Overview
- The 29-year-old Ethiopian clocked a reported 56 minutes 51 seconds in the Media Maratón Ciudad de Buenos Aires on Sunday, which would lower the half‑marathon record by about 29 seconds versus Jacob Kiplimo's 57:20.
- World Athletics has not yet ratified the performance and will check course measurement, event procedures and whether any illegal assistance occurred before making the mark official.
- The governing body's scrutiny follows its rejection of Kiplimo's 56:42 in Barcelona in 2025, which was ruled non-compliant after officials concluded he benefited from a car slipstream.
- Race conditions in Buenos Aires were described as cool and favorable, the event carried a World Athletics Label, pacemakers led the early stages and Kejelcha ran fast negative splits across the 21.0975km.
- Kejelcha's result builds on a streak of top performances this year, including a 1:59:41 marathon in London and a 10km world record, and if ratified the mark will reshape the official record list and sharpen scrutiny of pacing and course rules.