- Marco Arop is seeking to break the 800m world record of 1:40.91 that was set by David Rudisha in 2012.
- Arop has an 800m personal best of 1:41.20.
- Arop further described David Rudisha as one of the athletes who have inspired him in his running career.
Canadian runner Marco Arop made his intentions of breaking the 800m world record clear on Tuesday, May 27, 2025.
Arop, who is expected to compete in the third Grand Slam Track of the season in Philadelphia from Saturday, stated that the monstrous world record can fall in the coming months.
According to Arop, lowering the mark that is currently being held by Kenyan legend David Lekuta Rudisha is one of his goals.
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“It’s only a matter of time before that world record goes down. To get to 1:39, so that’s the next step. It’s been a goal of mine since I started running. You know, that was the first race I watched before I did my first high school 800m.
I just searched up on YouTube ‘800m’ and, that was the standard, watching David Rudisha run that world record time inspired me to get to that level. And now that I’m, like knocking on the door, it’s really cool,” he explained during an interview with Grand Slam Track.
Rudisha, a two-time world champion, set the existing 800m world record at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
He led from the start of that memorable race and went on to cross the finishing line in 1:40.91. Since then, no one has come close to dipping under 1:41.00 in the 800m discipline.
However, experts have backed one of the duo of Arop and his Kenyan rival Emmanuel Wanyonyi to smash the record.
As of May 2025, Arop had a personal best of 1:41.20 in the competitive discipline while Wanyonyi’s lifetime best stood at 1:41.11.
Meanwhile, Arop also took the opportunity to appreciate the excellent job that his coaches have done so far.
“It’s just a testament to all the work that’s been put in. I got to give a lot of credit to my coaches because without their belief I don’t think I would be near where I am now,” ended Arop.
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