Kimaru targeting course record in Berlin Half Marathon debut

He has won four of the five half marathons he has lined up for and as national cross-country champion Sebastian Kimaru Sawe heads to Germany’s capital, Berlin for the half marathon on 2 April, he has his eyes on the course record.

The Bahrain half marathon course record holder heads to the Berlin half marathon on the back of a seventh-place finish at this year’s World Cross Country Championships.

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Kimaru is the fastest runner in the men’s race with a personal best (PB) time of 58:02 but says he will rather be going for the course record of 58:42 set in 2018 by compatriot Eric Kiptanui.

“My target is to break the course record. If it happens that I feel strong enough to go for a PB, then I will push for it but the primary mark is the title and the course record.

Preparations have been good here in Kapsabet and I feel ready to face the field. I know the competition will be there but I will focus on my race,” Kimaru told Mozzart Sport in an interview on before flying out Wednesday 29 March night for Germany.

Kimaru is joined on the start line by fellow Kenyans Philemon Kiplimo and training mate Alex Kibet, the latter being the 2022 winner in Berlin. Up against the Kenyans are Dominic Lobalu of South Sudan and Gemechu Dida of Ethiopia, whose PBs are 59:12 and 59:21 respectively.

“Kibet goes to Berlin keen to defend his title and having trained alongside him ahead of the race, I know he will be a real challenge. However, we have a plan for team work in the initial stages of the race,” Kimaru added.

Meanwhile, the women’s race will see Ludwina Chepngetich, the inaugural Iten End Gender-Based Violence (GBV) 10km winner, take on a tough women’s field that will be out to break the course record of 1:05:02 set last year by Sheila Chepkirui.

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She will be up against Eilish McColgan who will tackle the race looking for a confidence-boosting performance ahead of her marathon debut in London three weeks later.

Others in the women’s field include Tsigie Gebreselama of Ethiopia who has run 65:46 in Valencia last October behind Konstanze Klosterhalfen, whereas Chepngetich has run 67:30 and McColgan’s UK record is 66:26.

Gebreselama won silver behind Beatrice Chebet in the women’s race at the recent World Cross Country Championships in Australia.