Google+ Running in Cork, Ireland: Kenyan Dennis Kimetto sets new marathon record in Berlin

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Kenyan Dennis Kimetto sets new marathon record in Berlin


30 year old Dennis Kimetto from Kenya set a new world record of 2h 02m 57s when he won the 2014 Berlin Marathon on Sunday 28th Sept 2014. Emmanuel Mutai who finished in second place in 2h 03:13s also broke the old record of 2h 03m 23s which was set by Wilson Kipsang in 2013. The temperature today was a cool 8 deg C in contrast to other warmer years so conditions were perfect.

Full race....2h 50m long. Finish ~2:12. Commentary in German...


After winning the race, Kimetto said...."I feel good because I won a very tough race. I felt good from the start and in the last few miles I felt I could do it and break the record."

These are the marathon records as they were set over the last 30 years....

2:08:05    Steve Jones     United Kingdom    Oct 21, 1984    Chicago Marathon
2:07:12    Carlos Lopes     Portugal    Apr 20, 1985    Rotterdam Marathon
2:06:50    Belayneh Dinsamo     Ethiopia    Apr 17, 1988    Rotterdam Marathon
2:06:05    Ronaldo da Costa     Brazil    Sept 20, 1998    Berlin Marathon
2:05:42    Khalid Khannouchi     Morocco    Oct 24, 1999    Chicago Marathon
2:05:38    Khalid Khannouchi     United States Apr 14, 2002    London Marathon
2:04:55    Paul Tergat     Kenya    Sept 28, 2003    Berlin Marathon
2:04:26    Haile Gebrselassie     Ethiopia    Sept 30, 2007    Berlin Marathon
2:03:59    Haile Gebrselassie     Ethiopia    Sept 28, 2008    Berlin Marathon
2:03:38    Patrick Makau     Kenya    Sept 25, 2011    Berlin Marathon
2:03:23    Wilson Kipsang     Kenya    Sept 29, 2013    Berlin Marathon
2:02:57   Dennis Kimetto     Kenya    Sept 28 2014    Berlin Marathon


The chart above shows the progression. As you can see, the record is broken by about 20-30 seconds each time and the question now is how long will this new record last?

It will also no doubt raise the question again of whether a sub 2 hour marathon is possible? In this interview, the former record holder Wilson Kipsang said he believes that a sub 2 hour marathon is possible after the record gets into the 2:01 region first...


So is it really possible? The current record of 2:02:57 is 4:41 minute mile pace. A 2 hour marathon would be an incredible 4:34 per mile pace.

By the way, the current half-marathon record is 58:23...4:27 per mile pace.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

A Sub 2 hour marathon is possible. The record has come down by 2 min 41 seconds in the last 12 years and now stands just 2 min 47 seconds outside 2 hours. I hope I am still around when that milestone is reached. In the meantime what an incredible performance from Kimetto.

Anonymous said...

Ignoring everything else and just looking at numbers, the last few minutes have taken about 5 years each to crack. So 2:02 in theory will take approx 5 years to break into 2:01. 15 years to the magic 2 hour barrier?
Lay your bets now on a 15 year old Kenyan! ;-)

Anonymous said...

There's no doubt about it that its possible, people also thought a 4min mile wasn't possible at one stage. Its a matter of when rather than if