Ethiopia's Yomif Kejelcha reclaimed the world half marathon record on Sunday, clocking 56:51 at the Media Maraton Ciudad de Buenos Aires in Argentina, a result that still awaits the customary World Athletics ratification process.

How the race unfolded

Running behind pacemakers Dillon Kipyeko of Uganda and Brian Kipmwetich Kipkore of Kenya in cool, 6-degree-Celsius conditions, Kejelcha broke away from the lead group around the 7-kilometer mark and steadily pulled clear, crossing the line 2 minutes and 30 seconds ahead of the rest of the field. His splits tell the story of a negative-split effort: 13:45 at 5km, 27:19 at 10km, 40:41 at 15km, and 54:04 at 20km.

I'm over the moon. I'm super happy and right now I don't feel any tiredness... This time is unbelievable.

Yomif Kejelcha
Close-up portrait of Yomif Kejelcha in racing kit
Kejelcha, 29, previously ran the fastest marathon debut in history, a 1:59:40 in London in April 2026.

A record that keeps changing hands

Kejelcha first set the world half marathon record at 57:30 in Valencia in October 2024. Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo took it from him with a 57:20 run in Lisbon this past March, a mark that itself is still pending ratification. Kejelcha's 56:51 in Buenos Aires takes 29 seconds off that time, underlining how quickly the record has been falling in the discipline over the past two years.

In the women's race at the same event, Ethiopia's Fotyen Tesfay won in 1:03:57, with Kenya's Nelvin Jepkemboi second in 1:05:06.