How fast was Kelvin Kiptum's London Marathon vs Eliud Kipchoge's world record?

“I’m not ready to go for a world record now,” Kelvin Kiptum said in the press conference before the 2023 London Marathon.

But after crossing the finish line in a breathtaking two hours one minute and 25 seconds, the Kenyan had come within 16 seconds of the world record of 2:01:09 owned by his legendary compatriot Eliud Kipchoge.

This was only Kiptum’s second-ever marathon after he set the fastest debut in history (2:01:53) last year in Valencia.

However, while London isn’t known as a slow course, it isn’t seen to be as rapid as the flat route that winds through the city in southeastern Spain.

And then there was the weather. For anyone hoping for the dry conditions that are ideal for marathon running, London was in no mood to oblige. Rain soaked the runners and spectators across much of the course, as the UK’s famous April showers reared their heads.

Yet, despite all that seemed to play against him, the 23-year-old Kiptum stepped up to produce one of the most remarkable runs in marathon history. And it’s even more impressive when you compare it to Kipchoge’s world record.

• What does Eliud Kipchoge eat?
• How to rest, fuel and recover like Eliud Kipchoge

Kelvin Kiptum and Eliud Kipchoge split-by-split analysis

Kiptum’s London Marathon effort began at a more leisurely pace than Kipchoge’s world record set at the 2022 Berlin Marathon.

The first 5k split of 14:30 was 16 seconds off the same split of Kipchoge, the exact same difference that separated the two at the end of the race.

By the tenth kilometre, Kiptum was 49 seconds behind Kipchoge, a pattern that would continue all the way through to kilometre 20 where the gap between the reigning world record holder and his younger rival had risen to one minute and 46 seconds. 

However, the tide began changing in the second half of the race as Kiptum broke free from the rest of the field and began putting down times never seen before in a 42.195 km race.

While the 5km split of Kiptum between 20km and 25km of 14:22 was only one second faster than Kipchoge’s at the same point in the race, his split of 14:30 between kilometre 25 and 30 ate another two seconds into Kipchoge’s record time.

But the most remarkable efforts were yet to come.

Between kilometre 30 and 35 Kiptum achieved a time of 13:49 - a full 20 seconds faster than Kipchoge split in his entire world record race, and 41 seconds faster than Kipchoge's at the same point in the race.

By this point, Kiptum was flying.

From initial 5km spits that hovered between 20.41 and 20.69 km/h over the first 20km of the race, Kiptum had raised his pace to a staggering 21.71 km/h. 

In the closing stages of the London Marathon, Kiptum was in a race of his own. His 35-40km split of 14:01 was 42 seconds faster than Kipchoge’s equivalent split of 14:43, and the final 2.195 km of the race saw him split 6:12 compared to Kipchoge’s 6:16 as he finished the race just 16 seconds behind the world record.

Kiptum’s negative split over the final half of the race was the fastest half-marathon mark ever seen in a full marathon race - a time of 59:45.

To put this in perspective, it is only 13 seconds slower than Mo Farah’s ratified British half-marathon record of 59:32 when the Brit was running half the distance.

Eliud Kipchoge's marathon world record splits vs Kelvin Kiptum's London Marathon splits 

What’s next for Kelvin Kiptum after London Marathon victory?

The obvious question now for Kiptum is whether he is planning to attempt to break the world record. Apparently not, according to the man himself. 

“For the world record, maybe I can go home and see. But for now, not yet,” was Kiptum’s response when asked about whether he has Kipchoge’s Berlin Marathon world record in his sights. 

However, other opportunities await this year that will allow the athlete to fulfil his dreams and perhaps even lower the mark set in 2022 by his great Kenyan teammate. 

Kiptum stated before Sunday’s London Marathon that he would run the World Athletics Championships marathon if selected by Kenya. “Yeah, of course,” he said with a broad smile across his face when asked if he would like to represent his country in Budapest. 

With the Berlin Marathon and Valencia Marathon still to come in September and December respectively,  there are other opportunities for Kiptum to test himself on what are the traditionally fastest marathon courses in the world. 

And what about Paris 2024? The next Olympics are just 15 months away and it makes for a mouthwatering prospect that Kenya could field two athletes in the same race who have both shown the skill, speed and tenacity required to vie for a gold medal. 

Eliud Kipchoge vs Kelvin Kiptum? Now which fan of the Olympics wouldn’t be excited by that?