Rory Linkletter has made history by becoming the first Canadian to complete a half marathon in under one hour, achieving this remarkable milestone on a cool Sunday morning in Houston with an impressive time of 59 minutes and 49 seconds. This extraordinary performance allowed him to surpass the previous record held by Cam Levins by a significant margin of 69 seconds.
Originally from Calgary, Linkletter's achievement marks his second time in four years breaking the national record for this distance. Back on January 16, 2022, he set a new benchmark at 1:01:08, shattering Jeff Schiebler's long-standing record of 61:28, which had been in place since January 15, 1999, in Tokyo. Prior to this latest accomplishment, Linkletter had also recorded a personal best of 1:01:44 in Houston on January 19, 2020.
At 29 years old, Linkletter previously clocked in at 1:01:02 during the Houston race in 2024. He expressed his hopes for his fourth appearance in Houston to be another significant moment in his athletic career through a recent Instagram post, stating, "Hoping to make my fourth [Houston appearance] an equally or even greater milestone in my career."
Linkletter first competed in Houston just a month before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in 2020, finishing that event with a time of 1:01:44. He reflected on that experience, noting it was a pivotal moment that helped him realize his potential in longer road races.
In addition to his impressive half marathon performances, Linkletter has bested Levins in all three of their encounters in this distance. Their first match-up occurred six years ago in Houston, where Linkletter finished in 15th, about 30 seconds ahead of Levins, who came in 30th. Recently, in Edmonton five months prior, Linkletter secured his first Canadian title, finishing in 1:03 flat, narrowly defeating the three-time defending champion Levins by just one second in a thrilling sprint to the finish line.
Currently residing in Flagstaff, Arizona, Linkletter had not raced against Levins since the 2024 Olympic marathon in Paris, where Levins placed 36th with a time of 2:11:56 while racing with a fractured heel bone, finishing 11 spots ahead of Linkletter, who recorded 2:13:09.
Last year, Linkletter achieved top ten finishes in two major marathons, including a personal best of 2:06:49 in Chicago last October, landing him ninth overall—just over a minute away from Levins’s Canadian marathon record of 2:05:36 set at the Tokyo Marathon in 2023. This record held the title of North American record until it was recently eclipsed by Conner Mantz from the United States, who cut 53 seconds off the mark during his fourth-place finish in Chicago last year.
