iStock/Pavel1964(SEATTLE) — A feat once thought impossible, Eliud Kipchoge has become the first person to ever run a marathon in less than two hours even though it will not count as a world record.
Kipchoge bested the two hour mark by 20 seconds for a final time of 1 hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds.
Kipchoge was supported by 36 pacemakers and also had a pace car with a laser beam projecting his ideal position on the road which is one of the reasons why the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) will not verify Kipchoge’s time as a world record.
“I’m feeling good,” Kipchoge told the Associated Press. “I’m the first man, I want to inspire many people that no human is limited.”
Kipchoge ran at an average pace of 4 minutes and 33 seconds per mile throughout the entire race, according to the Associated Press.
“We can make this world a beautiful world and a peaceful world,” he said, pointing out that the mission of his attempt went beyond athletics. “The positivity of sport, I want to make it a clean sport and an interesting sport.”
Kipchoge reached his accomplishment in Prater Park in the Austrian capital of Vienna.
It was his second attempt at breaking the two-hour barrier. He had previously missed the mark by only 26 seconds in Monza, Italy, in May 2017.
Kipchoge won a gold medal in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and he also holds the official world record of 2 hours, 1 minute and 39 seconds.
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