Ethiopian Kejelcha sets world record in half marathon

Ethiopian track and field athlete Yomif Kejelcha set a new world record in the half marathon on August 23.

The athlete showed the best result in history at the end of the race in Buenos Aires. Kejelcha covered the distance of 21.1 km in 56 minutes and 51 seconds.

The previous world record was held by Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who ran the Lisbon half marathon in 57 minutes and 20 seconds in March. His result, shown earlier in Barcelona, was not ratified due to the inconsistency of the track conditions.

The 29-year-old Kejelcha also holds the world record in the 10 km run at 26 minutes and 31 seconds. He has twice won the silver medal at the World Championships in this distance — in 2019 and 2025.

In April, Kenyan Sebastian Sawe won the London Marathon, setting a new world record. The athlete covered a distance of 42 km 195 m in 1 hour 59 minutes 30 seconds. Sava became the first runner in history to run a marathon in less than two hours.