KENYAN SMASHES WORLD RECORD

ELIUD KIPCHOGE obliterated the marathon world record with an astonishing 2hr 01min 39sec run in Berlin yesterday. It is the Olympic champion’s 10th win in 11 races over the 26-mile 385-yard distance. The Kenyan enhanced his status as the greatest marathoner in history by slicing 78sec off the mark set by Dennis Kimetto on the same course in 2014, the biggest improvement to the men’s marathon best since Australia’s Derek Clayton shaved off almost two-and-ahalf minutes in 1967. Kipchoge finished more than a mile ahead of runnerup Amos Kipruto. Kipchoge, 33, pictured right with his winner’s stein of German beer, ran the second half of the race in 60min 33sec. ‘It was really hard during the last 17 kilometres but I was prepared to run my own race,’ he said. FRANCE’S Kevin Mayer broke the decathlon world record in Talence yesterday, with 9,126pts. This bettered Ashton Eaton’s record by 81pts. At the European Championships last month, Mayer crashed out when he failed to register a score in the long jump. In Talence, he clocked 10.55sec at 100m, long-jumped 7.80m, put the shot 16.00m, high-jumped 2.05m and ran 400m in 48.42sec on Saturday. Yesterday, he ran 13.75 in the 110m hurdles, threw 50.54m in the discus, pole vaulted 5.45m, had a 71.90m javelin throw and ran 1500m in 4:36.11. ‘I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time,’ he said. ‘I don’t have any more tears left because I was crying so much before the 1500m.’