Half marathon

A half marathon is a road running event of kilometres ( 13 mi 192.5 yd)—half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish, or shortcuts.. If finisher medals are awarded, the medal or ribbon may differ from those for the full marathon. The half marathon is also known by its rounded distance: a , a , or .

A half marathon world record is officially recognised by World Athletics. The men's world record time is 56:51, set by Yomif Kejelcha in 2026 in Buenos Aires. Jacob Kiplimo ran 56:42 in Barcelona in 2025, but this mark was not ratified by World Athletics due to his proximity to the lead car. The women's world record, in a mixed-gender race, is 1:02:52, set by Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia in October 2021 in Valencia, Spain. The world record for the women's only race is 1:05:15, set by Agnes Jebet Ngetich of Kenya in September 2026.

Participation in half marathons has grown steadily since 2003, partly because it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a marathon does. In 2008, Running USA reported that the half marathon was the fastest-growing type of race.

History Races close to the official half marathon distance of 21.0975 km (13.1094 mi) have taken place throughout the early 20th century, and athletes have also been timed at the midpoint of full marathons. The 1946 Central American and Caribbean Games in Barranquilla, Colombia featured a road race that is listed at exactly the modern half marathon distance, referred to as the "Carrera Centroamericana y del Caribe: (21 kms. 97,5 metros)". The 1952 South American Championships in Athletics in Buenos Aires, Argentina featured a road race that was 21.097km, referred to as "la media maratón" ('the half marathon') by the Chilean newspaper La Nación.

The earliest half marathon recognised by the ARRS is the 1960 Romford Half Marathon in England, though it was short of the full half marathon distance. The earliest half marathon recognised by World Athletics is the 1965 Feckleton Half Marathon in England. The event grew in popularity, leading to the eventual establishment of the World Athletics Road Running Championships in 1992, originally titled the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.

Area records Updated 23 August 2026.

Area Men Women Time Season Athlete Time Season Athlete World 56:51 2026 1:02:52 2021 Area records Africa 56:51 2026 1:02:52 2021 Asia 58:23 2026 1:05:22 2017 Europe 58:06 2026 1:05:15 2018 North, Central Americaand Caribbean 59:15 2025 1:06:04 2026 Oceania 59:47 2015 1:07:11 2011 South America 59:33 2007 1:09:21 2025

All-time top 25 Men Correct .

RankTimeAthleteDatePlace156:4216 February 2025Barcelona256:5123 August 2026Buenos Aires3 57:32 6 December 2020 Valencia 457:4122 October 2023Valencia557:5022 October 2023Valencia 6 57:59 6 December 2020 Valencia 7 58:01 15 September 2019 Copenhagen 858:026 March 2022Rome–Ostia958:0620 September 2026Copenhagen1058:0724 October 2021Valencia1158:088 March 2026Lisboa1258:1015 September 2024Copenhagen13 58:11 6 December 2020 Valencia1458:1628 March 2026Prague1558:1727 October 2024Valencia1658:23 21 March 2010 Lisbon14 February 2026Ras Al Khaimah1858:2414 September 2025Copenhagen1958:2620 September 2026Copenhagen2058:2723 March 2025Malaga2158:2824 October 2021Valencia22 58:33 17 March 2007 The Hague 28 October 2018 Valencia 2458:3519 February 2022Ras al-Khaimah20 September 2026Copenhagen

Notes Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 58:39: Jacob Kiplimo also ran 57:20 (2026), 57:31 (2021), 57:37 (2020), 57:56 (2022) and 58:09 (2024) Yomif Kejelcha also ran 57:30 (2024), 57:41 (2023), 58:02 (2025) and 58:32 (2022) Kibiwott Kandie also ran 57:40 (2023), 58:10 (2022) and 58:38 (2020) Sabastian Sawe also ran 58:05 (2024), 58:24 (2024) and 58:29 (2023) Hagos Gebrhiwet also ran 58:05 (2026) Geoffrey Kamworor also ran 58:14 (2026) Abraham Kiptum ran 58:18, but it was expunged for doping Isaia Kipkoech Lasoi also ran 58:21 (2024) Nicholas Kipkorir Kimeli also ran 58:23 (2025) Daniel Mateiko also ran 58:26 (2021) Zersenay Tadese also ran 58:30(2011) Philemon Kiplimo also ran 58:34 (2021) Rodrigue Kwizera also ran 58:38 (2025)

Performance annulled due to doping offences:

TimeAthleteDatePlace 57:49 6 December 2020 Valencia 58:30 19 February 2022 Ras al-Khaimah

Women Correct . RankTimeAthleteDatePlace11:02:52 24 October 2021Valencia21:03:04 27 October 2024Valencia31:03:21 27 October 2024Valencia41:03:32 27 October 2024Valencia51:03:51 24 October 2021Valencia61:04:01 15 February 2026Barcelona71:04:02 4 April 2021Istanbul81:04:13 16 February 2025Barcelona91:04:14 19 February 2022Ras al-Khaimah101:04:14 27 October 2024Valencia111:04:219 March 2025Lisboa121:04:22 19 February 2022Ras al-Khaimah131:04:31 21 February 2020Ras al-Khaimah141:04:36 19 February 2022Ras al-Khaimah151:04:3719 February 2023Barcelona161:04:37 14 January 2024Houston171:04:40 11 February 2024Barcelona181:04:4414 September 2025Copenhagen191:04:4622 October 2023Valencia201:04:49 21 February 2020Ras al-Khaimah11 January 2026Houston221:04:529 February 2018Ras al-Khaimah231:04:5322 October 2023Valencia241:04:559 February 2018Ras al-Khaimah251:05:0014 September 2025Copenhagen

Notes Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 1:05:00: Agnes Jebet Ngetich also ran 1:03:08 (2025) Fotyen Tesfay also ran 1:03:35 (2025), 1:03:57 (2026) and 1:04:46 (2022) Yalemzerf Yehualaw also ran 1:03:44 (2021, not legal), 1:04:22 (2022), 1:04:40 (2021) and 1:04:46 (2020) Ruth Chepng'etich also ran 1:04:16 (2024) Hellen Obiri also ran 1:04:22 (2022), 1:04:48 (2022) and 1:04:51 (2021) Joyciline Jepkosgei also ran 1:04:29 (2024), 1:04:46 (2023), 1:04:51 (2017) and 1:04:52 (2017) Brigid Kosgei also ran 1:04:50 (2020), 1:04:50 (2020) and 1:04:50 (2019, not legal)

World leading times

This table lists the best half marathon performances per year since 1970, as recorded by the ARRS.

YearTimeMenPlaceTimeWomenPlace1970Belfast1971FreckletonPhoenix1972CoamoSan Diego1973Maracaibo1974WiezeAy1975Grevenmacher1976CoamoNazaré1977BeppuMilan1978Welwyn Garden CitySan Diego1979Las VegasManchester1980New OrleansThe Hague1981ManchesterSan Diego1982PhiladelphiaGothenburg1983DaytonPhiladelphia1984MilanPhiladelphia1985PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia1986South ShieldsDrammen1987BarnsleySandnes1988South ShieldsSouth Shields1989DurbanNew Bedford1990South ShieldsSouth Shields1991MilanEast London1992South ShieldsDundee1993MilanSt Petersburg1994South ShieldsKyoto1995LisbonKyoto1996Ivry-sur-SeineParis1997KošiceKyoto1998MilanKyoto1999MilanTokyo2000TokyoSouth Shields2001BerlinBristol2002LisbonSouth Shields2003South ShieldsSouth Shields2004South ShieldsSouth Shields2005South ShieldsSouth Shields2006TempeBerlin2007The HagueUdine2008LisbonNew DelhiMarugame2009Ras al-KhaimahBirmingham2010LisbonRas al-Khaimah2011LisbonRas al-Khaimah2012PragueRas al-Khaimah2013Ras al-KhaimahRas al-Khaimah2014ValenciaBarcelona2015ValenciaBarcelona2016OstiaPrague2017CopenhagenValencia2018ValenciaRas al-Khaimah2019CopenhagenManama2020ValenciaRas al-Khaimah2021LisbonValencia2022Ras al-KhaimahRas al-Khaimah2023ValenciaBarcelona2024ValenciaValencia2025BarcelonaValencia2026Buenos AiresBuenos Aires

The largest half marathon ever held was Broloppet (the Bridge race) between Copenhagen in Denmark and Malmö in Sweden with finishers, held in connection with the Øresund Bridge inauguration in 2000.

Half marathon

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