Khalid Khannouchi

Khalid Khannouchi (born September 12, 1971) is a Moroccan-born American retired long-distance runner. He is the former world record holder for the marathon and held the former road world best for the 20 km distance. He is one of only five men to break the marathon world record more than once, and one of only five to break their own marathon world record (the others are Jim Peters, Derek Clayton, Eliud Kipchoge, and Haile Gebrselassie).

Khalid fell out with the Moroccan athletics federation over training expenses and moved to Brooklyn, New York City in 1992 with three of his friends. He married American Sandra Inoa in 1996, who coached him and acted as his agent. They set up home in Ossining, New York. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States on May 2, 2000. He first gained broad renown by winning the 1997 Chicago Marathon by over a minute with a time of 2:07.10, breaking the 12-year old course record held by Steve Jones.

Khannouchi officially retired on March 27, 2012 due to recurring foot injuries since 2003. Khannouchi stated "It was really my feet that betrayed me. Every time I go and try to push hard, I get the pain and soreness again. I can't train hard and if you can't train at a certain level where you can be competitive it's not worth it to keep wasting time."

Achievements 1993 World Student Games, winner of the men's 5000 metres in Buffalo. 1997 Cobán Half Marathon (Guatemala), winner (1:04:30). Chicago Marathon, winner (2:07:10), at that time the fastest debut marathon in history and the fourth fastest marathon of all time. 1998 Chicago Marathon, second place (2:07:19) Peachtree Road Race 10k, winner (27:47) Falmouth Road Race 7.1 miles, winner (31:48) New Haven 20K, winner in a world road record (57:37) 1999 Chicago Marathon, winner in world record time (2:05:42) Peachtree Road Race 10k, winner (27:45) 2000 London Marathon, third place (2:08:36) Chicago Marathon, winner in a new American record (2:07:01) 2002 London Marathon, winner in world record time (2:05:38) Chicago Marathon, winner (2:05:56), becoming the first man in history to break 2:06 twice in one year Ranked as the number #1 marathoner in the world by Track & Field News and their American Athlete of the Year. 2004 Chicago Marathon, fifth place (2:08:44) 2006 London Marathon, 4th place (2:07:04), coming back from a long period of injury. 2007 London Marathon, did not finish. United States Olympic Marathon Trials in New York City, 4th place (2:12:34)

Khannouchi was the first marathoner to break 2:06:00. However, he lost the world record to Paul Tergat on September 28, 2003.

Personal bests Event Best Location Date 5000 metres 13:44.39 1 January 1992 10 kilometres run 27:45 Atlanta, GA United States 4 July 1999 15 kilometres run 42:57 Utica, NY United States 12 July 1998 20 kilometres run 57:37 New Haven, CT United States 7 September 1998 Half marathon 1:00:27 Philadelphia, PA United States 28 September 1997 25 kilometres run 1:14:13 Chicago, IL United States 10 October 2004 30 kilometres run 1:29:01 London, England 14 April 2002 Marathon 2:05:38 London, England 14 April 2002