Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele broke record as he won the London half-marathon on Sunday in a time of one hour and 22 seconds.
Bekele took 1min 18sec off the record set last year by British distance great Mo Farah, who missed this year’s edition with an achilles injury.
“The new course record is a great bonus. I wasn’t focused on time today, I just wanted to win,” Bekele, a three-time Olympic gold medallist on the track, told the BBC.
“I’m on schedule in my preparation for the London Marathon in April.
“There’s no question about the crowds in London being great. They were cheering all around the course and it felt like a great place to be.”
Farah decided to concentrate on the marathon, having won gold in the 5,000m and 10,000m at both the London and Rio Games. But a relative lack of success on the road has seen him turn his attention back to the track ahead of this year’s Olympics in Tokyo.
Bekele’s victory sets up an exciting head-to-battle with Eliud Kipchoge, as the two fastest marathon runners of all time line up for April’s race.
MG/abj/APA