Kejelcha Smashes Half Marathon World Record

Ethiopian distance runner Yomif Kejelcha has broken the men’s half marathon world record after winning a World Athletics road race in Buenos Aires in 56 minutes and 51 seconds. He previously held the record at 57:30, set in Valencia in 2024, before Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo broke it in March with a 57:20 finish in Lisbon. Kejelcha’s new mark, pending official ratification, shaved 29 seconds off Kiplimo’s time. The 29-year-old Ethiopian is also the world record holder for the men’s 10,000-meter road race and a world track silver medalist in the 10,000 meters. Earlier this year, he became one of the first men to complete a sub-two-hour marathon under record-eligible conditions, finishing second behind Kenya’s Sebastian Sawe at the London Marathon.