Yomif Kedgelecha from Ethiopia has set a new half marathon world record, finishing with an impressive time of 56 minutes and 51 seconds in the World Athletics Label road race held in Buenos Aires on Sunday.
The 29-year-old athlete improved upon the previous record set by Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda in Lisbon in March by 29 seconds. Previously, Kedgelecha himself had set a record in October 2024 in Valencia, running the distance in 57 minutes and 30 seconds.
During the race, Kedgelecha covered the first 10 kilometers in 27 minutes and 19 seconds, after which he significantly increased his pace in the second half of the race. He reached the 20-kilometer mark in 54 minutes and 04 seconds and finished the last kilometer in 2 minutes and 32 seconds, becoming the first athlete to officially break the 57-minute barrier.
In the early stages of the race, Kedgelecha was supported by Dillon Kipko of Uganda and Brian Kipkore of Kenya, who helped set an initial pace of around 2 minutes and 45 seconds per kilometer.
This result followed Kedgelecha's performance several months ago when he debuted in the London marathon with a time of 1:59:40, which became the fastest marathon debut in history.
Ethiopia achieved a complete triumph on the men's podium: Tadesse Worku finished second with a time of 59 minutes and 20 seconds, and Bereket Nega took third place with a time of 1 hour and 00 minutes and 20 seconds.
In the women's race, Foteen Tesfaye from Ethiopia won with a time of 1 hour, 03 minutes, and 57 seconds, which is her third-best result in her career. Nelwin Jepkemboi from Kenya finished second with a time of 1 hour, 05 minutes, and 06 seconds, followed by her compatriot Ekaterina Amanang'ole with a time of 1 hour, 05 minutes, and 11 seconds, securing two places for Kenya on the women's podium.