Sifan Hassan plotting for Ruth Chepngetich's world record

In an interview with Dutch national broadcaster NOS, Olympic marathon champion Sifan Hassan revealed that she intends to attack Ruth Chepngetich's world marathon record. 

Chepngetich ran Kenyan 2.09.56 in winning the 2024 Chicago Marathon, not only breaking the women's marathon record, but becoming the first woman to go under 2:10.

"A lot of people say it's bizarre what Chepngetich did. I think so too, but for me it's also possible," the 2.13.44 runner says, referring to a time under 2.10.

"She actually made my life easier. Because I often did things that I didn't know were possible," said Hassan.

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Chepgnetich smashed the previous record by one minute and 57 seconds, a margin of improvement not uncommon but one that was received with skeptical conversations around doping. 

"If Chepngetich hadn't been able to do this, I would have had to focus on whether it was possible or not. It might be a very long training period. But now that I know it's possible, I have to find a way to make it happen," she went on. 

Before Chepngetich, Tigst Assefa broke Brigid Kosgei‘s record by 2:11.

Kosgei broke Paula Radcliffe‘s record by 1:21.

Radcliffe set the record twice; she broke Catherine Ndereba‘s record by 1:29, then broke her own record by 1:53. 

This was not her first attempt at the record, even though she kept those quiet, only the time would tell she was on a mission. 

In 2021, her attempt was derailed by unseasonably warm weather.

In 2022 and 2023, she ran the two fastest first-half splits in history — 65:44 and 65:42 — but faded over the second half, still holding on to run 2:14:18 and 2:15:37, times that ranked fourth and seventh on the all-time list prior to her record-breaking feat. 

Truly a trailblazing achievement for Chepngetich, it serves as fuel for 32-year-old Hassan who made her marathon debut in 2023.

In London, she immediately booked an impressive victory and improved the Dutch record by more than four minutes.

Later that year, she triumphed in Chicago with the then-second-fastest time ever run.

Last summer, Hassan sensationally won Olympic gold in the marathon.

In Paris, she became the first woman ever to win a medal at the Games in the 5,000 meters (bronze), 10,000 meters (bronze) and marathon.

On April 27, Hassan will once again participate in the London Marathon, where she goes up against Chepngetich, Assefa, and former Olympic champion, Peres Jepchirchir.

"London really feels like my marathon. It is also one of the biggest in the world," she added.

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