Thai-American Athlete Sets Thai Marathon Record, Eyes 2028 Olympics
Thai-American athlete Kheerin Tantiwit set a new Thai national marathon record with a 2:08:01 finish at the 2026 Chicago Marathon. The time also beat the ASEAN record and meets the 2024 Olympic qualifying standard. If he can repeat the performance before the 2028 Olympic standard is finalized, he will automatically qualify for those Games.
Thai-American runner Kheerin Tantiwit ran his first full marathon at the 2026 Chicago Marathon on October 11, finishing 15th with a time of 2:08:01, establishing a new Thai national record that improved on Tony Ait Payne’s former best of 2:16:56 by 8 minutes 55 seconds. This is his eighth Thai national record, adding to his existing marks in the 1,500m, 3,000m, 5,000m, 10,000m, 10km road, 20km road and half marathon (1:02:39). The time also broke the ASEAN record held by Indonesia’s Robby Siayanturi, who ran 2:12:20 at the 2023 Copenhagen Marathon. Compared to the 2024 Olympic qualifying standard of 2:08:10 set by World Athletics, Kheerin’s 2:08:01 already meets the requirement. Although the 2028 Olympic standard has not been announced, it is expected to be released in late 2026 or early 2027 and remain valid through the summer of 2028; if Kheerin can repeat this performance within that window, he will automatically qualify for the 2028 Olympics.
