Alex Yee produced one of Great Britain’s most memorable sporting performances when he won triathlon gold at the Paris Olympics in 2024.
His incredible late charge to overhaul New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde went down in swim / bike / run folklore and was voted Team GB’s moment of the Games.
Since then he has thrown himself into marathon running and just before the focus fully switches back to triathlon and the build up to the defence of his title at LA2028, he had one more running assignment.
And what a day that proved to be as the mythical two-hour barrier was broken for the first time in race conditions at the TCS London Marathon.
Record books rewritten
Yee was on the start line as a pacemaker alongside what would prove to be history makers in Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha when the men’s race got under way at 09:35 local time – less than two hours later that duo would go on to cross the line in 1:59:30 and 1:59:41 respectively.
Yee’s role was to pace the leading British athletes and others to a time in the 2:06 ballpark – the British record of 2:05:11 was set by Sir Mo Farah in 2018 in Chicago while Yee himself has the next best.
That was his astonishing 2:06:38 in Valencia late last year in what was only his second 26.2-miler, his debut having come home roads in London last April.
The stated aim beforehand for Yee’s pacing was to get to halfway at 13.1 miles in 63:15 – which was exactly, to the second, what they did.
‘I love the London Marathon’
One of the men he was pacing was good friend and marathon training partner Phil Sesemann and though he didn’t quite achieve a new PB, others did benefit.
Most especially Mahamed Mahamed and Patrick Dever who move above Yee and into second and third respectively on the all-time British lists with their 2:06:14 and 2:06:18 times.
After ticking off the halfway target of 1:03:15, Yee continued to 28.15km in a time of 1:23:50 which is 2:59 per kilometre – or around 2:06 for the full marathon.
It was textbook work and Yee said afterwards on Instagram: “‘I was there’ moment today for British and World history proudly pacing the Brits today. I love the London Marathon.. I hope to be back for 42.2 x”
Next up for him is his first WTCS event of the year in Yokohama but it sounds like more marathons could be on the agenda in the future, most likely after the Los Angeles Games in a couple of years.
