Running through Berlin is of course a highlight for many with so many picturesque routes in the middle of the big city flair – but yesterday was even more special. The big BMW Berlin Marathon 2025 ensured that numerous traffic closures in the capital remained in place on Sunday, September 21, even up to and including Monday morning. Around 60,000 runners took on the 42-kilometer course across Berlin. Hundreds of thousands passionately cheered on the runners along the route – the atmosphere was electrifying and the winners have been announced.
The winner of the Berlin Marathon 2025, Sebastian Sawe, delivered an impressive performance. With a new annual world best time of 2:02:16 hours, he not only secured victory, but also the status of currently the fastest runner in the world. Particularly remarkable was the temperature of 25 degrees, which could not stop the Kenyan. He thus set the “warm weather world record” – a time that no one had ever achieved in such conditions before. His performance also ranks as the ninth fastest time ever run. Japan’s Akira Akasaki followed in second place with a time of 2:06:15 at the Brandenburg Gate. The fastest German runner was Hendrik Pfeiffer (Düsseldorf Athletics), who finished eighth in 2:09:14, the best men’s race time since 1990.
Rosemary Wanjiru (Kenya) won the women’s race in 2:21:05 – just three seconds ahead of Dera Dida (Ethiopia). German runners also impressed: Fabienne Königstein (MTG Mannheim) finished sixth in 2:22:17, making her the third-fastest German runner of all time. Domenika Mayer (LG Telis Finanz Regensburg) finished eighth in 2:23:16 and climbed to fourth place on the German all-time list.
Among the professional runners, however, there was also someone whose international fame was not exactly achieved through running. We are talking about none other than British singer and actor Harry Styles, who also reached the finish line in under three hours. He did not want to be recognized and wanted to enjoy the experience as undisturbed as possible, which is why he ran under the pseudonym “Sted Sarandos”. The official results lists show that he completed the 42 kilometers in 2:59:13 hours.