Sabastian Sawe did not rule out a course or even world record when asked about his chances at the London Marathon.
The Kenyan won last year’s edition in two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, and told a press conference he felt the late Kelvin Kiptum’s three-year-old course record of two hours, one minute and 25 seconds could be beaten on Sunday.
And asked if his shoes, the Adidas Pro Evo 3s, were of course – or even world – record quality, the 29-year-old replied, simply: “Yep.”
His main rival is Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, the Chicago Marathon winner and last year’s London runner-up.
The stacked men’s field is missing Briton Emile Cairess, who placed third in 2024 and fourth at that summer’s Olympics and was targeting Mo Farah’s British record before he was forced to withdraw due to a calf issue.
Great Britain will still be well represented by the likes of Mahamed Mahamed, the fourth-fastest British man over the distance, his Paris 2024 Olympic team-mate Phil Sesemann, and Patrick Dever, all of whom have set more modest targets.
Alex Yee, the 2024 Olympic gold medallist in triathlon, made his competitive marathon debut last year in London and returns for this edition as a pacemaker.
Ethiopian Tigst Assefa will target her own women-only world record when she attempts to defend her own London crown.
The 29-year-old set a new standard at the same event last year, beating the previous world record by 26 seconds in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa, whose competition includes Britons Eilish McColgan and Jess Warner-Judd, as well as Kenyan Hellen Obiri, who won the New York Marathon, has been pleasantly surprised by her own form.
She told a press conference: “My training has gone well, it has been better, even, than my preparation last year, so I think it is possible to beat the record I set last year.”
McColgan made her delayed London debut last year and was enamoured with the atmosphere, which she said “blew all my expectations out of the water” and added: “It was the toughest race I’ve ever done in my life.
“I didn’t even know how I was putting one foot in front of the other after 20 miles, but I was somehow moving forward in some sort of manner, and without the crowds I think that would have been a hell of a lot harder.”
PA
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