World record holder Sabastian Sawe, the first man to break the mythical two-hour barrier, has pulled out of this month's Berlin Marathon because of injury, the Kenyan announced on Thursday.
Berlin, which will take place on 27 September, was due to be Sawe's first outing since April when he broke the two-hour barrier with a run of 1 hour 59 minutes 30 seconds to win the London Marathon.
"It is with a heavy heart that I must inform you that I am forced to withdraw from the Berlin Marathon due to injury," the 31-year-old wrote on Instagram without specifying the nature of his injury.
"I had been looking forward to achieving something special on the streets of Berlin."
SABASTIAN SAWE 🇰🇪 WITHDRAWS FROM BERLIN MARATHON!
— Track & Field Gazette (@TrackGazette) August 27, 2026
Marathon World Record holder Sabastian Sawe 🇰🇪 has been forced to withdraw from the 2026 Berlin Marathon due to injury.
The Kenyan made history earlier this year by becoming the first man to officially break the two-hour… pic.twitter.com/Ben0kcl5OW
The very flat course has made Berlin a favourite for potential records.
Sawe won the 2025 edition in 2:02:16 despite the heat and humidity and the fact he found himself alone at the front without a pacemaker from the 24th kilometre onward.
His world record could be under threat on 6 December, with Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha set to compete in the Valencia Marathon, which is also known as a very fast course.
Kejelcha was the second man to run a marathon in under two hours, finishing 11 seconds behind Sawe in London, and on Sunday broke the world half-marathon record in 56:51.