Fighting all the way to the finish, he crosses the line in 2:00:25, pauses for the briefest of moments, and then jogs on toward his longtime coach, Patrick Sang, who wraps him in a silent embrace. Then, gingerly, he lowers himself to the ground, lies back, and covers his eyes. All around me, people are hugging, high-fiving, and screaming with raw emotion. While Kipchoge didn’t run sub-two, and thanks to the pacing arrangement didn’t set an official world record, I have no doubt that I’ve witnessed a watershed moment in the pursuit of human limits. Future marathon times will sound different in
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