Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe, the man who last month became the first person in history to run a marathon in under two hours in an official race, is heading back to the Berlin Marathon in September to defend his title and take another shot at the record books on one of the fastest courses in the world.

The 31-year-old made history at the London Marathon on April 26, crossing the finish line in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, a performance that rewrote what the world thought was humanly possible in long-distance running.

He will return to competition on September 27 at the Berlin Marathon, a course widely regarded as the quickest in the world, with nine men’s world records having been set there between 1998 and 2022.

Sawe said he is approaching the race with the same mindset that has carried him this far.

“After my victory in London and my sub-two-hour performance, I can only say that I will, as always, prepare as well as possible, come to Berlin to honour this great event and the organisation that invited me, and aim to run as well and as fast as I can,” he said.

Sawe already knows what Berlin demands.

He won the 2025 edition in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds, clocking the world’s best time of the year despite temperatures hitting 25 degrees Celsius on race day.

The course record at Berlin still belongs to his compatriot Eliud Kipchoge, who ran 2:01:09 in 2022 to set what was then a world record.

“We’ll see what happens on race day,” Sawe said.

The 2026 Berlin Marathon is expected to draw close to 60,000 athletes from around 160 countries.