From 18 to 88: 2026 TCS London Marathon finishers across the ages
“This is my dream,” says Yomif Kejelcha, after he crossed the Finish Line at the 2026 TCS London Marathon.
Kejelcha put it simply, but his performance on the streets of London was impossible to ignore – one that will echo around the world for many years to come.
On his marathon debut, the gifted Ethiopian athlete ran 1:59:41 – one of the most extraordinary debuts the marathon has ever seen – and announced not just a successful transition from the track to the roads, but the arrival of a hugely exciting new force in men’s marathon running.
For 41 kilometres of the 42.2K race, 28-year-old Kejelcha matched Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe stride for stride on the streets of London. Pushing each other, the pair capitalised on the perfect weather conditions and deafening support of the legendary London crowds to put in individual performances that will go down in history.
For the Ethiopian, that performance meant finishing as runner-up, 11 seconds behind 31-year-old Sawe, and claiming his place as the second man in history to break the sub-two-hour mark in a marathon.
Just days earlier, Kejelcha had given the world’s press a glimpse into his journey from talented teenage track runner, through his successful senior athletics career, to his recent success on the road.
“I finished my track career and decided to try a new experience, so I asked my coach if I could move to the road,” he said. The London Marathon had always been his goal.
“I’m happy to come here – it’s my dream marathon,” he said before the race, “so I’m happy to be here.”
On his way to the British capital, Kejelcha put together a formidable CV that hinted he had performances, such as that we saw in London, ahead of him.
In 2014 he was World Junior Champion in the 5000m and Youth Olympic gold medallist in the 3000m.
In 2019 he took silver in the 5000m at the World Championships in Doha and made global headlines when he broke Hicham El Guerrouj’s 22‑year‑old world record for the indoor mile, running 3:47.01 to deliver one of the most striking single performances of the decade.
Kejelcha’s transition from the track began in 2022, when he focused fully on road racing, using the track speed he’d honed to set a new half marathon world record of 57:30 in Valencia in October 2024.
Then, as if to prove his versatility, he went back to the track last year, taking silver in the 10,000m at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo and showing himself to be a world-class performer on both the track and the roads as he started the build-up to his marathon debut in London.
When asked before the race if he’d upped his mileage significantly in the past few months, he answered: “Yes, my training has changed a lot from the track to the marathon!”
Whatever he did in training, it worked: at the 2026 TCS London Marathon, Kejelcha put in a performance that has altered the course of marathon running forever.
“I thought I’d be more around 2:01 to 2:04, but my coaches believed in me,” he said after crossing the Finish Line. “I’m so happy and proud of myself. This is my dream.
“I felt I ran a relaxed and controlled race up until 41K, and then my legs were done.
“My track training work has been very helpful; it’s been truly amazing to be training in Ethiopia. I’m sure many people at home are very proud of me and many of them believe in my ability to run faster.”
After yesterday’s performance, the whole world will believe in Kejelcha’s ability to run even faster over 26.2 miles – and will be watching closely as he speeds into the next chapter of his marathon career.
