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Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia ran the first sub-2:04:00 marathon in September, 2008 in Berlin, running 2:03:59. It must be noted that this was an unusual situation, since he had no strong competitors in the race and had help from several pacemakers. Nonetheless, it is a fantastic achievement.
In April, 2011, Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya ran 2:03:02 in the Boston Marathon, the fastest marathon run ever. This was not considered as a world record because the Boston course "wasn't hard enough" (it is net downhill, and it is a one-way course rather than a closed loop, so a runner can have a net tailwind). To anyone who has ever run both courses, this is the sheerest absurdity. Berlin, Chicago and London are fast flat courses where record tries are routinely made, whereas Boston and New York are slow courses due to hilly terrain. Also, Boston is extremely competitive and does not allow pacers, so a runner cannot "tuck in" behind teammates as is possible (and was done) in Berlin. There's a very good reason that nobody ever plans to attempt a world record run in Boston or New York any more - they always target Berlin, Chicago or London.
So while Haile still has the world record, many (including me) consider Geoffrey's run to be the greatest marathon run ever.
Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia ran the first sub-2:04:00 marathon in September, 2008 in Berlin, running 2:03:59. It must be noted that this was an unusual situation, since he had no strong competitors in the race and had help from several pacemakers. Nonetheless, it is a fantastic achievement.
In April, 2011, Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya ran 2:03:02 in the Boston Marathon, the fastest marathon run ever. This was not considered as a world record because the Boston course "wasn't hard enough" (it is net downhill, and it is a one-way course rather than a closed loop, so a runner can have a net tailwind). To anyone who has ever run both courses, this is the sheerest absurdity. Berlin, Chicago and London are fast flat courses where record tries are routinely made, whereas Boston and New York are slow courses due to hilly terrain. Also, Boston is extremely competitive and does not allow pacers, so a runner cannot "tuck in" behind teammates as is possible (and was done) in Berlin. There's a very good reason that nobody ever plans to attempt a world record run in Boston or New York any more - they always target Berlin, Chicago or London.
So while Haile still has the world record, many (including me) consider Geoffrey's run to be the greatest marathon run ever.
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