A new half marathon world record has been set after the last try didn’t count.
Ethiopian long-distance runner Yomif Kejelcha has set another world record, showing he’s aiming to be the fastest ever in cross-country running.
At 29 years old, Kejelcha first broke the half-marathon world record in 2024, running 13.1 miles in 57 minutes and 30 seconds. But earlier this year, Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo took the record from him by beating it by 10 seconds.
Today, Kejelcha took back the record during a race in Buenos Aires on August 23. He finished the half marathon in 56 minutes and 51 seconds, beating Kiplimo’s time by 29 seconds. That means Kejelcha ran at an incredible speed of about 13.84 miles per hour, completing each mile in just 4 minutes and 20 seconds.
Kejelcha also holds the world record for the 10,000m road race with a time of 26 minutes and 31 seconds. He’s one of only two runners to ever finish a full marathon in under two hours. This year in London, he ran the marathon in just 1:59:40 — only 10 seconds behind Sabastian Sawe, who set the record at 1:59:30. Both runners smashed the previous record by a whole minute!
Interestingly, Kiplimo once ran a half marathon even faster than the current record, with a time of 56 minutes and 42 seconds. However, this time was disqualified because he took advantage of a car driving close by, which helped him run faster by reducing air resistance. The rules don’t allow pacing by any outside help like that.
Now, Kiplimo plans to challenge the full marathon record, believing he can finish it in under 1 hour 58 minutes. The battle for the fastest long-distance runner continues!