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

Yomif Kejelcha restored his status as world half-marathon record-holder by winning the Media Maratón Ciudad de Buenos Aires in 56:51 on Sunday. The Ethiopian improved the previous record by 29 seconds, moving the mark back from Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo.

Kiplimo had run 57:20 in Lisbon in March, but Kejelcha’s performance in Argentina surpassed that time decisively. The 28-year-old first claimed the record with a 57:30 run in Valencia in October 2024, before losing it to Kiplimo.

The result extends an exceptional period for Kejelcha, who has recently moved beyond the track and half-marathon distances to test himself over the full marathon. In April, he made his marathon debut at the London Marathon and finished second to Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe.

Kejelcha completed that London race in 1:59:41, becoming only the second man to run a marathon in under two hours. Sawe won in 1:59:30, setting the world record and finishing 11 seconds ahead of Kejelcha.

His distance-running success follows a major track career. As a teenager, Kejelcha won world youth and world junior titles over 3,000 metres and 5,000 metres. He also set the world indoor mile record in Boston in March 2019, running 3:47.01 and breaking Hicham El Guerrouj’s mark by 1.44 seconds.

That indoor mile record remained in place until Ethiopia’s Yared Nuguse lowered it in February 2025. In the women’s race in Buenos Aires, Ethiopia’s Fotyen Tesfay won by a wide margin in 1:03:57.