Air Force. But when he tried to pass, Air Force's anchor held him off and got the win.
- Drake Pro Saturday Recap: Annika Reiss won the women’s mile in 4:25.52 over Addy Wiley (4:25.96) Cooper Cawthra won the men's 1500m in 3:35.22. Roger Steen swept the Drake shot put titles, winning the main competition in 21.93m after taking the WSPS belt earlier in the week.
- Quentin Nauman's bid to run the first prep sub-4 on Iowa soil came up short as he won the mile in 4:05.18 Nauman ran 3:58.65 at the HOKA Festival of Miles last year (making him the fastest Iowa prep ever), but Iowa doesn't count out-of-state performances as official state records.
- Iowa men and women sweep Drake Relays Cup The cup goes to the team that scores the highest between five relay events: the 4x100, 4x400, 4x800, DMR and SMR. The Iowa men and women each won three of the five races.
Kip Keino Classic
Wanyonyi impressively held off Worlds bronze medalist Reynold Cheruiyot over the last 400 to win in a pb of 3:34.11. Thomas (11.01/21.89) ran a world leader in the 200 but her wait for a wind-legal sub-11 in the 100m goes on. All did not go well for world 800m champ Lilian Odira who was beaten in her specialty.
Latest HS Sub-4
- Jackson Spencer goes sub-4 with 3:58.17 win Nike Jesuit Twilight Relays Ellery Lincoln won the girls' race in 4:30.00 (#4 high school all-time). Cole Hocker held the finish line tape for both races.
*MB: Jackson Spencer 3:58.17 to win Nike Jesuit Twilight Relays
Previous Penn Relays Coverage
Birnbaum let it go tactical on the anchor and showed why as he just held off Marco Langon by 0.05 to win after a crazy fast last lap. *Race video
*MB: Official 2026 Penn Relays Live Discussion Thread
- UNC women break collegiate DMR record with 10:36.82, just ahead of Stanford's 10:36.90 Stanford was also under the old record, but UNC's Vera Sjoberg ran 4:26.15 on the anchor leg to beat Mena Scatchard's 4:26.65.
- Friday High School Recap: Blair Bartlett wins 3000m in meet record 9:04.92 (#4 on the all-time prep outdoor list)
- In her 5000 debut, Liberty sophomore Allie Zealand breaks 42-year-old 5000 Penn Relays record
- MB: D3 athlete to win Penn Relays 5000? Update: No, Cornell's Pierre Attiogbe (13:37) wins. Hagan > Clevenger
Drake Relays
- OSU women narrowly misses 4x800 collegiate record at Drake Relays They ran 8:16.65, #2 on the NCAA all-time list behind Arkansas' 8:16.12 from last year. Gracie Hyde won the steeple in a world leading 9:22.19. The Oregon State women won the 4x1600 in 19:06
- Roger Steen defended his World Shot Put Series title in dramatic fashion, taking the winner’s belt after a throw of just over 73 feet (22.25 meters). The WSPS, founded by shot put world record holder Ryan Crouser, follows a unique format resembling high jump or pole vault competitions and also a "challenge attempt" and a "moneyball, a 15-pound ball (the standard weight is 16 pounds) that can also be used once throughout the competition."
- Rudy Winkler (78.75m), Brooke Andersen (78.56) hammer out repeat titles at Drake
- In 115 years at Drake, no HS girl had ever jumped 20' in the long jump until Thursday Abby Mecklenberg did it three times in a single series and won by 2 feet with a 20-5.50. Quentin Nauman successfully defended his boys 3,200 meters title in 8:54, featuring a final 400-meter lap in 54.94 seconds.
Post-Boston News
The 37-year-old Ringer, whose wife listens to the LetsRun podcast, talks to us after finishing 8th in his World Marathon Major debut. He discussed how the 2026 Boston times compare to a flat course like Valencia and his thoughts on World Athletics' decision to take the marathon out of the World Championships and reveals amazingly that he's PRd every single year that he's been running.
Free for everyone
Cooper talks about his undefeatead indoor season, his "just send it" mentality, what's on tap outdoors and what it's like being a world champion walking the halls of his Texas high school.
Even Faster Super Shoes?
Sebastian Sawe's super shoe weighs less than 4 ounces.
USATF Road Mile Championships
Making sense of Boston
Monday's Boston Marathon saw five Americans break 2:06, including the two fastest marathons ever by Americans. How much did the tailwind help their times?
Boston Men
John Korir ran 2:01:52 to shatter the Boston Marathon course record as 13 men broke 2:06 in the deepest race in Boston history. Zouhair Talbi ran 2:03:45, the fastest ever by an American citizen and Charles Hicks became the 2nd fastest at 2:04:35.
- Boston Talk: Official 2026 Boston Marathon LIVE Thread
- John MF Korir: I think he could have gone sub 2 today - 60:02 2nd half!!! 2:01:52 FTW!!!
- 2:03. Zouhair Overtakes Mantz as Top American
- Charles Hicks 2:04:35 under previous American Record held by Connor Mantz in his second marathon.
- Joe Klecker 2:05.56
Boston Women
Lokedi blasted the downhill section from 35k to 40k in 14:48 (with a 4:35 24th mile!) en route to a repeat victory in Boston in 2:18:51. Jess McClain was the top American for the second straight year, running a pb of 2:20:07 for 5th.
The Marathon Project is BACK (sponsored post)
The Marathon Project has announced a major schedule change for this year's event. The Amateurs and Professionals will now compete together in a 400-person race on Saturday, December 12. The move is designed to amplify the atmosphere and increase the intensity with more athletes, fans, and energy on the flat, fast, loop course in Chandler, AZ. According to race organizers, "The overwhelming feedback we received from last year was that the participants loved being treated like pros. Now they'll get to race with the pros as well. It's a logical next step for us." Press Release here
Previous Track Results
Lyles won over Max Thomas (19.98) while Taylor finished 3rd overall running in a separate heat to break Lyles' decade-old 20.09 record. On the women's side, Mariah Maxwell moved to #5 on the HS all-time list with 22.44, finishing second to pro McKenzie Long (22.42).
- MB: Georgia freshman Adaejah Hodge runs 10.77 (+1.7) - 2nd fastest in NCAA history
- MB: Gout Gout doesn't silence the doubters - Follows up 19.67 200 with a 10.21 (+0.5) Gout won the Austrlian U20 100m title in 10.21 after running 10.10 (+0.3) in the prelims.
- MB: Melanie Doggett - 14-years-young- runs 11.01 (NWI) 100m!!! The HS freshman is a phenom.
- Trent McFarland runs 3:33.17 at Wake Forest Invy to move to #2 on the NCAA all-time 1500m list He broke Kevin Sullivan's 29-year-old Michigan school record (3:35.19). His teammate Brendan Herger was runner-up in 3:34.06 for #8 NCAA all-time. *Results
*MB: McFarland 3:33.17 - MB: Keith Brantly's Florida 28:31 10,000 record was good for 44 years. This week it was broken by a 25-yr old freshman from Kenya. Kelvin Cheruiyot ran 28:25 to win the Wake Forest 10,000m.
Bryan Clay Invite
Hedengren broke Parker Valby's outdoor record (although she's already ran faster indoors with her 14:44.79 at BU). NCAA champ Pamela Kosgei finished 13 seconds back in 3rd. Kansas' Emmaculate Jemutai won the women's 800m in 1:59.88; Shelby Houlihan was 6th in 2:01.68. In the open 5000m, high schooler Abdinasir Hassan ran 13:52.31 to break Edward Cheserek’s sophomore class record (#9 on the prep all-time list).
- Louisville's Geoffrey Kirwa runs world lead and NCAA #2 all-time 8:08.10 steeplechase at Bryan Clay The 26-year-old Kenyan sophomore is the only collegian besides Henry Rono to go under 8:10. Louisville's Elsingi Kipruto won the 10,000m in 27:29 (#10 NCAA all-time). Notre Dame's Sophie Novak won the women's steeple in 9:24.
- MB: Colin Sahlman 1:44.42 at Bryan Clay Puts him #8 on the collegiate all-time outdoor list.
- MB: Shelbo800 ran an 800 Houlihan also paced 2k of Jane Hedengren's 5000m collegiate record.
- MB: 78% runners @ Bryan Clay set PB
The Latest LRC Exclusives
The Latest LRC Exclusives
We asked Jonathan Gault to try to find out what many of the top pros are up to.
Richardson, who was charged with misdemeanor fourth-degree assault after shoving boyfriend Christian Coleman at the SeaTac airport, and prosecutors agreed to postpone the case for two years when it would be dismissed as long as she met certain criteria, including "no criminal law violations."
Josh Kerr 222 podcast
Josh Kerr is chasing Hicham El Guerrouj’s mile world record his way, choosing a packed London Diamond League over a controlled time trial and insisting on “my race, my rules.” Kerr discussed his world record attempt and most recent world title over Cole Hocker on the LetsRun.com podcast.
Johh Kerr swears by power-to-weight training to improve his speed – here’s how and why you should do the same 'My gym coaches have done a really good job of finding where my weaknesses are. I need to create more power. My goal is that my power-to-weight ratio needs to be good.
Your opinion counts
We'd love to know a little more about you and how we can improve Letsrun.com.
Meet Fotyen Tesfay
Tesfay, who has a half-marathon best of 63:21 (#3 all-time) is the latest star in the group of famed Ethiopian coach Gemedu Dedefo, who has now coached five of the 11 fastest female marathoners in history.
The winners of our prediction contests
World indoors are this week. The LetsRun.com prediction contest team for Worlds is set. Meet the winners from the USAs contest and some of our other recent contests as well. They highlight the best of LRC.
LRC Exclusive
Since he stopped racing in the middle of the 2025 cross country season for Iowa State, Seth Clevenger has taken DIII by storm. The Rowan University athlete is the DIII leader in three events. But following the release of a video of an alleged EPO order, multiple former teammates told LetsRun.com that Clevenger said he took banned substances in 2025 while at Iowa State and admitted as such to the coaching staff. The situation raises questions about a potential hole in the NCAA’s anti-doping policy. We investigate how a star could allegedly admit to banned drug use and remain eligible to compete.
Your latest American stars share their insights.
American Record Holders
American Record Holders
Keira D'Amato, the new American record holder in the marathon, was joined by Deena Kastor, who held the record for 15 years.
Sisson was the guest on the LetsRun.com Track Talk podcast after she became the first American to go sub 67 in the half marathon on a record-eligible course. Podcast highlights above. Full pod here.
Woody Kincaid joined us after he broke the American record indoors at 5000. He talks above why he left the Bowerman Track Club. Podcast highlights and link to full podcast here.
Coogan's New Balance Boston team had 3 Olympians in 2021 and 2022 could be the biggest year yet for the program with 2 new additions and the TRACK at New Balance coming on March 1st.
Danny Mackey has taken the Brooks Beasts from an unproven club to the Olympic podium in its first decade.
Dathan Ritzenhein is the first of the top pro coaches to sit down and talk about his club heading into the 2022 campaign.
Best of Jon Gault
Best of Jon Gault
Take Your Love of LetsRun to the Next Level
Take Your Love of LetsRun to the Next Level
LetsRun Classics
LetsRun Classics
-60 Minutes (America's top weekly news show) feature on Gout Gout. (Having trouble to get the video to play? Click here).
MB: Gout Gout gets a feature on 60 minutes (fantastic video)