SHOCKING HERSELF, her coach and the marathon community, Tigist Assefa ran an astonishing 2:11:53 World Record at Sunday’s Berlin Marathon. The 26-year-old Ethiopian pared a whopping 2:11 off Brigid Koskei’s 2:14:04 record run at the Chicago Marathon in 2019.

Assefa surged away from Kenyan Sheila Chepkirui at 15K and flew away from the field and into the history books, becoming the first woman to break 2:14, 2:13, and 2:12, with a 66:20/65:33 negative-split effort.

Here is the full set of kilometer splits from Assefa’s World Record run courtesy of the Berlin Marathon Pace Display Team of Helmut Winter, Colin Winter and Sean Hartnett.

49th Berlin Marathon on September 24, 2023

Unofficial Live Hand-Timed Splits for Women’s Leader (click on table below to view as a PDF)

Berlin Pace Display Team — Helmut Winter, Colin Winter and Sean Hartnett

When “Professor Marathon” isn’t crafting topographical maps and pace charts for 26-milers around the world, the now Emeritus geographer at Wisconsin–Eau Claire, serves as the Chair of the Lower Chippewa River conservation organization and hits the airwaves Thursday afternoons as a DJ on a community radio program called “All Things 6 String.” (Hint: Sean's the one in the photo who never set a World Record ?)