Kejelcha regains half marathon world record in Buenos Aires

Kejelcha reclaims half marathon world record in Buenos Aires with 56:51

Ethiopia's Yomif Kejelcha regained the men's half marathon world record on Sunday, clocking 56 minutes 51 seconds at the Media Maratón Ciudad de Buenos Aires, a World Athletics Label road race. The 29-year-old shaved 29 seconds off the previous mark of 57:20 set by Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo in Lisbon in March, reclaiming a record he had held since October 2024.

Kejelcha's time is subject to official ratification by World Athletics, as reported by multiple outlets including ABC Australia, the BBC, and the Buenos Aires Times. If ratified, it would restore the record he set in Valencia in October 2024 with a 57:30 clocking.

The race unfolded under favorable conditions of 6 degrees Celsius with a slight breeze, according to ABC Australia. Kejelcha negative-split the race, running the second half faster than the first, with 5km splits of 13:45, 13:34, 13:22, and 13:23. He averaged 2 minutes 42 seconds per kilometre.

"I'm over the moon," Kejelcha told World Athletics, as quoted by ABC Australia. "I had planned to run conservatively over the early stages, but I felt good and decided to give it my all." He also said, "This time is unbelievable. I can't describe it with words."

The Buenos Aires Times quoted Kejelcha expressing surprise at the result: "I'm very, very happy. To be honest, I wasn't expecting a world record. I was hoping to break the course record, although one of my goals was to go under 57 minutes. It's a dream."

The time is slower than the 56:42 Kiplimo ran in Barcelona in 2025, which was not ratified as a world record because race conditions did not comply with World Athletics regulations. SPORTbible cited the specific rule: pacing by persons not participating in the same race, lapped athletes, or technical devices other than permitted under Rule 6.4.4.

Podium and local interest

Kejelcha led an all-Ethiopian podium, with Tadese Worku finishing second in 59:20 and Bereket Nega third in 1:00:20, as reported by the Buenos Aires Times and ABC Australia. The leading Argentine runner was Ignacio Erario, who finished sixth in 1:00:59. About 30,000 runners took part in the race on a sunny morning with freezing temperatures in the middle of the southern winter, according to the Buenos Aires Times. The 21-kilometre urban course passes landmarks including Avenida 9 de Julio and the Obelisk.

Kejelcha, who was making his first appearance in Argentina, said he chose the race on his manager's advice. "I told my manager I needed to go somewhere between London and Valencia, and he told me to come to Buenos Aires because it was the best race for me at the moment," he said before the race, as quoted by the Buenos Aires Times.

After the race, Kejelcha attended the River Plate-Vélez football match at the Estadio Monumental, where he showed off his record on a new River Plate shirt, according to ABC Australia. The match ended 2-2 after Vélez came from 2-0 down.

Background and context

Kejelcha's performance adds to a remarkable year. In April, he finished second in the London Marathon with a time of 1:59:41, behind Kenya's Sabastian Sawe, who won in a world record time of 1:59:30. That run made Kejelcha only the second man in history to complete a marathon in under two hours in record-eligible conditions, as reported by the BBC and SPORTbible. Kejelcha is a two-time Olympian and holds the world record for the 10,000m road race (26:31), according to SPORTbible. The BBC also noted he is a world track silver medallist in the 10,000m.

In the women's race, Ethiopia's Fotyen Tesfay won in 1:03:57, according to multiple sources. The Buenos Aires Times reported that Turkey's Nevin Can finished second in 1:05:06 and Selin Can third in 1:05:11, while ABC Australia named the runners as Nelvin Jepkemboi and Catherine Amanang'ole. The discrepancy in the runners' names could not be reconciled from available reports.