Sabastian Sawe hopes the stringent testing regime he underwent before becoming the first person to break the fabled 2-hour barrier in marathon running will prove to the world he is competing clean. The 29-year-old Kenyan pulled off the feat that was long considered unthinkable when winning the London Marathon on Sunday in a time of 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. There have been a slew of high-profile doping cases involving Kenyan runners in recent years so Sawe knew he would come under suspicion after winning last year’s marathons in Berlin and London. Sawe says he volunteered to undergo “multiple” doping tests in agreement with his coaches and management team. Sawe is urging other runners to do the same.

Sabastian Sawe of Kenya has become the first person to break the fabled 2-hour barrier in the marathon in a huge moment in sports history. Sawe smashed the men’s world record by 65 seconds in winning the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. The second-place finisher, Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia, also dipped under 2 hours by crossing the line in 1:59:41 in his first-ever marathon. Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda broke the previous world-record time, set by Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023, by seven seconds in finishing in 2:00:28.