Latest / Kidcast Daily / Ep364: Sabastian Sawe's World Record Sub 2-Hour Run

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Ep364: Sabastian Sawe's World Record Sub 2-Hour Run · Kidcast Daily

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  Spin the wheel, let's take a ride.
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  Sports and science bursting from inside a world of wonder.
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  Open wide. Come on kids, let's amplify kid
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  cats. Daily starts your day, Fun and
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  laughter come your way. Sports and Trinia games galore.
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  Hey kids, Kick Ass Daily is here with another packed episode.
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  Get ready for science, sports, cool history, and facts so
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  surprising you won't believe they're real.
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  Today we're diving into long distance running, the chase for
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  a sub two hour marathon, and a speedy athlete named Sebastian
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  Saw. We will look at how elite
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  runners train, how races are measured, and what counts as an
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  official world record. So let's get on with today's
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  episode. Let's start with the big
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  question behind today's topic. What is a sub two hour run in
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  the marathon? A marathon is a road race that
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  covers a set distance from start to finish.
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  Finishing it in under 2 hours would mean holding an average
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  pace that is incredibly fast the entire way.
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  It is a goal many people talk about because it is a clear
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  round Number that shows extreme speed and endurance.
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  Now who is Sebastian Saw? He is an elite long distance
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  runner from Kenya. Kenya is known for producing
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  many great distance runners and Sebastian Saw has become one of
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  the top names on the roads. He is especially strong in
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  marathons and half marathons. Did you know he won the 2026
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  London Marathon with a time of one hour, 59 minutes and 30
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  seconds, becoming the first person to officially run a
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  marathon in under 2 hours. That is a major global
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  achievement where he set a new world record.
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  He crossed the finish line 1st and brought home a world record
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  for the marathon. That means he is not just fast,
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  he knows how to race smart against the best in the world.
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  Let's clear up something important about records.
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  As of May 2026, Sebastian Tsai holds the officially ratified
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  world record time for the marathon at one hour, 59 minutes
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  and 30 seconds. Set at the 2026 London Marathon.
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  World Athletics, the group that keeps official track and field
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  and road records, has specific rules about courses, timing and
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  pacing. There have been special events
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  where a runner finished a marathon distance under 2 hours
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  using rotating Pacers and other controlled conditions, but those
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  were not eligible for official world records.
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  The 2026 London Marathon, however, met all official record
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  eligible requirements. So where does Sebastian Tsai fit
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  into the story? He is the athlete who achieved
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  the historic milestone in road running.
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  He has run very fast marathons and half marathons which are
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  21.0975 kilometers, exactly half the marathon distance.
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  Running a half marathon at top speed helps coaches estimate
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  what a runner might do later in a full marathon.
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  Sebastian Saws performances show that he has the speed and
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  endurance to compete with the very best.
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  Here's a question for you. What is the exact official
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  distance of the marathon? Measured in kilometers, it is
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  42.195 kilometers, That is also 26 miles and 385 yards.
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  Races must meet that distance exactly for times to count for
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  records and rankings. When we talk about chasing a sub
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  two hour marathon, pacing is the key.
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  Pacing means how fast each kilometer or mile is run.
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  To finish 42.195 kilometers in under 2 hours, a runner must
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  average about two minutes and 50 seconds per kilometer, or about
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  four minutes and 34 seconds per mile with almost no slowing
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  down. That is like running many, many
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  fast laps on a school track without taking a break.
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  Did you know a track lap is 400 meters and a marathon equals
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  about 105 1/2 laps of a track? That is a lot of laps to keep
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  steady and smooth. Training for this level includes
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  long runs, tempo runs at race like speed interval workouts
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  where the runner repeats fast segments with short rests and
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  easy recovery runs. Elite runners also pay attention
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  to sleep, healthy meals, hydration and strength exercises
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  for legs, core and hips. They plan their weeks carefully
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  so they do not get injured and so their bodies adapt.
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  Sebastian Saw, like other top athletes, trains at high
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  altitude in parts of Kenya. High altitude training means the
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  air has less oxygen, which challenges the body and can help
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  improve endurance when the athlete returns to lower
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  altitudes. Here's a yes or no question for
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  you. Is the marathon usually run on a
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  standard 400 meter track in a stadium?
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  No official marathons are Rd. races run on measured city or
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  rural streets, often with big crowds cheering along the route.
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  Races have rules to make results fair and comparable.
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  Courses must be measured carefully by experts using a
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  special bicycle device called a calibrated Jones counter.
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  Officials also check elevation changes and where the start and
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  finish lines are placed. Did you know that for record
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  eligibility, a marathon course cannot have too much downhill
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  from start to finish? Too much downhill would give
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  runners extra help and make times hard to compare.
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  Let's talk about hydration and fueling.
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  During a marathon, athletes need liquids and carbohydrates, so
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  their muscles keep working. Organizers set up drink
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  stations. Elite runners often have their
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  bottles marked and placed on special tables.
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  They grab them as they pass without stopping.
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  Here's a yes or no question. Do elite marathoners usually
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  drink plain water Only during a race?
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  No, they often use carbohydrate drinks or gels along with water
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  to keep energy level steady. Sebastian Saw's rise includes
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  strong road race results that show both speed and racing
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  skill. His personal best for the
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  marathon is one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, which is the
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  fastest time ever recorded for 42.195 kilometers.
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  When athletes run that fast for a marathon, it shows they have
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  achieved the ultimate goal in distance running.
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  World class marathons, such as those in major cities, are
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  carefully organized to produce fast times.
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  This includes flat sections, long straightaways and groups of
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  pacemakers who help athletes stay on target.
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  Early in the race, pacemakers try to keep the speed even, so
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  runners do not go out too fast and fade later.
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  For an official record, pacemakers must follow specific
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  rules. They need to start the race with
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  the field and cannot be added later from vehicles.
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  Timing must be fully automatic using chips and photo finish
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  backups, and the course certification must be current.
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  Here's a trivia question that teaches a neat geography fact.
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  Which European city hosted the 2023 Global Road Running
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  Championships? Riga, the capital of Latvia.
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  It sits on the Baltic Sea and has a historic Old Town with
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  narrow streets and tall church towers.
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  Runners also use shoes designed for energy return.
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  Modern racing shoes often include a stiff plate and a
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  thick but light foam midsole. These shoes help reduce how much
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  energy the legs lose with each step.
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  There are rules that limit stack height and require models to be
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  available to the public, so equipment stays fair for
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  everyone. Here's a question to think about
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  Splits, which are the times for each segment of a race?
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  How many minutes per kilometer must a runner average to finish
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  a marathon in one hour, 59 minutes 59 seconds?
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  About two minutes 50 seconds per kilometer sustained for the
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  entire 42.195 kilometers. Did you know many elite Kenyan
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  runners train in groups on dirt roads?
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  Group training builds rhythm and keeps motivation high.
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  Coaches set the paces and athletes rotate who leads.
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  Rest days and light jogs are part of the plan because
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  recovery helps the body get stronger.
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  Traveling and racing around the world means adjusting to time
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  zones, different weather and new courses.
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  Runners plan their arrival days, warm ups and even their
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  breakfast timing. They check the wind, temperature
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  and humidity. Cooler, calm weather often helps
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  produce faster times because the body does not overheat and sweat
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  away too many fluids. Here's another trivia challenge
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  that brings the track into the picture.
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  How many full 400 meter track laps add up to 1 marathon?
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  105 full laps plus an extra 195 meters.
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  That number shows how long the marathon truly is.
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  Finally, let's make sure we keep the facts straight about records
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  and goals. Sebastian Saw is a world record
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  holder in the marathon with a time of one hour, 59 minutes and
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  30 seconds set at the 2026 London Marathon.
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  He is one of the fastest Roadrunners active today.
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  The official sub two hour marathon world record has been
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  achieved in a record eligible race by Sebastian Saw.
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  That is why the marathon world was so excited about this
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  historic achievement. With athletes like Sebastian Sai
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  breaking barriers, smarter pacing, better training and well
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  organized courses, the first official sub two marathon has
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  now been accomplished. Let's wrap up with a quick
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  recap. We learned what the marathon
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  distance is and why a sub two hour finish is so challenging.
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  We met Sebastian Saw, a Kenyan star who achieved the historic
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  milestone of running the first official sub two hour marathon
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  at the 2026 London Marathon with a time of one hour, 59 minutes
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  and 30 seconds. We talked about pacing,
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  hydration, shoes, course rules and how records are verified.
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  We also learned that Sebastian Saw holds the officially
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  ratified sub two hour marathon world record.
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  Keep an eye on major marathons each year because the next big
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  breakthrough could arrive when training conditions and racing
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  strategy all line up on the same day.
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  Happy on. Breakfast feeling fine
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  adventure.