Kenya's Sebastian Sawe wins elite Men's London Marathon

Kenya’s Sebastian Sawe won the elite men’s London Marathon on April 27 after crossing the line at 2:2:25.

He raised his arms aloft and stuck out his tongue as he crossed the line after moving away around the 16-mile mark, and ran negative splits.

His rivals in the lead group had no answer.

It would appear that at 29 years of age, there would be plenty of time for more marathon accolades for Sawe.

Despite the win, Sawe could not beat the course record of the late, great Kelvin Kiptum, who won the 2023 London Marathon in 2:1:25.

Although there was talk about Jacob Kiplimo in the build-up, given his sub-57 world half-marathon record, the Kenyan crossed the line in second place, 70 seconds behind Sawe.

This was Sawe’s second marathon win from two after triumphing in Valencia Marathon four months ago.

Ugandan legend Jacob Kiplimo finished second after timing 02:03:37, in what was his marathon debut, as immediate former defending champion, Alexander Mutiso Munyao, took third after clocking 02:04:20.

In the fight for third place, Mutiso and Abdi Nageeye sprint down the Mall and couldn’t  be separated by the naked eye.

A few centimetres were used to decide a few thousand pounds of prize money.

Third place was initially given to Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands over Kenya’s Mutiso .

However, it was corrected to Mutiso, indicating how close it was.

Meanwhile, it was yet another disappointing outing for two-time world record holder Eliud Kipchoge, who finished sixth after timing 02:05:25.

Kipchoge is widely regarded as the greatest marathon runner of all time.

He was prominent at the front of the lead male group but failed to catch up, even as he ran with real authority and confidence.

World Half Marathon champion Sabastian Sawe clocked the fifth fastest time in men’s marathon to win in Valencia in December 2024.

In 2024 ,Sawe clocked 2:02:05 to cross the finish line first.