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2:01:52! John Korir Destroys Boston Marathon Course Record; Talbi Fastest Ever by American

By Weldon Johnson

2026 Boston Marathon

View LetsRun.com Event Coverage

Defending champion John Korir put on an exhibition going up Heartbreak Hill and continued it to the finish, winning the Boston Marathon in 2:01:52, smashing Geoffrey Mutai’s previous course record of 2:03:02 from 2011.

👉 Update: We’ve got a longer, full breakdown of Korir’s 2:01:52 and the historic depth here

Korir trailed Milkesa Mengesha at the start of the uphill 20th mile, but quickly overpowered him and took the lead before 20 mile mark (lead change at 1:32:36), and ran the back half of Boston with its famed hills in 1:00:02.

There were a slew of fast times behind him as second placer Alphonce Felix Simbu and third placer Benson Kipruto both dipped under the previous record, on a perfect day for running with temps in the 40s and a nice tailwind (9 mph at the start).

John Korir sets course record 2:01:52 at 2026 Boston Marathon (Kevin Morris photo) John Korir sets course record 2:01:52 at 2026 Boston Marathon (Kevin Morris photo)

The Americans ran very fast as well as Zouhair Talbi ran the fastest time ever by an American citizen in the marathon, 2:03:45, to finish 5th, and Charles Hicks was 7th in 2:04:35, faster than Ryan Hall’s previous Boston best of 2:04:58 also from 2011, when there were very favorable conditions like this year.

Both Talbi and Hicks are American citizens but not yet able to represent Team USA internationally, but should be able to by the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.This is a flash recap. Much more to come from Boston.

2026 Boston Marathon Men’s Results

Place First Last Country Time
1 John Korir 🇰🇪 Kenya 2:01:52
2 Alphonce Felix Simbu 🇹🇿 Tanzania 2:02:47
3 Benson Kipruto 🇰🇪 Kenya 2:02:50
4 Hailemaryam Kiros 🇪🇹 Ethiopia 2:03:42
5 Zouhair Talbi 🇺🇸 USA* 2:03:45
6 Tebello Ramakongoana 🇱🇸 Lesotho 2:04:18
7 Charles Hicks 🇺🇸 USA* 2:04:35
8 Richard Ringer 🇩🇪 Germany 2:04:47
9 Alex Masai 🇰🇪 Kenya 2:05:32
10 Milkesa Mengesha 🇪🇹 Ethiopia 2:05:35
11 Clayton Young 🇺🇸 USA 2:05:41
12 Ryan Ford 🇺🇸 USA 2:05:46
13 Joe Klecker 🇺🇸 USA 2:05:56
14 Rory Linkletter 🇨🇦 Canada 2:06:04
15 Yemane Haileselassie 🇪🇷 Eritrea 2:06:06
16 Nicholas Kipkorir 🇰🇪 Kenya 2:06:07
17 Hendrik Pfeiffer 🇩🇪 Germany 2:06:34
18 Sondre Moen 🇳🇴 Norway 2:06:52
19 Haftu Knight 🇺🇸 USA 2:07:38
20 Wesley Kiptoo 🇺🇸 USA 2:07:55
21 Abdi Nageeye 🇳🇱 Netherlands 2:08:13
22 Galen Rupp 🇺🇸 USA 2:08:15
23 Murphy Smith 🇺🇸 USA 2:08:58
24 Robert Miranda 🇺🇸 USA 2:09:40
25 Tsegay Weldlibanos 🇪🇷 Eritrea 2:09:44
26 Jacob Thomson 🇺🇸 USA 2:09:51
27 CJ Albertson 🇺🇸 USA 2:09:59
28 Patrick Tiernan 🇦🇺 Australia 2:09:59
29 Turner Wiley 🇺🇸 USA 2:10:16
30 Ryan Johnson 🇺🇸 USA 2:10:20

* American citizens not yet eligible to represent USA internationally
Tracking and results info here.

👉 Update: We’ve got a longer, full breakdown of Korir’s 2:01:52 and the historic depth here

*Post-race athlete interviews from Boston

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