Samuel runs 59:49 at Boston Half, breaks 2013 course record
Four straight road wins since turning pro, and the Eritrean has now won everything from 5K to the half on the U.S. circuit.
Habtom Samuel won the 2026 Boston Half in 59:49 and took 45 seconds off Lelisa Desisa's course record from 2013, CITIUS MAG says.
Since August, Samuel has claimed wins all over the U.S. circuit: Beach to Beacon, Falmouth, the Abbott Dash to the Finish 5k, and now the Boston Half.
The Eritrean took control in the back half of the rolling course, according to CITIUS MAG, and ran away with it. A sub-60 on a course with hills in it is the kind of number that usually needs a flat point to point, which is part of why the old mark had stood since 2013.
Four for four since turning pro
This is Samuel's fourth straight road win since turning pro. The run started in August and has covered the whole American road calendar, Beach to Beacon, Falmouth, the Abbott Dash to the Finish 5K, and now the Boston Half.
That last one was eight days before Boston, where he dropped the field after mile two and won in 13:31 on the streets of Manhattan. Going from a 5K that fast to a half marathon under an hour inside the same month is the part of this that should get your attention.
What it actually means
The Boston Half is not the Boston Marathon, and 59:49 is not a world record. What it is, is a runner who has not lost a road race since he turned pro, winning on short courses, on a hilly 7.1 mile seaside race, and now over 13.1 miles, all against whoever the U.S. circuit put in front of him.
CITIUS MAG summed up the reaction in three words, "What can't he win". Nobody on the American road scene has an answer yet. The obvious next question is the marathon, and on this evidence it is coming.
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