Kenyan runner Sabastian Sawe, who won the 2024 Valencia Marathon, set the fifth-fastest marathon time in history with an incredible 2 hours, 2 minutes, and 5 seconds.
This time ranks as the best performance since Kelvin Kiptum, Eliud Kipchoge, Kenenisa Bekele, and Sisay Lemma.
In the men’s race, Ethiopia’s Deresa Geleta finished second with a time of 2:02:38, while Kenyan Daniel Mateiko came third with 2:04:24.
In the women’s race, Ethiopia’s Megertu Alemu claimed first place with a personal best of 2:16:49, followed by Uganda’s Stella Chesang in second with 2:18:26, and Ethiopia’s Tiruye Mesfin in third with 2:18:35.
Due to recent floods in the Valencia region that claimed over 220 lives, a moment of silence was observed before the race started. Additionally, participants were encouraged to contribute to a flood recovery fund, with a donation of 3 euros from each of the 35,000 finishers.