After Sabastian Sawe shattered the two-hour barrier at the London Marathon, attention turned not only to his pace but also to the spiritual support around him in Eldoret, an area described as an epicenter of Kenya’s long-distance running. Sawe, 31, maintained a fast rhythm to win the April 26 race in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, a time that Religion News Service and the Associated Press said was achieved in an official marathon.
Religion News Service reported that Sawe’s run began long before race day for him, with a visit to his home church in Eldoret for Mass and requested prayers. The report said his most recent service before the London Marathon took place at Holy Family Catholic Church, part of the St. Josephine Bakhita Lower Moiben Parish in the Diocese of Eldoret, where the parish priest was Rev. Pius Tuwei.
Tuwei told Religion News Service that when Sawe asked for prayers, the priest did not expect a global outcome. “When I blessed him, I never thought he would achieve such a global victory. It was really a surprise for me when I heard he had won,” Tuwei said. He added, “I was just blessing him like any other athlete or any other person,” characterizing the moment as pastoral support rather than a prophecy of athletic results.
As Sawe’s performance reached the finish line, other elite runners were still close enough to underline the magnitude of the mark. Religion News Service reported that Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha arrived 11 seconds later, also posting a time under two hours. Sawe later told reporters in London, “Nothing is impossible.”
The Eldoret parish and wider Kenyan running community have long intertwined faith and athletics, Religion News Service said, with athletes often marking the start and finish of races with the sign of the cross. The report linked that routine to a broader pattern of church involvement, citing Tuwei’s view that religious commitment helps runners with morals and discipline and that participating in faith can be tied to giving back to the community.
Religion News Service also described Sawe’s church involvement as having roots in his family, with the report saying Tuwei attributed Sawe’s generosity to the influence of his grandmother. Tuwei said that family example could have helped provide “a very strong foundation on morals, the church and discipline,” and he said, “I think giving back to society is also holding him to his faith.”
The story also placed Sawe’s breakthrough within Kenya’s wider history of distance dominance, where many children begin running at a young age on rugged paths, often barefoot, before developing into world-class competitors. Religion News Service said church leaders describe many champions as maintaining close relationships with their pastors and priests, including visits for blessings ahead of major races.
Eliud Kipchoge, another globally known Kenyan runner who also has been associated publicly with Catholic faith, was cited in the report as an example of how religion fits into training routine. Religion News Service included a 2019 comment Kipchoge made in a running.Coach interview: “It keeps me from doing things that could keep me away from my goals. On Sundays, I go to church with my family and pray regularly, even in the morning before a race.”
While faith features prominently in how some Kenyans talk about their athletic preparation, Religion News Service also included a caution from running coach Brother Colm O’Connell, an Irish missionary often referred to as the “godfather of Kenyan running.” O’Connell told the news outlet that although he was inspired to learn about the priest’s blessing, he said the blessing alone was not the deciding factor in Sawe’s win. “If that was the case, then marathon runners might spend more time in the church than on the road,” O’Connell said. He added, “I think that God helps those who help themselves. So, you know, he gave you a talent, and then you have to get out and use it, and not hide it.”
O’Connell also said advances in marathon performance will continue as training methods, including diet and technology, improve, and he pointed to the pace progression ahead. “It’s 1 hour, 59 (minutes) now,” he said. “Then it will be 1 hour, 58, and then it will be 1 hour, 57.”