Ahmed Sharaf, who started out his athletic career five years ago, has broken a national marathon record.

Sharaf broke the record- previously held by Hussain "Kuda Hussain" Ali- at the Rabat Marathon, held in Morocco on Sunday, finishing the marathon in 2:42:28.

Hussain has been holding the national marathon record for the past 27 years, making the record at the SAFF Games 1989, held in Islamabad, Pakistan.

He finished the 40-kilometer marathon in 2:45:03.

After smashing the longest standing national record in Maldives, Sharaf said "this is just the beginning," adding that breaking the record gave him "more strength."

This is the second national record that Sharaf has broken, also having broken the half-marathon national record at the Moroccoa Nador marathon in May 2016, finishing in 1:16:17. The record was previously held by Ali Riza, who made the record in 2014, at the Phuket marathon, finishing in 1 hour 19 minutes and 16 seconds.