After Yomif Kejelcha crossed the finish line at the London Marathon on Sunday, he was shocked by what he'd accomplished.
Kejelcha, 28, ran a 1:59:41, crushing the elusive two-hour marathon goal. Athletes have been striving to break through that barrier for years. To make the story even sweeter, Kejelcha beat it in his first-ever competitive marathon.
"This is so crazy," he told NPR in an interview on Tuesday from Frankfurt, Germany, where he was still stunned by the accomplishment. "It's too hard to believe… I don't have words for it really."
Before the race, Kejelcha said in an interview that it was "not possible" for him to beat two-hours in his first marathon. He even proved himself wrong.
But, here comes the twist.
Kejelcha finished 11 seconds after Kenya's Sabastian Sawe. Sawe was hailed as the first man to run an official marathon in under two hours. Kejelcha accepted the title of second-fastest.
"I'm not upset," he told NPR. "I'm not angry. I'm very, very happy because I broke two hours."
"It's… an 11 second difference, so I think it's not too far for me to break again," Kejelcha continued.
He and Sawe have a "friendly competition," he said, and he does consider the fastest marathon runner a close friend.
Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo also beat the previous world record set by the late Kenyan, Kelvin Kiptum, in Chicago in 2023, but he placed third with a time of 2:00:28.
If it was a normal year, Kejelcha or Kiplimo's time would have been extraordinary headlines. But this year was anything but normal.
Of course, this is not Kejelcha's first competitive race. He is a versatile runner and a track and road specialist. He set the world indoor mile record in 2019, broke the half-marathon world record in Valencia in 2024, and received a silver medal in the 10,000 meters at last year's world championships in Tokyo.
Regardless of what may seem to some as an inconceivable loss, Kejelcha said he was feeling "great."
"To beat two hours, it's not easy," he said, and "every athlete who does a marathon" strives to achieve it.
Ahead of the race, Kejelcha told reporters that he was going to run in the first group, but by no means did he think that meant running the race in under two hours.
Sometimes, a "special thing" happens in races, he said, but Kejelcha decided to be more reasonable with himself, guessing he would finish at 2:03 or 2:02.
He'd been dreaming of the London Marathon for a long time. His coach finally agreed to give him a shot in 2026, Kejelcha said.
"My training is really great, as far as tomorrow, I don't know what [is going to] happen," Kejelcha remembers thinking to himself.
Throughout the race, Kejelcha said "100%" he and Sawe pushed each other. The runners ran side by side and they dropped Kiplimo between 18 and 21 miles. But with one mile remaining, Sawe took a commanding lead. Sawe's finish time shaved 65 seconds off the previous world record.
Kejelcha said after 25 miles he lost his pace, and he didn't think he was going to make it.
But close to the finish line, he looked down at his watch and saw he was significantly under two hours. Only then did he think it was possible to do the "impossible."
After the race, he told Sawe congratulations.
Still, he "of course" wants to beat his own record and then Sawe's record. His next marathon will be 1:58, he hopes.
"It's competition… I need to beat it," he said.
Kejelcha said he and Sawe set a "big example" to fuel the next cohort of runners. He believes more athletes will beat the sub-two hour mark very soon.
"I ran my first (competitive) marathon in under two hours, so I think it's an inspiration for young athletes," he said.
Along with sheer willpower, Kejelcha said a few things pushed him to the unfathomable record-breaking pace.
First, the adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 shoes, which weigh barely more than a deck of cards. Kejelcha hailed them as "magical shoes." He said they felt so light he didn't even realize he was wearing them.
Second, his coaches, who believed in him even though he didn't believe in himself.
Now, "I believe in myself," Kejelcha said. It only took running one of the most coveted marathon times in history.
Third, his 6-month preparation at his training ground in the capital city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, which boasts a high altitude, along with the "amazing weather" at the London Marathon on Sunday.
And finally, his wife's cooking. (She helps him stick to his specific food program, he said)
Really, Kejelcha said, as much as people want to believe it, there's no special sauce.
"I don't have anything, it's just hard work. Athletes always need discipline."
Kejelcha said he doesn't yet have a plan for his next race. But the half marathon is still his favorite run, despite finding it much harder than a full marathon.
"The marathon is much easier than the… half marathon," he said, laughing.
Coming in second is not as maddening as the internet has suggested it would be for Kejechla. He still walked away with the title of fastest-ever marathon debut, and he certainly does not feel upset about anything.
"I am very happy," Kejelcha said.
Copyright 2026 NPR