At the weekend, Hungarian WTCS athlete Gábor Faldum ran a new personal best over the half marathon distance.
Taking on the Kikelet Félmaraton Baja, Faldum produced a time of 1:07:20. For reference, his previous personal best (as per World Athletics) was 1:09:54, a time he ran a decade earlier.
Perhaps the best half marathon performance of any active triathlete remains with American Morgan Pearson. Towards the end of 2021, Pearson ran a time of 1:01:47. Nevertheless, that should not detract from Faldum’s performance at the weekend, particularly as Faldum’s race included off-road segments.
One of the most experienced athletes in the men’s WTCS, Faldum started his season well at WTCS Abu Dhabi. There he finished 13th with a strong all-round display.
In 2022, despite strong performances in Cagliari and Hamburg, Faldum ultimately finished 32nd in the overall WTCS. This was in no small part a result of placing 49th at the Abu Dhabi Final. On the other hand, he also won a silver medal at the Tongyeong World Cup in October which represented only his second ever silver at that level.
With rising youngsters like Csongor Lehmann and Gergely Kiss and the experience of Márk Dévay and Bence Bicsák to contend with, Faldum will need a big season if he is to secure his position in the Hungarian Olympic team next year.
The early signs are good, though. At both WTCS Abu Dhabi and now over a half marathon (during training), he has looked fast and will likely be in the mix at the upcoming WTCS races in Yokohama and Cagliari.
