The fastest marathon ever run in record-eligible conditions is Sabastian Sawe's 1:59:30 at the London Marathon on April 26, 2026 — the first time a human has officially broken two hours. The fastest women's marathon is Tigst Assefa's 2:11:53 from the 2023 Berlin Marathon. This page is the full top-10 list for both, with paces, venues, and the context that makes each performance read as more than a number.
Men's top 10 fastest marathon times ever
These are official, record-eligible marathon performances only — no time trials, no INEOS 1:59 Challenge, no Breaking2. All times are accurate as of May 2026.
| # | Time | Pace per km | Athlete | Race | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1:59:30 | 2:49.9 | Sabastian Sawe (KEN) | London | Apr 26, 2026 |
| 2 | 2:00:35 | 2:51.5 | Kelvin Kiptum (KEN) | Chicago | Oct 8, 2023 |
| 3 | 2:01:09 | 2:52.5 | Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) | Berlin | Sep 25, 2022 |
| 4 | 2:01:25 | 2:52.9 | Kelvin Kiptum (KEN) | London | Apr 23, 2023 |
| 5 | 2:01:39 | 2:53.0 | Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) | Berlin | Sep 16, 2018 |
| 6 | 2:01:41 | 2:53.1 | Sisay Lemma (ETH) | Valencia | Dec 4, 2022 |
| 7 | 2:01:48 | 2:53.3 | Birhanu Legese (ETH) | Berlin | Sep 29, 2019 |
| 8 | 2:01:53 | 2:53.4 | Mosinet Geremew (ETH) | London | Apr 28, 2019 |
| 9 | 2:02:05 | 2:53.7 | Dennis Kimetto (KEN) | Berlin | Sep 28, 2014 |
| 10 | 2:02:16 | 2:53.9 | Evans Chebet (KEN) | Valencia | Dec 1, 2020 |
A few things in that list are worth pointing at. Every one of the top 10 was set by a Kenyan or Ethiopian runner. Every one was set in a World Marathon Major or in Valencia. And every single one was set after 2014 — half of them after 2022. The current top of the men's marathon is a story about the last twelve years, not the last fifty.
Women's top 10 fastest marathon times ever
| # | Time | Pace per km | Athlete | Race | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2:11:53 | 3:07.5 | Tigst Assefa (ETH) | Berlin | Sep 24, 2023 |
| 2 | 2:14:04 | 3:10.6 | Brigid Kosgei (KEN) | Chicago | Oct 13, 2019 |
| 3 | 2:15:25 | 3:12.5 | Paula Radcliffe (GBR) | London | Apr 13, 2003 |
| 4 | 2:15:37 | 3:12.8 | Ruth Chepngetich (KEN) | Chicago | Oct 13, 2024 |
| 5 | 2:15:50 | 3:13.1 | Sifan Hassan (NED) | Chicago | Oct 13, 2023 |
| 6 | 2:16:16 | 3:13.7 | Amane Beriso (ETH) | Valencia | Dec 4, 2022 |
| 7 | 2:16:24 | 3:13.9 | Hellen Obiri (KEN) | Boston | Apr 15, 2024 |
| 8 | 2:16:49 | 3:14.5 | Peres Jepchirchir (KEN) | London | Apr 21, 2024 |
| 9 | 2:17:23 | 3:15.3 | Megertu Alemu (ETH) | London | Apr 23, 2023 |
| 10 | 2:17:45 | 3:15.8 | Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH) | Hamburg | Apr 24, 2022 |
The women's list has a different shape from the men's. Paula Radcliffe's 2:15:25 from London 2003 still sits in the top three, more than 23 years after the fact — a reminder of just how singular her performance was at the time. The other major story is Berlin: Tigst Assefa's 2023 record improved on Brigid Kosgei's previous mark by 2 minutes and 11 seconds, the largest single jump in the women's marathon record in the modern era.
What about Kipchoge's 1:59:40?
Eliud Kipchoge ran 1:59:40 in Vienna on October 12, 2019 — faster than every time on the men's top 10 except Sawe's 2026 record. It is not in the table because it was not an official, record-eligible performance. The INEOS 1:59 Challenge used:
- A team of 41 elite pacemakers rotating in a V-formation
- A pace car projecting a laser line of the optimal pace
- A specially designed flat loop course
- Drinks delivered by a cyclist
- A non-competitive time-trial format
All five are disallowed under World Athletics record rules. Kipchoge's 1:59:40 stands as a milestone in human performance, but not as an official time. For a full breakdown of why, see why Kipchoge's 1:59 didn't count.
The fastest marathon courses
If you cross-reference the men's and women's lists above, four venues dominate: Berlin, London, Chicago, and Valencia. None of this is a coincidence.
- Berlin has hosted more men's marathon world records than any other race. The course has only about 20 m of total elevation gain, the late-September weather is reliably cool, and the field is built to chase records.
- London delivered the fastest marathon in human history with Sawe's 1:59:30 in April 2026. The course has slightly more roll than Berlin, but a deep elite field, professional pacing, and reliably cool spring conditions.
- Chicago is flat, fast, and lined with deep crowds. It produced Kelvin Kiptum's 2:00:35 in 2023, Brigid Kosgei's 2:14:04 in 2019, and Paula Radcliffe's first sub-2:18 in 2002.
- Valencia has emerged in the last decade as a deliberately engineered fast course — late-November or early-December timing, sea-level, almost no elevation change.
The five other World Marathon Majors — Boston, New York, Tokyo, Sydney — produce extraordinary races, but rarely produce world-record times. Boston's net downhill makes it ineligible for world records under World Athletics rules. New York is too hilly. Tokyo and Sydney sit deeper in the calendar and tend to be raced for the win, not the clock.
Fastest marathon by category
Beyond the open elite times, several other "fastest" records are worth knowing. Times below are accurate to May 2026.
- Fastest sub-2 in a time trial: Eliud Kipchoge, 1:59:40, Vienna, October 12, 2019 (unofficial).
- Fastest debut marathon (men): Kelvin Kiptum, 2:01:53, Valencia, December 4, 2022.
- Fastest debut marathon (women): Yalemzerf Yehualaw, 2:17:23, Hamburg, April 24, 2022.
- Fastest marathon by a non-African-born athlete (men): Galen Rupp (USA), 2:06:07, Prague, May 6, 2018.
- Fastest marathon by a non-African-born athlete (women): Paula Radcliffe (GBR), 2:15:25, London, April 13, 2003.
- Fastest masters (40+) marathon (men): Kenenisa Bekele ran 2:04:19 at age 41 in 2023.
- Fastest wheelchair marathon (men): Marcel Hug, 1:17:47, Berlin, September 24, 2023.
- Fastest wheelchair marathon (women): Catherine Debrunner, 1:34:16, Berlin, September 24, 2023.
How fast is a "fast" marathon for the rest of us?
The all-time top 10 is its own universe — but the question "what counts as a fast marathon time?" depends entirely on which population you're comparing to. Some useful benchmarks:
- Average marathon finish time worldwide: 4:30:00 (about 6:24/km, 10:18/mile).
- Sub-4 marathon: achieved by roughly a third of all finishers.
- Sub-3:30 marathon: achieved by roughly 10–12% of finishers.
- Sub-3 marathon: achieved by roughly 4% of finishers.
- Boston qualifying standard (M 18–34): 3:00:00.
- Sub-2:30 marathon: the rough threshold for "elite club runner" anywhere in the world.
- Sub-2:10 marathon (men) / sub-2:25 (women): the rough threshold for "professional, gets paid to run."
- Top 10 all-time: the entries in the tables above.
For a complete pace-to-time reference at every realistic pace between 4:00 and 7:00 per km, see the marathon pace chart for every finish time.
Where the records go from here
For a decade, the conversation around the men's marathon record was: can a human officially break two hours? On April 26, 2026, Sabastian Sawe answered that. The conversation has now shifted to two new questions.
How fast does the men's record go? Most physiologists put the asymptotic floor somewhere between 1:57 and 1:58 in race conditions, given current shoe technology and current course standards. Expect multiple athletes under 2:00 within two to three years as the psychological barrier dissolves and pacing strategies are calibrated for it. The record is likely to creep toward 1:58 by 2030.
Does the women's record fall further? Almost certainly. Assefa's 2:11:53 in Berlin re-set the conversation, and Ruth Chepngetich's 2:15:37 in Chicago 2024 showed the second tier is closing fast. A sub-2:10 women's marathon — once unthinkable — is now reasonable to forecast inside this decade, particularly on a course like Berlin or London with a fully tactical pacing setup.
The deeper story behind both records — the physiology, the training, the shoes — is in inside elite marathon training: what it actually takes to run sub-2 and marathon world records: the fastest humans in history.
Build your own goal time
The fastest marathon ever is 1:59:30. The fastest marathon you will ever run is the one you're training for now. Set your goal pace, see your finish time, and tweak the splits at runpace.co. The list above is what the front of the race looks like. The list you actually finish on is the one that matters to you.