Sebastian Sawe chasing fastest time in Berlin Marathon debut

Reigning London Marathon champion Sebastian Sawe lines up as the men's favourite for the Berlin Marathon set for Sunday, 21 September.

Five months ago, he won his first World Marathon Major (WMM), blowing away the leaders in London, and as he chases his second victory on the grand stage, he is also itching for the course record of 2:01:09, set by Eliud Kipchoge when he broke the world record there in 2022.

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After a successful track, cross country, and half-marathon career – including the 2023 world half-marathon title – he made a spectacular marathon debut in Valencia last December, winning in 2:02:05. That time was the fastest of 2024, the second-quickest debut ever behind Kelvin Kiptum, and makes him the fifth-fastest man in history.

Berlin, long regarded as the fastest marathon in the world, has seen eight consecutive men’s world records fall, and this has motivated Sawe to go for more than just the title.

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“I want to see how fast I can run at the moment,” Sawe says. “I chose Berlin because it is one of the fastest courses in the world, and after running Valencia and London in 2:02, my target is to run the fastest race I can and, of course, hopefully to win the race. I am in good shape, so I want to run fast,” said Sawe, who is familiar with the city, having won the Berlin Half Marathon in 2023.

Ethiopia’s Milkesa Mengesha returns as defending champion after his surprise victory last year in 2:03:17. Though he was unable to follow Sawe’s break in London earlier this year, Mengesha insists he is better prepared.

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Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay brings a 2:03:00 national record to the start line and believes he can improve on it. Japan’s Kengo Suzuki will aim to better his national record of 2:04:56.

The German challenge is led by Hendrik Pfeiffer, who has set recent personal bests and hopes to break 2:07, along with Sebastian Hendel, Haftom Welday, and Johannes Motschmann, all targeting similar marks.

Organisers are keen to reinforce Berlin’s reputation as the world’s quickest marathon. By averaging the 10 fastest times ever run, Berlin leads all races with 2:02:34 and has held that status since 2006. Kipchoge alone has won here five times, setting two world records along the way.

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Now Sawe, already the fastest marathon runner of 2024 and fifth fastest in history, will aim to follow in Kipchoge’s footsteps and etch his name into the city’s storied history.

Elite entry list

Sabastian Sawe KEN 2:02:05 1. Valencia 24

Gabriel Geay TAN 2:03:00 2. Valencia 22

Milkesa Mengesha ETH 2:03:17 1. Berlin 24

Haymanot Alew ETH 2:03:31 3. Berlin 24

Guye Adola ETH 2:03:46 2. Berlin 17

Leul Gebresilase ETH 2:04:02 2. Dubai 18

Daniel Mateiko KEN 2:04:24 3. Valencia 24

Haftu Teklu ETH 2:04:42 5. Berlin 23

Chimdessa Debele ETH 2:04:44 6. Valencia 24

Kengo Suzuki JPN 2:04:56 1. Otsu 21

Chala Regasa ETH 2:05:06 2. Rotterdam 25

Samwel Mailu KEN 2:05:08 1. Wien 23

Yihunilign Adane ETH 2:05:37 1. Osaka 25

Tariku Novales ESP 2:05:48 11. Valencia 23

Kyohei Hosoya JPN 2:05:58 4. Osaka 25

Yuhei Urano JPN 2:06:23 13. Tokyo 25

Shuho Dairokuno JPN 2:07:12 6. Otsu 21

Hendrik Pfeiffer GER 2:07:14 3. Houston 24

Ezra Tanui KEN 2:07:28 1. Doha 25

Bernard Kimani KEN 2:07:28 10. Osaka

Hassan Chahdi FRA 2:07:30 5. London 24

Akira Akasaki JPN 2:07:32 6. Paris OG 24

Sebastian Hendel GER 2:07:33 17. Berlin 24

Shin Kimura JPN 2:07:34 11. Tokyo 20

Robert Ngeno KEN 2:07:35 1. Rom 25

Hicham Amghar MAR 2:07:45 4. Dongying 24

Haftom Welday GER 2:08:24 30. Valencia 23

Ken Nakayama JPN 2:08:24 20. Tokyo 25

Taiyo Iwasaki JPN 2:08:25 20. Osaka 25

Aoi Ota JPN 2:08:31 2. Gold Coast 25

Tachlowini Gabriyesos ART 2:09:00 19. Sevilla 23

Gao Peng CHN 2:09:34 8. Peking 23

Jin Yuasa JPN 2:09:43 1. Nobeoka

Paulo Paula BRA 2:09:51 19. Sevilla 22

George James GBR 2:10:02 5. Leuven 25

Peter Herzog AUT 2:10:06 12. London 20

Wang Wenjie CHN 2:10:23 5. Peking 24

Johannes Motschmann GER 2:10:39 9. London 24

Lemawork Ketema AUT 2:10:44 11. Vienna 19