'He is a Beast' - Sabastian Sawe Confident of Breaking Kelvin Kiptum's World Record at London Marathon

Kenyan marathon runner Sabastian Sawe is quietly confident he can challenge the men's world marathon record in London this Sunday.

The formidable benchmark of 2 hours and 35 seconds was set by the late Kelvin Kiptum in 2023. However, Sawe believes he is in peak condition, comparable to his form before the Berlin Marathon last September, where his world record attempt was hindered by high temperatures.

This time, Sawe will be equipped with Adidas's new Pro Evo 3 "supershoe," a remarkably light piece of footwear weighing just 96 grams, which he claims is even faster than its predecessor.

When asked if the shoe could help him break Kiptum's London course record of 2:01:25 or even the world record, Sawe's response was a simple and telling "Yes."

While London's course is not considered as fast as Berlin or Chicago, Sawe's agent, Eric Lilot, revealed their strategy.

"We will ask the pacemakers to go through halfway in 60 minutes and 30 seconds," he said, a pace that would give Sawe a fighting chance at history, especially with tailwinds forecasted for the final miles.

"He's a silent assassin," Lilot added. "He's so quiet. But when he steps on the road, he is a beast."

Sawe's coach, Claudio Berardelli, confirmed that the runner has fully recovered from a stress fracture and a back injury that disrupted his training late last year.

"When he got the back problem, I was like: 'Hey, no rush, let's fix it," Berardelli explained. "By early February, he was impressive. We took our risks a little bit in terms of picking up the volume again and the intensity. But his body responded."

With only four marathons under his belt, Berardelli is convinced Sawe has untapped potential. "I've been coaching for more than 20 years in Kenya, and when I started dealing with Sabastian, I immediately realised this is not just a good athlete... he is a different human being. An outlier."

However, Sawe faces a formidable field of elite Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes. His rivals include Jacob Kiplimo, who recently set a half-marathon world record of 57:20; Olympic champion Tamirat Tola; and Yomif Kejelcha, a world 10,000m silver medalist making his marathon debut.

Many experts believe Kejelcha, with his strong track pedigree and a 57:30 half-marathon personal best, could secure a podium finish.

But Kiplimo, who finished second to Sawe in London last year, is perhaps the most compelling challenger. The two engaged in a boxing-style face-off for the cameras, heightening the sense of rivalry.

Kiplimo noted that he has increased his mileage and feels better prepared than last year. "We will see on Sunday," he said.

"But I know we are going to battle together." This head-to-head competition could, however, shift the focus from the clock to race tactics, potentially making a world record less likely.

In the women's race, a duel is anticipated between defending champion Tigst Assefa, an Olympic silver medalist, and Hellen Obiri, who holds the Boston and New York marathon titles.

Valencia champion Joyciline Jepkosgei is also a strong contender who could disrupt the expected two-way battle in what promises to be a captivating race.