If it's good enough for Sawe... the Garmin watch used to break the two-hour marathon barrier at London is actually super cheap — here's where to get it

The 2026 London Marathon made history, as not one, but two runners broke the mythical two-hour time barrier. Sabastian Sawe came first, running the London Marathon in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. The runner-up, Yomif Kejelcha, also broke the two-hour record, but came 11 seconds shy of winning the race and setting a new record. That's got to sting.

However, I'm just as interested in the equipment Sawe used to run his incredible race. On his feet were a pair of some the best running shoes ever designed, the unreleased Adidas Adizero adios Pro Evo 3. On his wrist... was a five-year-old watch designed for entry-level runners.

The Garmin Forerunner 55 held a place for a few years on our best Garmin watches list, before being edged out in favour of more modern smartwatches like the Garmin Forerunner 165. Nevertheless, the Garmin Forerunner 55 was a consistent recommendation from us when it came to the best cheap running watches, as it's reliable, affordable and has a wide variety of features available in the Garmin Connect app, from Body Battery to virtual pacing — even if it's a bit long in the tooth now.

But it's so good that it seems Sabastian Sawe used it as his running watch du jour in London, to help him break the two-hour barrier, instead of a flagship watch with tons of features like the Garmin Fenix 8 or Garmin Forerunner 970.

Gadgets & Wearables correctly identified a trend of older, cheaper and mid-range watches being worn in London by the fastest runners in the world, suggesting most of them don't actually care about newer features and just want a simple, reliable and lightweight device.

G&W aren't sure whether Sawe is wearing a Garmin Forerunner 255 or the cheaper 55, but I've done some detective work here: zoom in on the image above (you'll have to imagine saying "blow it up" and "enhance" like you're on an episode of CSI) and you can see the thicker line on the "Start | Stop" button caused by the U-shape on the Forerunner 55, as you can see in the picture below.

The Forerunner 255 doesn't have this, indicating it is in fact the basic, entry-level watch being worn by the fastest marathon runner on the planet.

Want to get the watch that broke the boundaries of running? Whether you're just starting out on your running journey or you're looking for a stripped-back running essential for your next marathon PB, Sawe has shown that the Garmin Forerunner 55 is a solid choice.

In the US, it's available at Walmart from $199.99 down to $159.99, saving you $40. In the UK it's available at Decathlon, from £179.99 down to £119.99, saving you an impressive £60. Check out both deals in full below, along with our widget for more of the best prices in your region.

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