Kenenisa Bekele Is Going For The Marathon World Record In Dubai Next Week
Kenenisa Bekele Is Going For The Marathon World Record In Dubai Next Week
Kenenisa Bekele will try to break the marathon world record next week at the Dubai Marathon.
Kenenisa Bekele is going for the marathon world record again in just 11 days. Bekele, who has the 5K world record at 12:37 and the 10K world record at 26:17 and is the second-fastest marathoner ever in 2:03:03, announced on Sunday night that he's going for the world record at the Dubai Marathon on Friday, Jan. 20. The world record is 2:02:57, held by Dennis Kimetto of Kenya. Bekele's time is the Ethiopian record.
According to Pat Butcher, who broke the news, Bekele said "It was fantastic for me to get a personal best [in Berlin], but I'm still disappointed to have missed out on the world record. But I could see that I still had to make a couple of changes in my training." Bekele's performance in Berlin was the second-fastest ever on a record legal course. (Geoffrey Mutai ran a wind-aided 2:03:02 in Boston in 2011.)
Just a few hours after the Dubai news broke, April's London Marathon announced that Bekele is racing there as well. Olympic silver medalist Feyisa Lilesa, Olympic fourth-placer Ghirmay Ghebreslassie, and two-time world champion and defending Chicago winner Abel Kirui will be joining Bekele in London on April 23, almost exactly three months after Dubai.
Conspicuously absent from the London announcement was two-time defending London champion and Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge. Nike announced earlier this year that Kipchoge will be attempting a sub-two-hour marathon on a non-record-legal course this spring, which means that Kipchoge and Bekele will likely have missed each other at the Olympics, Dubai, and London. Bekele was a controversial non-selection for the Ethiopian Olympic team this summer.
2:03:03 is 4:41 mile pace for 26.2 miles; 1:59:59 is 4:34 pace.
According to Pat Butcher, who broke the news, Bekele said "It was fantastic for me to get a personal best [in Berlin], but I'm still disappointed to have missed out on the world record. But I could see that I still had to make a couple of changes in my training." Bekele's performance in Berlin was the second-fastest ever on a record legal course. (Geoffrey Mutai ran a wind-aided 2:03:02 in Boston in 2011.)
Just a few hours after the Dubai news broke, April's London Marathon announced that Bekele is racing there as well. Olympic silver medalist Feyisa Lilesa, Olympic fourth-placer Ghirmay Ghebreslassie, and two-time world champion and defending Chicago winner Abel Kirui will be joining Bekele in London on April 23, almost exactly three months after Dubai.
Conspicuously absent from the London announcement was two-time defending London champion and Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge. Nike announced earlier this year that Kipchoge will be attempting a sub-two-hour marathon on a non-record-legal course this spring, which means that Kipchoge and Bekele will likely have missed each other at the Olympics, Dubai, and London. Bekele was a controversial non-selection for the Ethiopian Olympic team this summer.
2:03:03 is 4:41 mile pace for 26.2 miles; 1:59:59 is 4:34 pace.
Related Content
- Penn Relays 2024 Schedule Day 2: Here Are Today's Events
Apr 26, 2024
- Penn Relays 2024 Results On Day 1: See Which NCAA Stars Won
Apr 26, 2024
- Jette Beermann Pushes To Win Women's 5000M Competition At Penn Relays
Apr 26, 2024
- North Carolina Track And Field Stars Win At Penn Relays Year After Wreck
Apr 26, 2024
- Tim Jordan Speaks About Rekortan, The World's Most Certified Tracks
Apr 26, 2024
- Collin Gilstrap Bursts From Fifth To Win College Men's 1500M At Penn Relays
Apr 25, 2024
- Sha'Carri Richardson, Christian Coleman Set For Wanda DL Shanghai/Suzhou
Apr 25, 2024
- Penn Relays Location Is Also The Home To The Best Cheesesteaks In America
Apr 25, 2024
- Pro Men's 4x100m Relay Special Olympics, Event 116, Finals 1
Apr 25, 2024