New indoor marathon world record set at 2:17:59

CJ Albertston is a 25-year-old cross-country coach from California who ran the new indoor marathon world record of 2:17:59 on Saturday at the Armory in New York City.

CJ Albertson sets the new World Record for the Indoor Marathon- 2:17.59.4??WAIT…. His last 200 was 30.8?? #IndoorMarathon #NYC pic.twitter.com/BfnspDDtf0

— The Armory (@ArmoryNYC) April 13, 2019

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Albertson took the record from Malcolm Richards who set it at 2:19:02 in 2018. Richards beat his own 2018 time with a 2:18:47.9 to finish as runner-up in Saturyday’s race. Albertson’s time meant that he maintained roughly 39.2 seconds per 200m, over the course of 211 laps. Even more impressive, his last lap was a 30.4 200m.

Stephanie Pezzullo goes 2:42:11 to wins the elite women’s indoor marathon & Chelsey Albertson runs 2:54:26 in her first ever marathon for second place! ?‍♀️ #IndoorMarathon pic.twitter.com/sxwnygWivK

— The Armory (@ArmoryNYC) April 13, 2019

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It’s contested whether the indoor marathon produces faster or slower times than 42.2K on the roads. Indoors, the conditions are predictable and you don’t have to deal with crowds or corrals but staying engaged indoors is very difficult. The frequent turns and monotony of running more than 200 laps around a track are why times are usually slower indoors than during road marathons.

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The women’s record is held by Lindsey Scherf at 2:40:55. It was contested yesterday by Stephanie Pezzullo of Orlando who just missed the mark, finishing in 2:42:11.