This archive report was first published on 29 September 2019.
Published on September 29, 2019, Kenenisa Bekele narrowly missed Eliud Kipchoge's world record at the Berlin Marathon, finishing in an astonishing 2 hours, 1 minute, and 41 seconds.
Bekele's winning time was just two seconds short of Kipchoge's winning time last year on the same course, where countrymen Birhanu Legese and Sisay Lemma completed an Ethiopian podium sweep.
Despite struggling halfway through the race, Bekele surged forward at the 35km mark to fall just two seconds behind Kipchoge's world record of 2:01:39 set on the same course a year ago.
"I knew I could do better than this, but I am still recovering from injury," Bekele said. "You never give up until the finish line."
Legese, the reigning Tokyo marathon champion, came home second in 2:02:48, while Lemma placed third in 2:03:36.
Defending champion Gladys Cherono dropped out of the race.
