Tag Archives: Berlin

Sub-2 marathon, what other limits don’t exist

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Last weekend my group chat alerted me within minutes, “Boom! First sub 2 hour marathon!”

At the London Marathon on Sunday, Sabastian Sawe of Kenya officially broke the elusive 2 hour marathon world record for the first time, running an impressive 1:59:30.

This was the ‘felling of the four minute mile’ of my lifetime.

Since I ran my first marathon in 2007, I’ve watched the world record get cut a number of times. The world record back then was 2:04:55 by Paul Tergat. I can’t even picture him now, but I remember his time felt untouchable. Me and my running buddies felt accomplished to run at 4 minute km pace for even a short distance. For that marathon time we’d need to run each and every 42.2 of those kilometres at two seconds under 3 minute pace!

It is a massive achievement for a serious runner to aspire to even go sub 3 hours for a marathon. Most won’t get there. A theory is that even with the correct training, preparation and race, only 10% can physically get there.

By the end of 2007, the diminutive Haile Gebrselassie from Ethiopia had taken the world record to 2:04:26. Both these records were at the Berlin Marathon. He raced again the following year, where he got another world record and the first to go under 2:04. Each breakthrough felt impossible until the moment it wasn’t.

I ran Berlin Marathon myself in 2009, the year after Haile had broken the record yet again. (His feat was recognised with his depiction on that year’s finisher’s medal.)

My Berlin Marathon medal, featuring Haile Gebrselassie’s world record there the year before

I remember at the start of 2009 before moving to Dubai, that their own marathon was trying hard to get in on the act and chase the prestige and publicity of snatching the world record. Offering a $1 million bonus, on top of the $250k first prize, was quite the incentive! Haile was in great condition, and there were large expectations with pacers, but the weather didn’t suit. And no, this Middle East race wasn’t too hot. Despite being faster through halfway than his Berlin time, and still on track at 30km, his chances were stifled from it raining most of the race, and finishing in torrential conditions.

The next year with my family there, Myles & I went down to watch the Dubai marathon and cheer on Haile. Our cheering & signs didn’t get him the record that year either, it only helped him get his third Dubai victory in a row. Sadly, it was his final marathon success.

The Ethiopean’s retirement was the end of an era, but the marathon record was not done there. In 2011, another 21 seconds was shaved off by Kamau from Kenya, then another couple of years later, another Kenyan, Kipsang shaved off a further 15 seconds. In fact, the world mark was bettered by five Kenyans until Sawe’s sub 2 hour record this year (incidentally four of those five Kenyans had surnames beginning with “K”).

The most recent K, alliteratively two Ks at that, Kelvin Kiptum is sadly one of the most tragic athletic stories. He won his first three marathons super impressively, each in under 2:02. The third win was the 2023 Chicago Marathon where he set the new world record at 2:00:35. And Kelvin finished looking so fresh, while sprinting to the line with such strength, that it didn’t seem to be whether he would break 2 hours, but when. Sadly it wasn’t to be. Four months after that marathon, at the tender age of 24 and such an amazing career ahead of him, he was in a fatal car crash, where he died alongside his coach.

The marathon record Kiptum had broken was that of the G.O.A.T., Eliud Kipchoge. He has possibly the only name in marathon running that people might recognise. Kipchoge won two Olympic golds, and multiple marathon majors over many years. He is also famous for being the first man to run sub 2 in an unofficial exhibition run. It was held on an unfairly speedy course, there were pacers in a helpful formation against the wind, and they had a car beaming a laser beam that showed the required pace. It was still extremely exciting and nerve-wracking to watch, and finished with such a buzz. It was one of the moments where I still know exactly where I was. My family & I were having dinner at the Elephant & Wheelbarrow in Melbourne CBD, as it was the night before I ran the Melbourne Marathon. It didn’t lead me to break any records. It did lead many runners to see a new level of human endeavour.

Australian running legend Steve Moneghetti ran in Berlin in 1990, and he’s put the scale of last Sunday’s achievement better than anyone. “When I won the Berlin Marathon in 2:08:16, I was only a minute and a half off the world record,” he said. “I was the 16th fastest in history. I wouldn’t have been in the top 100 in London.” (Source: CODE Sports, Facebook)

Let that sink in for a moment.

The sub-two-hour marathon was discussed for years in the same breath as the four-minute mile. That particular feat was widely believed to be beyond human capability that doctors had warned attempting it might kill you. It didn’t, Roger Bannister broke that mark at Oxford in May 1954. And fast-forward to today, that same middle distance time isn’t enough to qualify you for the Olympics! The barrier was never physical. It was just a number nobody had reached yet.

It’ll be interesting to see just how far the world record can go under 2 hours. I’m glad I got to see it broken in my lifetime. It makes me wonder what else might be possible.

Although it’s not a topic I know very much about, it would be remiss of me to not mention Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa also beat the women-only record at the London Marathon. The new time for the lades to beat is 2:15:41. My personal best is over an hour slower!

And spare a thought for Yomif Kejelcha. He is the Ethiopian runner who also went under 2 hours at the same London Marathon, successfully breaking the existing world record also, only to finish in second place. I wonder if he’ll be like the astronaut who had to stay aboard doing calculations while the others stepped down onto the moon’s surface to play a bit of golf. It was Yomif’s first marathon though, he’ll get better. I also know what it’s like to not win a marathon on my first attempt.

ADDENDUM:

There have been several additional insights that have come to light following Sawe’s run which I’ve found fascinating:

  1. The second half marathon (which for London is usually slower), was run in 59:01. That time is faster than the half marathon record for every country, except for 6!
    (Source: Science of Sport Podcast – https://www.instagram.com/reels/DX1-hSyv9pN/)
  2. His 30-40km split was run in an unbelievable 27:36. That was faster than the 10,000m at the 2025 World Championships winner, who finished in 28:55.
    (Source: sonsofolympiapod – https://www.instagram.com/p/DYEhcPpIuzA/)

Far more than running 10 marathons

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I’ve always run.  When I was young, my Mum and I used to do laps of the local rugby league field – dropping pebbles to count our laps.

Through high school and university I ran a few times each week to keep fit.

I continued even in the workforce. And this is when my running got more serious.

A colleague had his first kid around the same time as I did.  We already had a lot in common, and going through the same life changes, seemed to form a stronger connection.  Sadly he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and  passed away two years later in November 2006.

Within a few weeks of his passing, I felt an urge to not take my good health for granted. So I decided to run a full marathon.
My logic was, since people less fortunate than me are unable to do this, it’s a waste if I do not.

I decided to prepare for Australia’s premier event, the 2007 Gold Coast Marathon (#1).  And at the tender age of 30, I went on to complete the marathon in 3:38:28.

As I painfully crossed the finish line, the feeling was glorious.
My finish time was closer to my “B” goal time. So on top of the feeling of achievement, there was already a sick desire to run this distance again.

My next marathon – as a result of expatriating with more travel options, was (#2) Berlin Marathon in 2009 – one of the famed “Big 5”.
I finished that one in 3:57:00.

Again, my finish time didn’t feel like a true reflection of what I was capable of.  So I felt the need to run again.

Next was the 2011 Dubai Marathon (#3). With some speed training, I set my personal best time of 3:23:32.

My (#4) Dubai Marathon 2012, 3:47:00 didn’t seem particularly special, until I did a presentation at work about running marathons and got a standing ovation.

I happened to be home in Brisbane on holidays in July, which coincided for (#5) Brisbane Marathon 2013, there I ran 4:15:00.

Occasionally life events got in the way of me running every year.  But I always seem to return to 42.2kms.  And I feel great for it.

Another Dubai Marathon 2015 (#6), 4:18:02 – very unprepared, and faced the consequences.

Yet another Dubai Marathon 2016 (#7), 3:45:23 – after getting back in shape to smash the former year’s performance.

Then I was on holidays COINCIDENTALLY back at Australia’s Gold Coast during the marathon weekend.  So I really had no choice but to run the (#8) Gold Coast Marathon 2016, 4:36:11

Then at the start of this year, I ran the hot (#9) Dubai Marathon 2017, 3:49:56

And then the “milestone” of running a 10th was on the horizon.  It lined up nicely with being the 10th year since my first.  And more emotionally, it coincided with me having just turned 40 years old.  This is the same age that my friend was, when he passed away 10 years earlier. It made me think even more how lucky I am.
This became no ordinary marathon to run.

The plan was to combine a family holiday in Jordan with the Amman marathon.  However, after returning from holidays home, the timing didn’t work.  So it made more sense to do the Beirut Marathon.  It has its own TED Talk by inspirational founder, May El-Khalil, which you must see.  The Australian Government’s travel warning to Lebanon is to reconsider your need to go. It made us feel more comfortable for my family to stay in Dubai.

On the flight I checked my iPad if I had any movies.  I wasn’t hopeful, as I usually free up space after watching anything.  However, there was still one movie there, the inspiring documentary I’ve watched many times, Spirit of the Marathon.  Quite a motivating and reflecting thing to watch, as I was landing in the Lebanese Republic.

My hotel room was placed perfectly between the start and finish lines.  A short walk before the race, a not-so-long shuffle on the way home. (The hotel made me feel at home with RAK coffee cups.)

I picked up my race pack on Friday when I arrived, part of a 12km walk to explore the city of Beirut.

Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, is renowned in the region for its glamour – once known as the Paris of the Middle East. Even at the Marathon Village this was pretty obvious with a Nail Couture and polish stand,

I vowed to walk far less on the day before the race. It was kind of a success, I only covered 10kms sight-seeing.

The long violent story of Beirut is one marathon effort to read.  The country was torn apart through civil wars.  The Holiday Inn Hotel is still on display after visibly fierce attacks between factions. I wondered if it was from 2005, when Prime Minister Rafic Hariri was assassinated near that location. Nope, the hotel has been standing like that since 1975.

The flight path into Lebanon itself shows the predicament the country has. With hotspots in Syria to the East, and Palestine and Israel to the South, we flew far from a direct route from Dubai.
Some uncertainty returned to Lebanon while I was there, with the shock resignation of current Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (the son of Rafic).
To all Lebanese I know, Saad is an inspiration – even a regular runner of the marathon. That weekend the city began erecting signs seeking his return, from sudden exile in Saudi Arabia. The newspaper headlines were concerning.  The huge number of heavily armed police officers and army personnel, were reassuring.

Sunday was race day, for the many different events.  They even hosted a 1 kilometer run which went brilliantly from the marathon start line to the marathon’s finish, IN A STRAIGHT LINE – cutting out the superfluous 41.1 kms.

I mentioned in an earlier marathon blog that I find it pretty emotional at the starting line, among all these amazing people ready to push their body to the absolute limit. There in Beirut, away from my family, participating in my 10th, with all these lovely Lebanese people (incl. May El-Khalil) cheering me on, I was a blubbering mess for almost the first 3kms.

I settled into a rhythm, and spotted a lady running in an Australia singlet.  Morag and I then covered a few kilometers together, while chatting away like Aussie neighbours. Then I bid her farewell, to speed up a little (and hope I wouldn’t regret this pace and see that Australia singlet pass me later on).

The support across the course was fantastic. It’s usually slightly demoralising to go out, and come back to the same start line. The Beirut race day though was arranged so as we returned from the first section, the half marathoners had just started.  It was a spectacular sight to see a seemingly endless sea of runners freshly embarking on their own race. There were high fives, and lots of cheering between the full and half crowds.

All along the course, there were clusters of supportive people cheering for everyone to succeed. There were school groups, tiny white-haired ladies in their nighties hanging out of apartments yelling out “Yalla”, and every 100 metres someone from the Red Crescent.

I thoroughly enjoyed the city, and being part of the event.

I did a more complete running autopsy, on the runplan blog, for anyone that’s interested (http://blog.runplan.training/2017/11/17/still-learning-10-marathons-in-10-years/).

For the purposes of this post, it’s enough to say the run was tough-going. The hills took their toll, and perhaps in the lovely cool breezy weather I should have run slower than my body thought was fine.  The final 5 kms were brutal.  Even the sign saying 800 metres remaining was little relief to my cramping legs.  I just kept moving forward, as I have each time.

Crossing the line was an unfathomable relief.  Volunteers gave out aluminium sheets for people to keep warm, which wasn’t my problem.  However, I’ve never dressed as a baked potato like the New York Marathon finishers, so I wore it proudly.

I finished my (#10) Beirut Marathon 2017, 4:09:14.

I limped to the stadium seating and cheered on the other runners finishing.  I didn’t need to know them. I just knew something of what they had been through.  And I appreciate them.

The next day I wore my medal for all to see (#MedalMonday). Driving into the airport the taxi passed a checkpoint with big army guys carrying big guns. One of the officers looked into the backseat and stared in at me.  I immediately froze, worrying if I needed to show my passport or flight details, then he just pointed at my medal and gave me a hearty thumbs up. 🙂

I’ve been on such a journey since running that first marathon in 2007.

10 years on, it’s every bit as special.

And it’s nice to appreciate what has got me here.

Germany and the Berlin marathon – Sept 2009

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Late last month Elle and I took advantage of my parents coming to Dubai and jetted off to Germany for a long weekend on our own. Despite appearences, it wasn’t just for a dirty weekend, there was actually some purpose to the trip. I’ve set a goal to complete the “Big 5” marathons of the world, and decided that Berlin would be a good place to start.

The trip started off on a sour note, when we got bumped from our scheduled flight due to the extremely busy Eid long weekend rus of passengers.  For the uninitiated (like we were), the break of Ramadan means public holidays so a lot of people make the most of it and travel.

We managed to get on a flight later in the day, but had to change our plans as we missed our connecting flight from Munich to Berlin. We ended up arriving in Munich at around 9:00pm and then had to find a hotel for the night. We got completely confused by the train ticketing machine completely in German, so we decided our best bet would be to get a taxi to Munich to find a hotel. we probably should have done more research, as we discovered once we were in the taxi and on the road, that Munich city is actually quite a distance from the aiport and hotels are scattered all over the place.

The taxi driver tried to discourage us from trying the nearby hotels saying they would be fully booked due to the Oktoberfest.  His suggestion was that he drive us 55 Euros away, and then take us back to the airport in the morning – after another 55 Euros later.  But we insisted he stop at the Sheraton so I could see if they had room.  The lady at reception looked at me strangely and said, of course we have vacancies.

Something else surprised me at reception.  In Dubai pornography – anything close to it – is strictly illegal so you just don’t see it at all.  However, when I was standing at the hotel’s front desk, staring right at me was the cover model for Playboy completely topless!  I don’t think I’ve been overly interested in such images since I was 17, but having this strange sight was extremely distracting.  Quite a Europe welcome.  A similar thing greeted us in the rooms, where the TV had 1 movie channel and 4 adult channels.

The next morning we caught a flight to Berlin and managed to hit some random buttons on the ticket machine which spat out a ticket enabling us to catch a bus into the city. After asking a friendly policeman for directions, we eventually located our hotel.  We stayed in the Mercure de Charite.  With the terrible currency conversion between the UAE Dirham and the Euro it was disappointing to find that Charite didn’t mean we were staying in a shelter for the poor and destitute.  Actually we found the hotel through the marathon’s web site according to the distance to the start line – which was just perfect.

I had a few worries going into the marathon.  Most of my training has been through the summer period with frequent and mandatory water stops, so I wasn’t sure I had done sufficient distance training.  My concerns became reality at around the 25km mark when my legs started cramping terribly.  I was on track for a reasonable time until this point.  But with all the stops I saw all my goal times pass me by.  In the end I realised 4hrs was at risk so I really had to knuckle down.  Towards the end I felt terrible agony.  Everything was telling me to stop, except for the million+ spectators. In short it was an amazing experience.

Folllowing the race I was hobbling quite a bit.  I met up with Elle on the steps of the Reichstag where I had to sit for some time.   The Corona helped a little.  The walk from the finish line back to the hotel probably took 10 times longer than it did that morning. I slept extremely well that night.

We missed a day in  Berlin before the race due to the missed flight, so we decided to change our plans a little and try to see a few of the sights the next day then hit Munich and the Oktoberfest later in the day and night.  We did the Reichstag Dome tour, a look around Brandenburg.  Then we left the big smoke for the largest palace in Berlin at Charlottenburg. The whole area was beautiful, and something definitely worth seeing.

We caught the underground back to the airport and made our way to Munich.  By this stage we were seasoned veterans at buying tickets in Germany, but we didn’t need to.  A very friendly German guy gave us a tip that the tickets were priced so they were cheaper as a group of 3 or more – which he had the ticket for already. We got out of it for free, although we gave him 10 Euros anyway.  He was a lovely guy and kept us entertained the whole way.  We knew we were onto a good thing when he mentioned he works at the airport in IT and “it’s shit”.

Unfortunately my limping got worse, so we found our hotel and crashed.  Any thoughts of hitting Oktoberfest that evening were dashed by the allure of a nice warm bath.

We had plenty of time at the airport so I trialled all the local beers on display to try and compensate for missing Oktoberfest the night before.

The w’end flew by, and we arrived safe and sound in Dubai late on Tuesday night.