RunningAnalysis
Two world records and four course records: the year the marathon got faster everywhere
From Tokyo in March to Chicago this weekend, the 2026 World Marathon Majors produced a sub-two-hour world record, course records on four continents and record crowds. Here is the season so far, race by race, before New York.
With one race left, New York on 1 November, the 2026 World Marathon Majors season can already be called the fastest in the event’s history. A man has run under two hours in a record-eligible race. Course records have fallen in Tokyo, Boston, Sydney and Berlin. And more people than ever have tried to get on a start line.
| Race | Date | Men’s winner | Women’s winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo | 1 March | Tadese Takele (ETH) 2:03:37 | Brigid Kosgei (KEN) 2:14:29: course record |
| Boston | 20 April | John Korir (KEN) 2:01:52: course record | Sharon Lokedi (KEN) 2:18:51 |
| London | 26 April | Sabastian Sawe (KEN) 1:59:30: world record | Tigst Assefa (ETH) 2:15:41: women-only world record |
| Sydney | 30 August | Addisu Gobena (ETH) 2:04:42: course record | Peres Jepchirchir (KEN) 2:18:31 |
| Berlin | 27 September | Guye Adola (ETH) 2:02:50 | Tigst Assefa (ETH) 2:11:04: course record |
| Chicago | 11 October | Amos Kipruto (KEN) 2:01:09 | Hawi Feysa (ETH) 2:13:33 |
| New York | 1 November | : | : |
Chicago results are provisional.
Tokyo: repeat champions
The season opened in Tokyo, where Ethiopia’s Tadese Takele became only the second man to win back-to-back titles, after Birhanu Legese in 2019 and 2020. Brigid Kosgei won the women’s race in a course record of 2:14:29, taking a minute off the previous mark. Takele went on to finish second in Chicago this weekend.
Boston: a tailwind and a record
In Boston on 20 April, Kenya’s John Korir defended his title in 2:01:52, wiping 70 seconds off the course record Geoffrey Mutai set in 2011. Boston’s point-to-point, net-downhill course is not eligible for world records, and Korir had help from a tailwind. Even so, it was the first Boston in which the entire men’s podium broke 2:03: Tanzania’s Alphonce Simbu ran 2:02:47 and Kenya’s Benson Kipruto 2:02:50.
Sharon Lokedi also defended her title, in 2:18:51, the first woman to win back-to-back in Boston since Catherine Ndereba two decades ago, and the American Jess McClain set a US course record of 2:20:49 in fifth.
London: the barrier falls
Six days later came the run of the year. Sabastian Sawe ran 1:59:30 in London, with Yomif Kejelcha second in 1:59:41 on his debut. Tigst Assefa lowered her own women-only world record to 2:15:41. London also set a Guinness World Record for the largest marathon, with 59,830 finishers, after receiving more than 1.1 million ballot applications.
Sydney, Berlin and Chicago
In Sydney, only the second edition as a World Marathon Major, Ethiopia’s Addisu Gobena won in 2:04:42, the fastest marathon ever run in Australia, with seven men inside the old course record. Peres Jepchirchir won the women’s race for her fourth major title.
In Berlin, Assefa was inside world-record pace at 40 km before an injury left her limping home in a course record of 2:11:04. Guye Adola won his second Berlin title.
And in Chicago on Sunday, Amos Kipruto ran 2:01:09 and Hawi Feysa defended her title in 2:13:33.
The wheelchair races
Switzerland’s Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair races in Boston (his ninth title there), London, Berlin and Chicago, with Daniel Romanchuk of the United States winning in Sydney. In the women’s races, Catherine Debrunner won London, Berlin and Chicago; Britain’s Eden Rainbow-Cooper won Boston; and Manuela Schär won Sydney.
Why so fast?
There is no single explanation. The deepest generation of East African marathoners in history, carbon-plated shoes with highly resilient foams, much higher carbohydrate intake during races and races organised around fast times all play a part. Conditions mattered too: Boston’s record came with a tailwind, and course records cluster on fast, flat courses on cool mornings.
What the season shows most clearly is depth. Two men have now run under two hours in a record-eligible race. Three men broke 2:03 in a single Boston. Seven broke the old course record in Sydney. The winning times are extraordinary, but so is how many athletes are now running close to them.
