Kenyan marathon runner Sabastian Sawe returned home to jubilant celebrations on Wednesday after becoming the first person to break the two-hour barrier in competitive race conditions. Sawe, 31, landed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi — Kenya's capital — to a water cannon salute for his plane, dancers, musicians, and a crush of cameras. His parents, who had driven six hours from their family home to be present, were among the crowd welcoming him back. "I am happy to celebrate this win with you. I didn't expect it would be this way," Sawe told a press conference at the airport, adding that his achievement was "for all of us" and not for himself alone.

Sawe's extraordinary run at Sunday's London Marathon produced an official time of one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds — more than a minute faster than the previous men's world record of 2:00:35, set by the late Kelvin Kiptum in 2023. Sawe crossed the halfway mark in 1:00:29 and ran the second half even faster, completing it in 59:01. He was wearing a new model of ultra-lightweight carbon-plated shoes averaging just 97 grammes, though observers noted that his intensive training was equally decisive. His coach, Claudio Berardelli, said he knew his athlete was in "extremely good shape" — better even than at Berlin the previous year — but admitted he had not fully anticipated a sub-two-hour result. Sawe, who has now won all four marathons he has entered, was introduced to professional running by his uncle, Abraham Chepkirwok, a middle-distance Olympian from Uganda.

The London race also produced a remarkable second-place performance. Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha, 28, finished just 11 seconds behind Sawe in 1:59:41 — itself a historic time, making him the second person ever to complete a marathon in under two hours and the holder of the fastest marathon debut on record. Kejelcha, a former world record holder in the half-marathon and the indoor short-track mile, said the result had transformed his outlook. "Even if I run another 57 marathons, I don't care — this one has changed everything," he said. He ran alongside Sawe for most of the 42.2 kilometres before the Kenyan pulled away in the final stretch.

Back in Nairobi, Sawe met President William Ruto on Thursday and was awarded two cheques totalling eight million Kenyan shillings (approximately $62,000), along with a personalised vehicle number plate reading 01:59:30. Ruto called the achievement "a defining moment in the history of human endurance," saying Sawe had "expanded the horizon of human potential." Sawe presented the president with the shoes he wore during the race. Sawe's father, Simeon, recalled that his son had long promised he would break the record. "He was so determined and hopeful," he said. "We celebrated so much, my throat still hurts from all the cheering."

The achievement is significant beyond the world of sport. For decades, a sub-two-hour marathon was considered physiologically implausible, and while a previous attempt under controlled conditions in 2019 demonstrated it was physically possible, Sunday's London race was the first time the barrier fell in an officially sanctioned competitive event. Sawe has already indicated he is targeting his next marathon in the autumn, and believes he can run an even faster time — a prospect that, given Sunday's performance, few are now inclined to dismiss.