Elite marathon runners target two-hour barrier

Three elite runners backed by a small army of scientists will on Saturday attempt an audacious assault on the boundaries of the possible by trying to run a marathon in less than two hours.

Reigning Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge from Kenya, Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa and Eritrea’s Zersenay Tadese will aim to complete the classic marathon distance of 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers) in one hour, 59 minutes and 59 seconds or faster on a fixed loop at the Monza National Autodrome racing circuit in Italy.

In their pursuit of sporting immortality, the trio will need to set a ferocious pace of four minutes and 34 seconds per mile – seven seconds quicker than the pace of the existing world record of 2:02:57 set by Dennis Kimetto of Kenya at the 2014 Berlin Marathon.

In many respects, it is the distance running equivalent of attempting to put a man on the Moon, requiring the sort of evolutionary leap against the clock that is usually only achieved over decades. But increasingly, scientists are convinced that a sub-two-hour run is achievable.

“People have been thinking about the magical sub-two-hour marathon for a long time,” said Wouter Hoogkamer, lead researcher of a study published by the University of Colorado Boulder.

His team set out a series of mathematical calculations demonstrating how an elite marathon runner could break the two-hour barrier.

“Our calculations show that a sub-two-hour marathon time could happen right now, but it would require the right course and a lot of organization,” Hoogkamer said in the study published by the journal Sports Medicine.

Slicing roughly three minutes off the marathon world record requires a perfect alignment of human physiology, state-of-the-art equipment and perfect conditions.

The study estimated that to be successful, runners would need to wear shoes roughly 100 grams lighter than those worn by Kimetto during his 2014 world record.

Preparations for the sub-two-hour attempt have been encouraging. At a test event in Monza, Kipchoge completed a half-marathon on the circuit in a time of 59 minutes and 17 seconds.

Even if the runners are successful, their time will not be regarded as a formal world record by track and field’s governing body as it will not take place in officially sanctioned race conditions.