Former pro betters world record for half-marathon in a suit

He was either on a mission for a world record or late for work.

In the end, one suited man weaved through downtown Manhattan on route to a time that betters the current world record for a half-marathon dressed in formal attire. Chris Estwanik ran a blistering 1:11:36 bettering the current world record by almost seven minutes at the United Airlines NYC Half. The record will need to be ratified in order to gain entry to the Guinness World Records.

The #UnitedNYCHalf ends on Wall Street, but this is extreme ?.?. Hope you are having a great day, whether you're at work or recovering! pic.twitter.com/ooKolcQ0At

— New York Road Runners (@nyrr) March 20, 2017

The 36-year-old finished 55th overall at the NYC Half. In university, Estwanik competed for Wake Forest out of Winston-Salem, N.C. According to the Royal Gazette, Olympic silver medallist Meb Keflezighi interviewed Estwanik at the NYC Half finish line on Wall Street.

Estwanik has a lengthy running resume with lifetime bests of 3:38.29 in the 1,500m, a 3:58.17 mile and 13:42.03 for 5,000m. His mile personal best was set in Burnaby, B.C. in 2004. He formerly ran professionally for Nike in the early 2000s and now resides in Bermuda.

He had aspirations of representing Bermuda (he is a dual citizen) at the 2016 Rio Olympics but injuries derailed those plans. He ran 2:19:55 at the 2013 Boston Marathon breaking the national record.

RELATED: Testing out a record-breaking Ministry of Supply suit.

According to the Guinness World Records, the fastest half-marathon in a suit, officially, is 1:18:13, held by Scott Forbes at the Reading Half-Marathon in the United Kingdom. The NYC Half has history of record-setting runs. In 2016, Rex Woodbury, a Wall Street analyst at the time, ran a then-world record of 1:18:40. Though a runner must wear a suit, racing shoes are permitted.

RELATED: Japan’s most popular runner races a half-marathon in a suit.

It should be noted that Japan’s Yuki Kawauchi has run an astonishing 1:06:42 though that record was never ratified as the course was not record-eligible. The record has dropped by more than 20 minutes in since late 2015.