NAIROBI, April 30 -- There was a hero's welcome for marathon world record-breaker Sabastian Sawe as he returned to Kenya and was lauded by President William Ruto on Thursday.

Sawe made history in London on Sunday by becoming the first athlete to run a sub-two hour marathon in race conditions.

Receiving Sawe at State House in Nairobi, Ruto said it was "a defining moment in the story of human endurance".

He compared it to milestones in human history including the first four-minute mile by Roger Bannister in 1954 and even the moon landing.

"Future generations will look back on 26 April, 2026, as the day a man broke through a physical and psychological barrier long thought insurmountable; and the name forever attached to that moment will ...