Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha set a new world record in the half marathon with 56:51 at the Buenos Aires Half Marathon on Sunday. The 29-year-old, 1.85 m tall and 58 kg, beat his own 57:30 mark set in Valencia in October 2022.

A historic leap for Argentina

The Buenos Aires Half Marathon, which has been fine-tuning its course over the past decade to attract world-class runners, witnessed an unprecedented milestone this Sunday: no continent had ever seen a world record in a race held on its soil. Kejelcha’s achievement put the city on the front pages of major athletics media.

Kejelcha’s run

Kejelcha, who had already set the world record in Valencia with 57:30, returned to beat his own time. Earlier in 2024, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo had surpassed him with 57:20 in Lisbon, but Kejelcha came back to Buenos Aires to claim the revenge. In the 21-km race, the Ethiopian athlete pulled ahead at 6 km, leaving his competitors and the pacers hired by the organizers behind. At 14 km he was running solo, writing his own history.

Argentine and South-American context

For Argentina, the record is comparable to winning a football World Cup: a one-off event that will remain etched in collective memory. The city, previously considered a secondary destination on the world half-marathon circuit, now shares the map with major European and North American races.

Organization and controls

The organizers confirmed that the course will be controlled to the centimeter to validate the record. Kejelcha will undergo all standard anti-doping tests; his history of more than 20 tests in 2023 supports his compliance. The race will be documented meticulously to ensure the time’s validity.

Athlete’s words

From the podium, Kejelcha thanked the organizers and the crowd: “They have been so kind to me, they have encouraged me so much, so I am very, very happy…”, he added in Spanish, “Thank you very much Buenos Aires!”. His comment reflects the excitement of breaking a world record in a country that had never seen such a feat.

A new benchmark

The 56:51 record ranks as the second-best historical time in the Buenos Aires Half Marathon, behind Jacob Kiplimo’s 58:29 in 2023. The result shows that human speed still has room for improvement and that the city can compete with the most prestigious athletics destinations worldwide.