Yeman Crippa is rolling into the British capital with all the subtlety of a jet engine on take‑off, and—spoiler alert—he’s determined to leave a scorch mark on the tarmac.
With the London Marathon fast approaching (Sunday, 27 April 2025), Europe’s reigning half‑marathon monarch has traded home comforts for snow‑capped climbs, sea‑spray miles, and the thin air of Kenya in a quest to carve a fresh personal best.
From Trentino’s Snowdrifts to the Algarve’s Sea Breeze
Crippa’s winter opened on a postcard: Alpine valleys near Trentino, altitude low, temperature lower, mileage high. No sooner had the snow crunched under his spikes than he decamped to Portugal’s Algarve in mid‑January, where “easy” days meant 10 km shake‑outs at 4’10″–4’20” per km and weeks floated between 150 km and 200 km. Those numbers would cause most mortals to call a taxi—but for Yeman Crippa, they were just the warm‑up.
A High‑Speed Dress Rehearsal in Barcelona
Despite a fussy stomach, Crippa rattled off the Barcelona Half Marathon in 59:56—only half a minute shy of his lifetime best.
His Amazfit Cheetah confirmed an eye‑popping 2’50” split pace with GPS accuracy tighter than a drum, missing just two metres per kilometre. One man’s discomfort, it turns out, is another man’s sub‑60.
Shifting Gears: Brutal Long Runs & Relentless Intervals
Back from Barcelona, the schedule morphed into a metronome of agony and artistry:
- Long‑run surges—40 km of chess‑like pace changes, stringing together 20 km at 3’12”, bursts to 2’55”, and “recovery” kilometres that would still beat most club runners’ PBs.
- Lactate‑laced ladders—25 km carved into shrinking blocks (6 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 3) with each slice faster than the last, dipping to 2’50”.
- 2,000-metre repeats—six reps sliding from 3’14” to a vicious 2’54”, because why finish gently when you can finish gasping?
Mileage ballooned to 200 km per week, proving endurance is built on repetition—and a touch of masochism.
Altitude Roulette: Welcome to 2 100 m
March meant Kenya’s Uasin Gishu County, where Crippa needed five days to persuade his lungs the oxygen ration was non‑negotiable.
Even the “relaxed” introductory 25 km featured see‑saw kilometres toggling between sub‑3’00” heat checks and 3’20” breath‑catchers. Within a week, the two‑a‑day rhythm resumed, anchored by:
- Wednesday interval fiestas (think 3 km × 5 at 2’54″/km with rest breaks that shrank faster than a cheap T‑shirt in a hot wash);
- Saturday monster runs, always flirtatious with 40 km but never identical—marathon‑pace chunks, negative‑split punishments, and uphill finales designed to break the faint‑hearted.
Weekly volume steadied at 180–190 km before taper time, the Kenyan red dirt now part of his bloodstream.
Tech on the Wrist, Old‑School Grit in the Legs
Throughout, two Amazfit workhorses—the Cheetah and the rugged T‑Rex 3—served as digital sherpas, logging splits, altitude shifts, and the odd heartbeat flirtation with danger. Still, the programming stayed deliciously analogue: hurt, recover, repeat.
“- Marathon training, regardless of the athlete’s sports level, is based on the same assumptions. Strong accents are a minority, and most runs are done at a leisurely pace. However, my trainer and I try to introduce new stimuli into my training to constantly improve my performance in terms of both strength and endurance. This is a process that will ultimately help push my capabilities even further – explains Yeman Crippa and adds: – The preparation for the London Marathon was a very intense but also very motivating period. I feel ready and I am curious about what can happen on race day. I trained very well, but we know that the marathon has many adversities. I try to face it with calm and respect.”
The Final Countdown
As April’s daylight stretches over London, Crippa’s mileage eases, but the intent sharpens: Wednesday and Saturday “accents” shrink to a mere 50–60 km—hardly a holiday, yet enough to freshen those elastic fibres.
If the build‑up is any hint, the man from Trentino will toe the line primed for a time beginning 02:0X.
Should the stars align and the Tower Bridge breeze run friendly, don’t be surprised if Yeman Crippa rewrites not just his own record book but shakes up Europe’s marathon hierarchy.
One thing’s certain: the streets of London are about to witness a masterclass in calculated suffering—delivered with the grin of a man who knows exactly what he’s doing.
