2:01:39 is a number Eliud Kipchoge will never forget.
The Kenyan runner won the Berlin Marathon today with that record-breaking time, becoming the first to ever finish a marathon in less than 2:02.
Defending his Berlin title from 2017, Kipchoge beat the previous world record — set by fellow Kenyan Dennis Kimetto in 2014 — by a minute and 18 seconds.
Kipchoge had spent the last couple of years chasing the world record in Berlin and falling short. But the 33-year-old Nike athlete explained to reporters after the race, “They say you miss two times, but you can’t miss the third time.”
To commemorate the historic moment, Nike tweeted out the news, sharing an image of Kipchoge in the style of its new “Just Do It” campaign with text reading, “It’s only crazy until you do it” laid over the photo.
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“Yesterday, 2:01:39 seemed crazy. Today, it’s the marathon world record. #justdoit,” the brand wrote.
Kipchoge had run a historic marathon time of 2:00:25 for the Nike Breaking2 project last year, but that figure did not count for official record purposes.
Chasing Kipchoge in Berlin were Amos Kipruto, who came in second with a time of 2:06:23, while Wilson Kipsang finished third in 2:06:48.
On the women’s side, Kenyan runner Gladys Cherono also defended her Berlin title, winning with a time of 2:18:11
Cherono’s winning time was an all-time best for the Berlin Marathon’s women’s race. Coming in behind her were Ruti Aga and Tirunesh Dibaba, who finished in second and third place, respectively.
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