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Agnes Ngetich becomes multi millionaire after smashing women-only 10km World Record

The 22-year-old broke the women-only world 10km record in Romania, surpassing the late Agnes Tirop's record, with Catherine Reline also shining for Kenya.

Kenya was once again thrust into the global limelight on Sunday after Agnes Ngetich shattered the women-only world 10km record by clocking 29:24 at the World Athletics Elite Label road race in Brasov, Romania, on Sunday.

At only 22, Ngetich covered the initial 5km in 14:25, eclipsing the previous record for that distance by four seconds. 

The significance of this feat becomes more profound when considering that the previous record was held by the late Agnes Tirop of Kenya. 

Running closely behind, Kenya was once again represented on the podium by Catherine Reline who clocked a solid 30:14, securing second place. Uganda's Joy Cheptoyek completed the top three with a commendable time of 30:34.

World Athletics, in its statement, lauded Ngetich's achievement by saying, “As well as being the fastest women-only 10km, Ngetich's time is the third-quickest by a woman in history." 

This achievement is only behind the remarkable runs of 29:14 and 29:19 by Ethiopia's Yalemzerf Yehualaw, both accomplished in mixed races.

The remarkable feat was not just a win for Ngetich in terms of accolades but also a significant financial windfall. 

The race organizers had initially placed the prize money at $5,000 (Ksh 731,000). However, smashing a world record comes with its unique set of rewards. and Ngetich is set to receive an additional bonus of $50,000 (Ksh7.3 million) from World Athletics.

This sums up to a whopping total of $55,000 (Ksh8.4 million) that Ngetich will be taking home, a well-deserved reward for her impeccable performance.

Speaking after the race, an ecstatic Ngetich remarked, “It is quite a surprise to me. I didn’t expect to break the world record. All I ever wanted was a personal best (PB) of 30:00 or 30:02 but to set a new world record in the women’s 10km was the last thing I expected.”

As fans across the globe celebrate her achievement, many are confident that this is just the beginning for the World Cross Country bronze medalist. 

With youth on her side and a clear demonstration of her capability, the world waits in anticipation of her next move. Will she redefine another record, or perhaps set a new standard for future generations to aspire towards? Only time will tell. 

For now, Agnes Ngetich revels in her well-deserved moment of glory, inspiring millions and etching her name in gold.

Ngetich breaks women-only world 10km record in Brasov

Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich broke the women-only world 10km record* at the Trunsylvania 10km, clocking 29:24 at the World Athletics Elite Label road race held on Sunday (10) as part of the Brasov Running Festival in Romania.

In an impressive solo running display, the 22-year-old showed her intent from the start and covered the first 5km in 14:25 – four seconds faster than the women-only world record for that distance.

She had a lead of 10 seconds over her compatriot Catherine Reline at that point.

Racing on the loop course, Ngetich went on to pass 6.5km in 18:54 and 8.5km in 24:56 before crossing the finish line in 29:24 to record the fastest ever 10km in a women-only race, improving on the 30:01 set by the late Agnes Tirop in Herzogenaurach in 2021.

As well as being the fastest women-only 10km, Ngetich’s time is the third-quickest by a woman in history, behind only the 29:14 run by Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw in a mixed race in Castellon last year and the 29:19 Yehualaw clocked in Valencia earlier this year.

“The world record is a surprise to me,” said Ngetich, who started the 2022 race in Brasov as the pacemaker but went on to finish second in 30:30. “I didn’t expect to get the world record. I just wanted a PB, low 30 minutes to break the course record, but a world record is really a surprise.”

The race started at a fast pace right from the gun with Ngetich, Reline and Uganda’s Joy Cheptoyek leaving the pacemaker – who had been asked to lead the runners through 5km in 15:00 – quickly behind.

The trio sped through 1500m in 4:12 and Cheptoyek started to lose contact with the Kenyan pair a kilometre later. Ngetich and Reline went through 3km in 8:32 but it was only a few hundred metres down the road in the Coresi district on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city that the latter started to drift back. From then on, Ngetich was out on her own.

Ngetich, who claimed bronze at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Bathurst in February and then finished sixth in the 10,000m final at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 last month, set a women-only world 5km record with her split of 14:25, improving on the 14:29 achieved by Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi in Herzogenaurach on the same day that Tirop set her 10km mark.

By 7km, Ngetich had built up an 18-second lead over Reline and the gap just kept on widening.

As Ngetich passed the 8.5km checkpoint in 24:56, Reline was second in 25:29, and the leader continued to fly over the final section of the three-lap course before gaining her second world record of the morning.

“I started the year with the World Cross, which was perfect, so I wanted to close the season with a good result,” explained Ngetich, who achieved that aim in sensational style.

Reline held on to finish second in 30:14, while Cheptoyek placed third in 30:34.

The men's race was won by Weldon Langat, who completed a Kenyan double in 27:05.

A group of seven athletes went through 5km in 13:30, with another four just two seconds further back at the halfway point.

Surges in the sixth kilometre by Kenya’s Amos Kurgat and Dennis Kibet saw the pair pull away, with Langat being towed along comfortably in their wake.

Kibet continued to regularly push the pace over the course of the next three kilometres but with just over one kilometre to go, he started to pay for his service at the front.

As Kurgat and Langat embarked on the final kilometre, the latter used that as a signal to change gears and made a decisive move that took him to victory just over two-and-a-half minutes later.

Kurgat took second place in 27:12, while the 2018 world U20 5000m champion Edward Zakayo Pingua came through strongly over the final kilometre, firstly overtaking the tiring Kibet and then almost catching Kurgat to complete an all-Kenyan podium in third place with 27:14.

Mile wins for Van Riel and Mechaal

The Trunsylvania 10km took place on the second day of the Brasov Running Festival, with Saturday (9) offering elite mile races.

Robin van Riel of the Netherlands and Turkiye’s Emine Hatun Mechaal claimed victories in the European Road Mile, winning in national records of 4:05.5 and 4:41.7, respectively.

Mechaal was the first across the line as dusk started to fall over the Coresi district, after a well calculated run that saw the 2014 European U20 cross country champion pull away from her nearest rivals over the final 100 metres.

Romania’s Cristina Balan finished second in 4:43.0, while Greek 1500m champion Melissa Anastasakis was third in 4:44.0, both women also setting national records.

In the men’s race, runners in the leading pack were reluctant to go with pacemaker Stephen Masindet and they passed 1km in an unofficial 2:40.0, which made the anticipated sub-four-minute time and a world record highly unlikely.

In the end, Van Riel was able to outsprint his younger compatriot Stefan Nillessen in a thrilling duel as the finish line approached.

Van Riel clocked 4:05.5 to Nillessen’s 4:05.8, with Italy’s Giovanni Filippi third in 4:07.2.

Further elite mile action will be on offer in Riga next month as the World Athletics Road Running Championships hosts mile, 5km and half marathon races.

Loaded men's field for 2023 New York City Marathon announced

The field has six past event champions, including Chebet, two-time champion Geoffrey Kamworor, and World Championships medalist Maru Teferi.

Reigning New York City Marathon champion Evans Chebet will return to the streets of New York to defend his title on Sunday, November 5.

Chebet, a two-time Boston Marathon champion, has had one of the greatest seasons so far, starting by defeating world marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge in the Boston Marathon earlier this year.

The Boston Marathon win is enough motivation for him to make history one more time when he competes against a loaded field in the former capital of the USA.

The field has six past event champions, including Chebet, two-time champion Geoffrey Kamworor, and World Championships medalist Maru Teferi.

Challenging Chebet will be Kamworor, an Olympian and three-time half marathon world champion who is looking to become only the third athlete to win three TCS New York City Marathon men’s open division titles. He won in both 2019 and 2017 and has made the podium in all four of his appearances.

The newly crowned World marathon silver medallist Teferi, two-time World silver medallist Mosinet Geremew of Ethiopia, Olympic silver medalist Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands, and the 2021 TCS New York City Marathon champion Albert Korir of Kenya will also be in the mix to stop Chebet from winning back-to-back titles.

Two-time TCS New York City Marathon runner-up Shura Kitata of Ethiopia, North America’s marathon record-holder Cam Levins of Canada, and 2023 United Airlines NYC Half podium finisher Zouahir Talbi of Morocco will also toe the line.

Edward Cheserek, the most decorated athlete in NCAA history, will make his 26.2-mile debut, while the American contingent will be led by 2022 USATF Marathon champion Futsum Zienasellaissie and 2021 TCS New York City Marathon fourth-place finisher Elkanah Kibet.

Meanwhile, along with the previously announced TCS New York City women’s field, last year’s runner-up and two-time Olympian Lonah Chemtai Salpeter of Israel and Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia will be back. 

Kenyans Edna Kiplagat and Olympian Viola Cheptoo will also return. Letesenbet Gidey and Yalemzerf Yehualaw will also line up for the first time.

Ethiopia dominates women’s marathon on Saturday morning in Budapest at the 2023 World Athletics Championships

The third-fastest marathoner in history, Ethiopia’s Amane Beriso, claimed her first world title on Saturday morning in Budapest at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. Beriso broke away from the field in the final 10K to win in 2:24:23 on a warm morning in the Hungarian capital.

The race started as a tactical affair, with nearly 20 women passing the halfway point on a 2:29 marathon pace in 1:14:30. As the final lap of four began, Ethiopia had four women in the lead group of seven athletes until Tsehay Gemechu dropped out as Beriso started to surge. It seemed like there would be an Ethiopian podium sweep with three kilometres to go, but 10K world record holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw faded from third to fifth, losing nearly two minutes to her competition in the final kilometers.

Morocco’s Fatima Gardadi took advantage of Yehualaw’s faltering, having the race of her life to win bronze in 2:25:17, behind 2022 world champion Gotytom Gebreslase, who won silver in 2:24:34.

Beriso has had quite a track record in her last three marathons. Last December, Beriso pulled off an upset over her compatriot Letesenbet Gidey at the 2022 Valencia Marathon to win and become the third-fastest woman in history in 2:14:58. Beriso was also the runner-up at the 2023 Boston Marathon, finishing behind Kenya’s Hellen Obiri.

Wodak: “I ran as hard as I could.”

Vancouver’s Natasha Wodak was in the mix with the lead group in Budapest as she started her third lap but started to feel nauseous and fell back to the chase pack at 27km. She finished 15th overall in 2:30:09. “I ran as hard as I could,” Wodak told Canadian Running post-race. “It was tough, and I am a little disappointed.”

Wodak, 41, said her goal was to finish inside the top 10, and even though she positioned herself to achieve that, she admitted she didn’t have the legs in the final 10K. “To be 15th in the world is still a good day,” said Wodak.

Toronto’s Sasha Gollish made her return to the marathon at the world championships and savoured every minute of it. In 2019, she experienced heartbreak after failing to finish the marathon at the World Athletics Championships on a hot morning in Doha, Qatar. Today, Gollish achieved redemption, finishing 61st overall in 2:45:09 and bringing her energy for every second.

“I hope my journey inspires everyone who has not run a marathon to go out and test themselves,” said Gollish to Canadian Running. “Cause anything is possible.”

Gollish received an invitation to represent Team Canada in this marathon only a month ago after Canada’s Kinsey Middleton and Elissa Legault withdrew due to injury. Gollish was the third Canadian finisher at the 2022 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, where she ran a personal best of 2:31:40.

For full results from the women’s marathon at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, check here. The men’s marathon will take place tomorrow morning in Budapest at 7 a.m. C.E.T. and 1 a.m. E.T. Ben Preisner, Justin Kent and Rory Linkletter will represent Team Canada in the event.

World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 preview: marathon

In Oregon last year, Tamirat Tola ran his way into the World Championships history books with the fastest ever winning time in the men’s marathon: 2:05:36. Thirteen months on, the 31-year-old Ethiopian has the chance to add his name to the select band of marathon men to manage a successful title defence.

Only three have achieved the feat thus far: Spain’s Abel Anton (1997, 1999), Jaouad Gharib of Morocco (2003, 2005) and the Kenyan whose championship record Tola broke in Oregon, Abel Kirui (2009, 2011).

Tola was a class apart in 2022, the 2016 Olympic 10,000m bronze medallist showing his track pedigree as he blitzed the final 10km circuit in 28:31 to finish a decisive 1:08 clear of compatriot Mosinet Gerenew, also the silver medallist in Doha in 2019.

Tola, who was the marathon runner-up at the 2017 World Championships, has maintained his form this year, finishing third at the London Marathon in April in 2:04:59, behind Kelvin Kuptum (2:01:25) and Geoffrey Kamworor (2:04:23).

Neither of those two Kenyans will be on the start line in Budapest, but the defending champion will face two rivals from Kenya who have run faster than him in 2023. Timothy Kiplagat stands third on the world list with the 2:03:50 he clocked as runner-up to Belgium’s Bashir Abdi in Rotterdam in April. Abdi, the bronze medallist in Eugene, will be absent in Budapest but Kiplagat will be joined on the Kenyan team by Joshua Belet, runner-up at the Hamburg Marathon in April in 2:04:33. The third Kenyan in the field is Titus Kipruto, fourth at this year’s Tokyo Marathon in 2:05:32, who set a PB of 2:04:54 as runner-up in Amsterdam last year.

Ethiopians have finished first and second at the last two World Championships and Tola will have notable support in Budapest. Milkesa Mengesha, the 2019 world U20 cross-country champion, won the Daegu Marathon in April and clocked a best of 2:05:29 in Valencia last December. Chalu Deso won in Tokyo in March in 2:05:22. Leul Gebresilasie finished second and fourth at the last two London Marathons and has a best of 2:05:12. Tsegaye Getachew placed third in Tokyo in April in 2:05:25.

Not that the race looks like being an exclusive battle between the two established East African giants of distance running.

Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands was runner-up to Eliud Kipchoge in the 2021 Olympic marathon in Sapporo. The 34-year-old finished third in New York last November and in Rotterdam in April.

Tanzania’s Alphonce Felix Simbu is a seasoned major championship marathon campaigner. The 31-year-old earned world bronze in London in 2017 and Commonwealth silver in Birmingham last year. He also finished fifth and seventh in the last two Olympic marathons.

Commonwealth champion Victor Kaplangat is joined on the Ugandan team by Stephen Kissa, who set a national record of 2:04:48 in Hamburg last year. Morocco’s Mohamed Reda El Aarby placed second in New York in 2021 and fourth last year.

There are a host of other sub-2:06 performers in the field: Israel’s European bronze medallist Gashu Ayale, Kaan Kigen Ozbilen of Turkey, Eritreans Goitom Kifle and Oqbe Kibrom, plus the Japanese duo Kenya Sonota and Ichitaka Yamashita.

Ayale’s Israeli teammate Marum Terifi is the second-highest placed runner from last year’s race on the entry list. He finished 11th in Oregon and then took silver at the European Championships in Munich.

Veteran Spaniard Ayam Lamdassem was sixth in Munich but fifth at global level in the Olympic marathon in 2021. Another 41-year-old on the start line will be the remarkable Ser-od Bat-Ochir. The Mongolian is unlikely to be troubling the medal contenders but will be contesting his 11th successive World Championships marathon – his 16th successive global championship marathon, having also contested the past five Olympic marathons.

Women's marathon

In Oregon last year Gotytom Gebreslase won in the fastest ever time in a women’s championship marathon, 2:18:11, but the Ethiopian will have to beat two of the six fastest women of all time if she is to successfully defend her title in Budapest.

The 2011 world U18 3000m champion was unable to keep up with one of them on the rolling hills of Boston in April, finishing 10th in her only marathon of the year in 2:24:34 – eight places and 2:44 behind compatriot Amane Beriso Shankule, who was runner-up to two-time world champion Hellen Obiri.

At 31, the formerly injury-plagued Beriso produced a stunning performance in Valencia in December last year, upsetting world 10,000m champion Letesenbet Gidey’s world record attempt with a victory in 2:14:58, putting her third on the world all-time list behind Kenyans Brigid Kosgei (2:14:04) and Ruth Chepngetich (2:14:18).

Gebreslase will also have to contend with Rosemary Wanjiru, who moved above Gidey to sixth on the world all-time list with a winning time of 2:16:28 in Tokyo in March. The 28-year-old Kenyan, fourth in the world 10,000m final in Doha in 2019, clocked one of the fastest marathon debuts in history, 2:18:00, as runner-up to Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa in Berlin last year.

In addition to Gebreslase, five other finishers from the top 10 in Oregon last year will be on the start line: bronze medallist Lonah Salpeter from Israel and fourth-placed Nazret Weldu of Eritrea, plus Keira D’Amato of the US (eighth), Japan’s Mizuki Matsuda (ninth) and Mexico’s Citiali Moscote (10th).

The loaded field also includes the second-fastest woman of 2023, Ethiopia’s Tsehay Gemechu, the runner-up to Wanjiru in Tokyo in 2:16:56, who finished fourth in the 5000m in Doha in 2019, and Bahrain’s 2017 marathon world champion Rose Chelimo.

The Ethiopian challenge will be strengthened by world 10km record-holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who ran 2:17:23 on her marathon debut last year then won in London later in 2022 before finishing fifth at this year’s edition of the race. Wanjiru, meanwhile, is joined on the Kenyan team by 2014 world half marathon bronze medallist Selly Kaptich, who was third in Berlin in 2019, and Shyline Jepkorir, a winner in Enschede in April in 2:22:45.

At 36, the veteran Kaptich is four years younger than Australia’s two-time Commonwealth medallist Lisa Weightman, who showed her enduring class with 2:23:15 for fourth place in Osaka in February.

Another notable entrant is Poland’s Aleksandra Lisowska, who broke away in the final 2km to win the European title in Munich 12 months ago.

Bat-Ochir made his world debut in Paris back in 2003 and boasts a highest placing of 19th in Daegu in 2011. He finished 26th in Oregon last year, his second-best global performance. His appearance in Budapest will match Portuguese race walker Joao Viera’s tally of 11 – two shy of Spanish race walker Jesus Angel Garcia’s record.

Ethiopia selects marathon squad for the marathon event at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest

The Ethiopian Athletics Federation has selected 12 athletes to compete in the marathon events at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, from August 19–27.

Leading the Ethiopian marathon squad are defending champions Tamirat Tola and Gotytom Gebreslase, who won the men’s marathon gold at the 2022 World Championships.

Following their world rankings and personal best times last year, the EAF selected 12 marathon competitors (six men and six women) to compete in the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. Reigning world champions Tamirat Tola and Gotytom Gebreslase, who won the gold medal in the marathon at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, are among them.

Tsegaye Getachew, Chalu Deso, Leul Gebresillassie, Seifu Tura, and Amhed Essa will represent the Ethiopian men’s squad, while Worknish Edessa, Megertu Alemu, Yalemzerf Yehualaw, Tsehaye Gemechu, and Amane Beriso will represent the women’s team.

The EAF has announced that all selected athletes will attend a training camp starting June 14, 2023, to begin their usual two-month preparation. The EAF has also appointed two national team coaches to oversee the athletes as they prepare for the competition.

The EAF stated that after the two months of training camps, three athletes will be chosen to join the two defending champions to represent Ethiopia at the World Championships.

EAF Technical Director Asfaw Dagne told The Reporter, “The two months of training will be followed by the selection of the top three athletes. Their health condition and performance after their training in those two months will determine the final selections.”

World Athletics published the qualification standards for the championships, including lists of courses and competitions that comply with the standards. According to the qualification standards, athletes must achieve qualifying performances on a course measured by World Athletics and graded by the Association of International Marathon and Distance Races (AIMS).

Athletes must meet a minimum time of 2:09:40 for men and 2:28:00 for women.

London Marathon 2023: Kelvin Kiptum and Sifan Hassan win with superb runs

Kenya's Kelvin Kiptum smashed compatriot Eliud Kipchoge's course record to win the men's London Marathon in the second-fastest time ever.

The 23-year-old was just 16 seconds outside Kipchoge's world record, finishing in two hours one minute 25 seconds.

Sifan Hassan also produced a remarkable run to win the women's race.

The Dutch Olympic track champion, 30, suffered with a hip injury but battled to win on her debut at the distance.

“It was really amazing,” she says. She never thought she could win, so can’t believe that she did. The crowd are amazing, she says, and every single kilometre she was grateful to be there.

She’s so happy and it’s beautiful to see; she explains she has a pre-existing hip problem, hence the stretching, and because she was fasting she didn’t practise so didn’t know where to stop for drinks.

At 20km she felt she wasn’t tired and was thinking about getting experience for her next marathon and at every moment she was grateful. She didn’t have confidence because she didn’t practise drinking and she found it really tough; she realised she didn’t have to have as much as she should.

Living in the States, she used to set her alarm to watch this race, and now she’s won it she’ll never forget it. She’d been told she’d hurt, but felt much better after 35km than she thought, and when she saw the line she thought it that really it?!

She needs to decide what race she’ll run at the Paris Olympics next summer but she’s so grateful. What an incredible racer and lovely person.

Kiptum produced the fastest marathon debut in Valencia in December, where he finished in 2:01:53 - the third-fastest time in history.

He went faster still on the streets of London, knocking one minute and 12 seconds off Kipchoge's previous course record to beat second-placed compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor by almost three minutes.

Ethiopia's reigning world champion Tamirat Tola was third, while Britain's Mo Farah finished ninth in what he says will be his last marathon.

Emile Cairess, 25, produced a superb run to finish as the first British man home, taking sixth in 2:08:07 on his marathon debut. 

It was the third-fastest marathon time by a British man - behind Farah and Steve Jones - and the second fastest by a Briton in the London race. 

Four British runners finished in the top 10 in total, with Phil Sesemann eighth and Chris Thompson 10th.

In the women's race, Hassan, who won the 5,000m and 10,000m at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, appeared out of the race after dropping back early on with a hip problem, but gradually fought back.

She then produced a sprint finish to win in two hours 18 minutes 33 seconds.

Ethiopia's Alemu Megertu was second and Kenya's previously unbeaten Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir third. 

Kenyan world record holder Brigid Kosgei looked to be limping from the start and dropped out after just three minutes, while Ethiopia's defending champion Yalemzerf Yehualaw was fifth. 

Sam Harrison, 27, was the first British woman home, clocking a new personal best of 2:25:59 for the 26.2-mile distance as she claimed 11th. 

It was the fifth-fastest time by a British woman in the event. 

Switzerland's Marcel Hug knocked 50 seconds off his own course record to win a third consecutive London Marathon men's wheelchair race - and fifth in total.

Hug, 37, finished in one hour 23 minutes 48 seconds, well ahead of the Netherlands' Jetze Plat in second, with Japan's Tomoki Suzuki third and the United States' Daniel Romanchuk in fourth.

Britain's David Weir, 43, finished his 24th London Marathon in fifth place.

Australia's Madison de Rozario held off Manuela Schar, of Switzerland, in a sprint finish to win the women's wheelchair race for a second time.

The four women's favourites made it on the Mall together before De Rozario and Schar pulled away.

De Rozario won in one hour 38 minutes 52 seconds, with defending champion Catherine Debrunner, of Switzerland, in third and the United States' Susannah Scaroni fourth.

Eden Rainbow-Cooper, 21, who was third in 2022, was the first Briton home in seventh.

The event has returned to its traditional date in the calendar, in April, for the first time since 2019 after being moved during the Covid-19 pandemic.

More than 47,000 runners are taking part, with huge crowds lining the streets of London despite damp conditions.

Tiruye Mesfin targets Hamburg Marathon course record and Daniel do Nascimento intends to bounce back this Sunday

Very fast times and thrilling races are expected at the Haspa Marathon Hamburg on Sunday. Just a year after Yalemzerf Yehualaw set a sensational course record of 2:17:23, which at that time was an unofficial world debut record as well, a fellow-Ethiopian will be at the start line, hoping to smash the mark: 20 year-old Tiruye Mesfin announced at the press conference in Hamburg that she targets a world-class time of sub 2:17.

Brazil’s Daniel do Nascimento is among the men’s favorites. The South American record holder wants to bounce back after disaster struck in New York in November. After taking the European marathon gold in Munich in sensational style last summer Hamburg will be the first race at the classic distance for Germany’s Richard Ringer. Around 12,000 runners have registered for the marathon event while the total number including shorter races is over 30,000. 

A live stream of the race will be available worldwide at www.haspa-marathon-hamburg.deon Sunday. The race starts at 9.30am local time and the coverage will begin at 8.45am. While the commentary will be in German the Twitter account of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg will carry English elite race updates. 

Tiruye Mesfin could indeed be in a position to break the course record on Sunday if weather conditions will be suitable. At the moment the forecast looks good, however there might be some wind. The Ethiopian youngster ran a superb 2:18:47 debut at the Valencia Marathon in December and believes she can run considerably faster in her second marathon on Sunday.

“I am in fine form and my preparations went very well. I will try to break the course record, but at least I want to run a personal best,“ said Tiruye Mesfin, who hopes to be in the mix for Olympic qualification. „My plan is to run the first half in 68:00.“ While this would lead towards a world-class time of 2:16 she knows that it will probably not be enough to secure an Olympic spot. “I think I would have to go even faster, but there is some time left and I could do it in a later race.“ 

Qualifying for the 2024 Paris games will probably be easier for Stella Chesang since the competition for places in Uganda is not as tough as in Ethiopia. Running her debut marathon in Hamburg she is ready for an adventurous pace.

“I want to go with the first and see how it goes for me and what is possible. I hope to achieve Olympic qualification,“ said Stella Chesang, who chose Hamburg for her first marathon “because of the fast course“. Her half marathon PB of 68:11 indicates that she could break the Ugandan record of 2:23:13. And her tenth place at the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst, Australia, in February shows that she is probably in very good form.

Kenya’s Bernard Koech is the fastest runner in the field with a PB of 2:04:09. He did not make it in time for Thursday’s press conference because of a strike at Hamburg airport. South American record holder Daniel do Nascimento arrived a day earlier and was present when the conference fittingly began in room Sao Paulo at the Radisson Hotel.

A year ago the Brazilian, who recently trained in Uganda for a longer period, stunned with a time of 2:04:51 in Seoul. However the 24 year-old then collapsed with ten kilometers to go at the New York Marathon in November. Daniel do Nascimento ran world record pace in the first part of that race and was ahead by well over two minutes at half way. “I made a mistake in New York, it was not a good strategy. After 30k I felt sick and got stomach problems. For me marathon is a bit like a marriage - there are difficult times and better times,“ he said. “I will run more intelligently on Sunday  and will surely finish this time.“

If he should succeed in breaking his personal best he would then most probably break the course record as well. Last year Cybrian Kotut improved the mark to 2:04:47, which is just four seconds quicker than do Nascimento’s South American record. Unfortunately the Kenyan is among a number of withdrawals the organisers have to cope with. Ethiopians Mule Wasihun and Muktar Edris, who wanted to run his debut in Hamburg, had to cancel their starts due to an injury as well. 

After his sensational gold medal performance at the European Championships in Munich last summer Richard Ringer returns to the classic distance for the first time. Olympic qualification is his next major goal. “Preparing for Hamburg everything went really well, even better than expected,“ said Richard Ringer, who will choose a more conservative approach on Sunday. 

"I don’t want to take too many risk now as I really want to make sure that I achieve the Olympic qualifying time and go under 2:08.“ Richard Ringer’s PB stands at 2:08:49. “At the moment I hope that a time between 2.07:30 and 2:08:00will be enough to qualify for Paris.“ Another German runner who will go for the Olympic standard in Hamburg is local runner Haftom Welday. The former Eritrean surprised with a 2:09:06 in Berlin last year and now hopes to run well under the Olympic qualifying time of 2:08:10. Since he will choose a more aggressive approach than Ringer there could be an interesting German battle in Hamburg as well.

Elite Runners with Personal Bests

MEN:

Bernard Koech KEN 2:04:09

Tsegaye Kebede ETH 2:04:38

Daniel do Nascimento BRA 2:04:51

Martin Kosgei KEN 2:06:41

Masresha Bere ETH 2:06:44

John Langat KEN 2:07:11

Henok Tesfay ERI 2:07:12

Joshua Kemboi KEN 2:08:09

Daniel Mateo ESP 2:08:22

Richard Ringer GER 2:08:49

Martin Musau UGA 2:09:04

Haftom Welday GER 2:09:06

Derlys Ayala PAR 2:10:11

Jeisson Suarez COL 2:10:51

Ernesto Zamora URU 2:11:26

Andy Buchanan AUS 2:12:23

Arttu Vattulainen FIN 2:13:29

Joshua Belet KEN Debut

Moses Koech KEN Debut

Demeke Tesfaye ETH Debut

Simon Debognies BEL Debut

WOMEN:

Tiruye Mesfin ETH 2:18:47

Sintayehu Tilahun ETH 2:22:19

Giovanna Epis ITA 2:23:54

Dorcas Tuitoek KEN 2:24:54

Marion Kibor KEN 2:25:15

Kumeshi Sichala ETH 2:26:01

Tsigie Haileslase ETH 2:27:08

Paolo Bonilla ECU 2:27:38

Obse Abdeta ETH 2:27:47

Rosa Chacha ECU 2:28:17

Zenebu Bihonzg ETH 2:28:59

Katja Goldring USA 2:29:01

Tereza Hrochova CZE 2:29:06

Molly Grabill USA 2:29:17

Loreta Kancyte LTU 2:30:48

Fabienne Königstein GER 2:32:35

Tabea Themann GER 2:33:51

Stella Chesang UGA Debut

Mekdes Woldu FRA Debut

Mary Granja ECU Debut

Ana Ferreira POR Debut

Eilish McColgan has had a spectacular year and now she has her sights set on competing at the Olympics in the marathon but she has not run a marathon yet

After three decades immersed in athletics, there are not too many times now when Eilish McColgan is stepping into the unknown.

Next Sunday, however, will be one of those unusual occasions when she stands on the start line not knowing quite what to expect as she will make her marathon debut in London.

For all the thousands upon thousands of miles she has run in training over the years, she is treading new ground.

“I’ve never run 26 miles,” she says. “I don’t actually know many athletes who do the full distance in training.

“We coach amateur runners and we advise not to do more than 22 miles in training and that’s what I’ve been doing myself. There is the mental aspect of can you actually get round 26 miles? But I’ve done 22-mile runs and I had no doubt at the end of them I could have run another four-mile loop. So it’s not so much the distance for me that will be tough, it’s going to be the pace of it.

“There’s a big difference between a long run and a hard, hard effort for that long. So for me, that’s what’s unknown and not something I’ve particularly tested in training.

“I think that’s something that only comes with the experience of racing.”

McColgan is certainly not easing herself in gently. London boasts the strongest women’s marathon field ever assembled with defending champion and world 10k record holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw, marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei and Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir all going to be on the start line.

However, with the 32-year-old from Dundee having had the year of her life over the past 12 months, she could not be in a better frame of mind.

McColgan has been on the international scene since 2012, when she competed in her first Olympic Games, but it was in 2022 that she really grabbed the spotlight.

Commonwealth gold in the 10,000m in Birmingham was the most memorable of her performances, but that win was accompanied by a raft of Scottish, British and European records both on the track and on the road.

McColgan has continued her sparkling form into 2023, with her opening appearance of the year a run over 10,000m of 30 minutes 0.86 seconds, breaking Paula Radcliffe’s long-standing national record and smashing her own personal best by 19 seconds.

That was followed by a win at the Berlin Half Marathon two weeks ago in yet another British record and McColgan admits that despite the trepidation that is certainly present about running her first marathon, she is in a confident mood.

“I’m really pleased with my runs. To have come away with British records and such big PBs, I was really happy,” she says. “It’s given me quite a lot of confidence knowing that the training I’m doing is really suited to me.

“I know for sure I can run a good 5k, a good 10k and a good half marathon so now the question is whether or not I can run a good marathon because it’s something I’ve never done. I’m certainly in a better place to run the marathon now than I ever have been but how I actually cope with it, we won’t know till race day.”

The one, and perhaps only, down side of McColgan’s spectacular year is that expectations from observers are now sky-high regarding what she is likely to achieve in London.

However, McColgan is far too pragmatic and too experienced to expect anything spectacular and instead, she sees next weekend’s race as the start of her marathon journey which will, she hopes, lead to the start line of the Olympic marathon in Paris next summer.

“This first marathon is about getting the experience of it,” she says. “I’m in a much stronger position than I’ve ever been and so I’ve given myself the best opportunity to run a good marathon but there’s a lot of things that come into play on the day with regard to the mental side of it, the physical side of covering that sort of distance at that fast pace and the fuelling side of things to make sure I don’t hit the wall.

“There’s a lot more elements that come into a marathon than do on the track or on the shorter road races.

“I know other people maybe expect me to go to London and be competitive but that’s not realistic.

“I’m going into the best marathon field that’s ever been assembled so I have to be realistic with what I can achieve within that. I’m certainly not going in there to win.”

McColgan may not be targeting a podium place but she is not lacking goals for the race.

With the 2024 Olympic Games already in her mind, qualification for Paris is of primary importance – and ideally sooner rather than later – but she also has her mum, Liz’s, one remaining time that is faster than her in her sights over those 26.1 miles in London.

“I have a few goals for London,” she says. “Firstly, I want to get round in one piece. That’s my No.1 goal – to get round and feel like yes, I want to do the marathon at the Paris Olympics,” she says.

“Secondly, this is the final PB that my mum still has of 2 hours 26 mins. Steph Twell took her Scottish record a couple of years ago when she ran 2:25 so I have that in my head as a time target.

“I do feel I’m capable of running faster than my mum and getting that Scottish record and it’d be a triple-whammy because it’d be a qualifying time for the Paris Olympics too.

“I’d like to be competitive against the British girls and if I can do that, I think I can knock those three goals off in the process.

“If I can achieve all my personal goals, that’d be a good day for me.”

Hamburg might be in for another Ethiopian marathon stunner

Another Ethiopian world-class runner could produce the headlines of the women’s race at the Haspa Marathon Hamburg on 23rd April. A year ago Yalemzerf Yehualaw smashed the course record with a sensational time of 2:17:23 which was also an unofficial world debut record. This time youngster Tiruye Mesfin heads the women’s start list with a world-class personal best of 2:18:47.

With this time the 20 year-old is the fastest woman marathon runner ever entered into the race. Among a group of athletes with personal bests between 2:22 and 2:25 is Italy’s Giovanna Epis, who might want to attack the Italian record on the fast Hamburg course.

“After last year’s sensational race by Yalemzerf Yehualaw we are now looking forward to welcoming another super fast Ethiopian woman to Hamburg. It seems Tiruye Mesfin could produce something special here as well,“ said chief organiser Frank Thaleiser.

At the age of just 20 Tiruye Mesfin ran one of the fastest marathon debuts ever in Valencia in early December last year. In an extraordinary strong field she was sixth with 2:18:47. With such a time she would have won most of all other international marathons. Additionally Tiruye Mesfin, who started competing internationally in autumn 2021, showed very promising form little over three weeks ago, when she was fourth in the Lisbon Half Marathon with a personal best of 66:31. 

Tiruye Mesfin’s strongest rival in Hamburg could well be a fellow-Ethiopian: Sintayehu Tilahun is still a newcomer to the international road running circuit as well. The Haspa Marathon Hamburg will be the third race over the classic distance for the 23 year-old. After a 2:45:06 debut win in a small Italian race near Udine in 2021 she ran the Milano Marathon a year ago, finishing second with a huge PB of 2:22:19. 

It was in Valencia in December, when Giovanna Epis came agonizingly close to breaking the Italian marathon record. The 34 year-old improved to 2:23:54, missing the record of Valeria Straneo by just ten seconds. The Haspa Marathon Hamburg could be the race for Giovanna Epis to give it another try. 

Stella Chesang will run her marathon debut in Hamburg on 23rd April. The multiple national record holder from Uganda has a half marathon PB of 68:11. The Commonwealth Games 10,000 m champion from 2018 has shown strong form recently, when she took tenth place at the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst, Australia, in February.  The Ugandan marathon record of 2:23:13 could be within reach for Stella Chesang.

Sifan Hassan to debut in stacked women’s London Marathon field

Aday after releasing the men’s start list for the 2023 London Marathon, race organizers have announced the women’s field, and it is jam-packed with stars. The race will feature marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei, reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir and Sifan Hassan, who will be making her highly anticipated marathon debut. The race is April 23, and with so many amazing runners set to toe the line in London, it will be incredible to watch.

Who to watch for in London 

Kosgei has the fastest seed time of the women’s field–by a long shot. (Her 2:14:04 world record is a full minute and a half faster than that of Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa, who owns the fifth-fastest marathon in history at 2:15:37.) However, Kosgei isn’t necessarily a lock for the win, as there are far too many other extremely successful athletes in the mix. Jepchirchir has had an incredible string of marathons, winning the last five she has entered, including the Tokyo 2020 Olympic marathon, Boston and New York. She’ll be a heavy favourite to make it six in a row (and grab yet another World Marathon Major) in London. 

Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw is another must-watch athlete; not only is she the 10K world record holder, but she also won her debut marathon in Hamburg last spring. Just a few months later, she followed up with a win at the London Marathon and is the defending champion.

Like Hassan, Great Britain’s Eilish McColgan will be running her debut marathon. She’s coming off an amazing season in 2022 that saw her win Commonwealth Games gold in the 10,000m and silver in the 5,000m and set three national records, including her 1:06:26 half-marathon best. Canadian marathon record holder Natasha Wodak is also set to race in London. 

Hassan’s debut

Hassan is one of the fastest runners in history. She is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5,000m and 10,000m (she also won bronze in the 1,500m last Olympics) and the owner of two world championship gold medals, plus she has multiple Dutch, European and world records to her name. What’s so impressive is not simply that Hassan has so many world records, but also the breadth of her success. Her shortest record is over 1,000m (her time of 2:34.68 is the Dutch record). Jumping up to the 1,500m, she has the European best of 3:51.95, and her mile PB of 4:12.33 is the world record. The European records in the 3,000m, 5,000m, 10,000m and half-marathon all belong to Hassan, and she owns the one-hour world record, too. 

With so much success over so many distances, she will likely do something amazing in the marathon. It shouldn’t be a surprise if it takes her a race or two to get into the marathon mindset (going from the half to full marathon is a big jump, even for the world’s best runners), but it also won’t be a surprise if she ends up running one of the fastest marathon debuts in history on April 23. 

Yalemzerf Yehualaw, Brigid Kosgei headline stellar women's London Marathon field

Ethiopia's Yalemzerf Yehualaw will defend her London Marathon title in April, with world record holder Brigid Kosgei and Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya also set to run, organisers said on Thursday.

Reigning Olympic 10,000m and 5,000m champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands will make her marathon debut at the age of 30, with 1,500m world record holder Genzebe Dibaba, 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion Almaz Ayana and Berlin Marathon champion Tigist Assefa also taking part.

Home hopes will be carried by Britain's Eilish McColgan, the Commonwealth Games 10,000m champion, who will also be making her marathon debut.

"My victory at last year's TCS London Marathon was a day I will never forget. I can't wait to go back to London and be part of this amazing team," world 10km record holder Yehualaw said.

Hassan said she was considering both track and marathon options ahead of next year's Olympic Games in Paris.

"I need to test myself over the marathon distance... I'm really excited to be making my marathon debut. It will be a step into the unknown in many ways for me but I'm looking forward to it," she added.

Race director Hugh Brasher is delighted with the strength of the field.

"This is quite simply the greatest women's field ever assembled for a marathon – arguably the greatest field ever assembled for a women's distance race," he said.

"We have two reigning Olympic champions, three world record holders and multiple national record holders, in addition to an incredibly strong British contingent led by Eilish McColgan."

Yalemzerf Yehualaw was just five seconds off her 10k world record in Spain

Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw clocked 29:19 at the Valencia 10K Ibercaja to come within five seconds of her own world record, while Kenya’s Weldon Kipkirui Langat won in 26:55 in a thrilling finish against compatriot Charles Langat at the World Athletics Label road race in the Spanish city on Sunday (15).

Paced by her compatriots Genetu Molalign Yehualaw and Tolcha Guta Beyene, Yehualaw opted for a conservative start, unlike last year in Castellón when she set the current world record of 29:14. The opening 2km was covered in 5:56 with Kenya’s Jesca Chelangat still running at Yehualaw’s shoulder.

The pace increased slightly in the third kilometre as they reached 3km in 8:51; shortly afterwards Chelangat began to lose ground on Yehualaw as the Ethiopian passed through 4km alone in 11:52, a strong headwind contributing to the slowest kilometre of the race. The world half marathon bronze medallist went through halfway in 14:47, 19 seconds down on her half-way split from her world record run.

Chelangat was eight seconds behind the leader at half way, but a comfortable nine seconds ahead of Uganda’s Sarah Chelangat. Kenyan duo Esther Borura and Naomi Chpngeno were another five seconds adrift (15:09).

Yehualaw increased her pace during the second half, covering most kilometres in 2:53-2:54 and reaching 8km in 23:29. After another swift 2:53 kilometre, the Ethiopian was unable to maintain that same cadence over the final kilometre but still held on to finish in 29:19, the second-fastest 10km performance in history.

Further back, Jeska Chelangat finished just outside the 30-minute barrier (30:01) with Borura completing a quality podium in 30:15. Sarah Chelangat set a Ugandan record of 30:24 in fourth, 16 seconds ahead of Chepngeno (30:40). Britain’s Samantha Harrison was sixth in 30:51.

The 23-year-old Yehualaw commented she was a bit disappointed for not having broken the world record but satisfied with her brave effort.

The men’s race kicked off at a relatively brisk pace, the opening kilometres covered in 2:38 and 2:39. The pacemaker dropped out just before the 3km (7:57) and the pace decreased slightly, so Lagat and Kenya’s world 5000m silver medallist Jacob Krop moved to the front in a bid to keep the pace alive. By halfway (13:30), nine men were still in contention for victory.

Despite the annoying headwind over the following kilometres, Krop and Langat managed to maintain a swift cadence in the 2:43/2:45 kilometre range, with Charles Langat always tucked behind them. During the long final straight, Charles Langat tried to overtake Weldon Langat but the latter held off his challenge and crossed the line victorious in 26:55 to equal his PB.

Charles Langat set a massive lifetime best of 26:57 while Daniel Kosen took third in 27:01, an 18-second improvement on his career best. Burundi’s Rodrigue Kwizera placed fourth (27:04) and Krop was given the same time for fifth.

“I’m delighted with my win,” said Langat. “I pushed hard throughout, looking for a fast time, and my tactic paid off.”

Langat missed out on making the Kenyan team for the World Cross Country Championships, so his next outing will be at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon on 18 February. He’ll then turn his attention to making the Kenyan 10,000m team for the World Championships in Budapest.

Emeterio Valiente for World Athletics

Leading results

Women1 Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH) 29:192 Jesca Chelangat (KEN) 30:013 Esther Borura (KEN) 30:154 Sarah Chelangat (UGA) 30:245 Naomi Chepngeno (KEN) 30:406 Samantha Harrison (GBR) 30:517 Vicoty Chepngeno (KEN) 31:058 Brenda Tuwei (KEN) 31:209 Stella Chesang (UGA) 31:3310 Alemaz Samuel Teshale (ETH) 31:39

Men1 Weldon Langat (KEN) 26:552 Charles Langat (KEN) 26:573 Daniel Kosen (KEN) 27:014 Rodrigue Kwizera (BDI) 27:045 Jacob Krop (KEN) 27:046 Rogers Kibet (UGA) 27:077 Dominic Lokinyomo Lobalu (SSD) 27:098 Laban Kiplimo (KEN) 27:159 Richard Kimunyan Yator (KEN) 27:3210 Isaac Kipkemboi (KEN) 27:34

Yalemzerf Yehualaw will challenge her global mark of 29:14 this weekend in Valencia

Get ready for some quick times on Sunday (Jan 15) when the self-styled “ciudad del running” stages its annual 10km Valencia Ibercaja event on its famously fast roads.

Many of the world’s top distance runners will descend upon the Spanish city this weekend in search of record-breaking performances. These include Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who will attack her own women’s world record of 29:14 set in Castellón 11 months ago.

The 23-year-old impressed over the marathon last year, too, as she clocked what was, at the time, the world’s fastest ever debut by a woman with 2:17:23 in Hamburg before later capturing the London Marathon title in 2:17:26.

British athletes are in Valencia in force too. The Spanish road race clashes with the trial in Perth, Scotland, for the World Cross Country Championships, but many have opted to slip on their super-shoes rather than spikes to chase PBs on the road.

Yehualaw is the star attraction and will wear No.1 on her singlet on Sunday, but she is joined in Valencia by fellow Ethiopian Ejgayehu Taye, who holds the world 5km record with 14:19 from Barcelona in 2021. In addition, Karoline Grøvdal of Norway will attack the European record of 30:05 held by Lonah Salpeter of Israel.

In the men’s field, sub-27min performers Richard Kimunyan Yator and Weldon Kipkirui Langat of Kenya plus Rodrigue Kwizera of Burundi lead the men’s entries in a field of around 11,000 runners which is set to feature about 100 elite athletes from 15 different nations.

Jacob Krop, the world 5000m silver medallist and 12:45.71 runner on the track, is also in the line-up together with Paul Chelimo of the United States, while Morhad Amdouni and Jimmy Gressier of France lead the European challenge.

Their target is Rhonex Kipruto’s world record of 26:24, which was set in this event in 2020.

“We want the men to approach the European record (27:13 by Julien Wanders set in Valencia in 2020) and, with the African armada, to look for sub-27 records and even approach the world record,” said Acuña. “The 2023 race will be the most competitive of all editions. The best European athletes want to run the 10km Valencia Ibercaja – and we have been working for months in that direction.”

He added: “The goal of the race is to become more international year after year and reach more and more countries. We are a world reference for the distance and the best athletes want to run in Valencia.”

Don’t be surprised to see the UK all-time rankings revised on Sunday when a large contingent of British athletes tackle the Valencia 10km.

They are led by Samantha Harrison, who already sits No.5 on the UK all-time rankings with 31:10 from Telford in December.

Calli Thackery, the fifth quickest British woman in history over 5km with 14:58, is also set to compete. Add to this Olympic marathoner Steph Twell, plus Amelia Quirk, Lucy Reid and Sarah Astin.

One week after out-kicking Jake Wightman indoors over 3000m, Phil Sesemann takes to the roads looking to beat his 28:24 PB from 2019.

The Mahamed brothers – Mahamed and Zak – are also in the line-up, plus Olympic 5000m finalist Andy Butchart, Efrem Gidey, Ellis Cross, Calum Elson and Kadar Omar.

The list goes on with Kieran Clements, Jack Gray, Jonathan Hopkins, Alfie Manthorpe, Lewis Jagger, Ronny Wilson, Jonny Davies, Alex Lepetre, Jonathan Escalante, Dan Studley, Norman Shreeve and Corey De’Ath. 

Ratified: world records for Yehualaw, Knighton, Nugent and Mokoka

Women’s world 10km record (mixed race)29:14 Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH) Castellon 27 February 2022

Men’s world U20 200m record19.69 Erriyon Knighton (USA) Eugene 26 June 2022

Women’s world U20 indoor 60m hurdles record7.92 Ackera Nugent (JAM) Fayetteville 13 March 2021

Men’s world 50km record2:40:13 Stephen Mokoka (RSA) Gqeberha 6 March 2022

The world 10km record of 29:14 set by Yalemzerf Yehualaw in Castellon on 27 February has been ratified.

The world U20 marks by Erriyon Knighton in the 200m and Ackera Nugent in the 60m hurdles are also now officially in the record books, as is the world 50km record set by Stephen Mokoka.

In Castellon, Yehualaw became the first woman in history to dip under the 29:30 and 29:20 barriers on the roads, running 29:14 to improve the ratified record of 29:43 set by Joyciline Jepkosgei in Prague on 9 September 2017 and the mark of 29:38 achieved on 3 October 2021 by Bahrain’s Kalkidan Gezahegne in Geneva.

In a race held under ideal weather conditions, and with pacing assistance from Dutch distance runner Richard Douma, Yehualaw set off at a swift pace. They covered the opening kilometre in 2:51 and by 3km, reached in 8:36, Yehualaw was on target for a sub-29-minute finish.She went through halfway in 14:28 – one of the fastest 5km clockings in history – and was still inside 29-minute pace. The Ethiopian slowed a bit during the second half, but a final kilometre of 2:52 (and a second half of 14:46) was enough to carry her to a 29:14 finish.

“I knew I had the world record in my legs and wanted to produce a challenging performance for any athletes who may attempt the record in the near future,” she said.

Knighton achieved his world U20 200m record at the US Championships on 26 June, running 19.69 to improve on his own previous ratified record of 19.84, also set at Hayward Field in Eugene on 27 June 2021. Knighton had opened his season with a time of 19.49 in Baton Rouge, but that mark could not be ratified as a world U20 record because specific anti-doping testing requirements were not met.

Nugent, meanwhile, achieved her world U20 indoor 60m hurdles record when winning at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville on 13 March 2021. Other performances that were faster than the previous ratified world record of 8.00 set by Klaudia Siciarz in Torun on 18 February 2017 – including Nugent’s own 7.91 earlier in 2021 – did not fulfil all the criteria for ratification. Nugent’s 7.92 does meet the criteria, so becomes the world U20 record.

In March this year, Mokoka ran 2:40:13 at the Nedbank Runified 50km in Gqeberha to improve on the inaugural world 50km record of 2:42:07 that had been set by Ethiopia’s Ketema Negasa at the same event last year.

Mokoka is now the official world 50km record-holder, although CJ Albertson clocked 2:38:43 in San Francisco on 8 October, and that performance has also been submitted for record ratification.

Chepkoech is set to compete at San Silvestre Vallecana 10k road race

World 3000m steeplechase record holder Beatrice Chepkoech will be lining up against a competitive field at the San Silvestre Vallecana, a New Year’s Eve 10 km road race in Madrid, Spain.

Chepkoech temporarily leaves the track to compete at the world's best 10K and victory will be another milestones in her many achievements. Besides her 2019 World Championships gold, she is also a nine-time Diamond League winner.

However, the iconic race has also attracted other elite athletes including Africa 10,000m champion Tsehay Gemechu from Ethiopia and Francine Niyonsaba, the 2016 and 2018 World 800m indoor champion.

Brigid Kosgei holds the women's course record with 29:54 from 2019. She set the milestone just a few months before achieving her unbelievable and still-standing world marathon record of 2:14:04.

Gemechu comes to the race to extend the Ethiopian winning streak after Yalemzerf Yehualaw and Degitu Azimeraw won the previous two editions. She placed fourth in the 5,000m at the 2019 World Championships and finished sixth at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships.

Niyonsaba, who has been enjoying road race and cross-country success, will also be looking to shine in Madrid. Most recently, Niyonsaba won the Banos International Sales Cross Country. She holds a very fast 5, 000m personal best at 14:25.34 from last year.

The women's elite field will also have Prisca Chesang, the 19-year-old Olympian from Uganda who won the U20 world bronze medal at 5,000m this year, and Mahlet Mulugeta, the Ethiopian.

The 10K Valencia Ibercaja hopes to have more world class times this year

The 10K Valencia Ibercaja is finalizing the details to offer again a great show in what will be its 15th edition. The race, which is currently approaching 11,000 registered participants, will feature a hundred elite athletes of 15 different nationalities in search of their best times in the city of running.

The fastest 10K in the world continues to set the bar high and, after the World Record still in force achieved in 2020 by Rhonex Kipruto (26:24), on January 15, 2023 will seek to break other records. In fact, the recordwoman Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who achieved the women's world record this year 2022 in Castellón (29:14), will be at the starting line of the 10K Valencia Ibercaja and will try to beat it.

The Ethiopian will not be alone in this feat, as she will be accompanied by her compatriot Ejgayehu Taye Haylu, who holds the 5K world record (14:19, Barcelona 2021). Also, Norwegian athlete Karoline Grøvdal, who holds her country's national 5,000ml record and was recently proclaimed European Cross Country Champion, will try to achieve the European 10K record.

The fact that the two fastest women in the world in 10 and 5 kilometers on the road participate in the 10K Valencia Ibercaja is the result of the work done for many months led by the Sports Director of the event, José Enrique Muñoz Acuña.

"It is a great pride to have the two athletes who hold the world record in 10K and 5K," said Acuña, who has advanced that the women's lineup continues to dazzle with other athletes who also have very important marks such as the national record of 10K (Meraf Bahta) and Half Marathon (Sarah Lahti) of Sweden or the 3,000m steeplechase of Germany (Kristina Hendel). "In women, we will have a total of eight U31 athletes, ten U32 athletes and nine U33 athletes," he explains.

International men's elite

As for the participation of elite male athletes, he highlights that the race will have four U27 runners led by the Ethiopian Hagos Gebrhiwet Berhe, who achieved the mark of 26:48 in Hengelo (2019). "We will have - adds Acuña - five U27 athletes, more than 20 U28 athletes, about 40 U29 athletes and around 100 U30 athletes."

In addition, up to six runners who hold national records in 5K, 10K or Marathon distances in their country, such as the French athlete Jimmy Gressier or the Burundian athlete Rodrigue Kwizera will also take the start in the Paseo de la Alameda, along with the Kenyan Jacob Krop, who won bronze in the last World Championship in 5000ml, or the athlete who achieved the Ethiopian national record in 3000mlm Getnet Wale.

"We want, in men, to approach the European record and, with the African armada, to look for sub 27 records and even approach the World Record, without being a specific objective of this edition". Thus, the 2023 edition "will be the most competitive of all editions. The best European athletes want to run the 10K Valencia Ibercaja, and we have been working for months in that direction".

"The goal of the race is to become more international year after year and reach more and more countries. We are a world reference for the distance and the best athletes want to run in Valencia," Acuña explains. The presence of athletes of up to fifteen different nationalities stands out. Among the most represented countries are Ethiopia, Kenya, France, Great Britain, Holland and Sweden.

Acuña has indicated that in the 10K Valencia Ibercaja "we will continue working to maintain the high level achieved in the 2020 edition when Rhonex Kipruto got the World Record (26:24), Julien Wanders the European Record (27:13) and Sheila Chepkirui the best female time of the circuit (29:46)".

European Champion Richard Ringer will run his next marathon in Hamburg

Richard Ringer will run next marathon in Hamburg.

Organizers announced during a press conference with the runner, who became Germany’s first male marathon gold medal winner in the long history of the continental championships.

The Haspa Marathon Hamburg is Germany’s major spring marathon. Online entry for the event is possible at: www.haspa-marathon-hamburg.de

“To have Germany’s first ever male European Marathon Champion on the start line next spring is something really special and makes us feel proud. We hope Richard’s commitment to our event will give the Haspa Marathon Hamburg another boost after the fantastic race we had this year,“ said chief organiser Frank Thaleiser. In April this year both course records were smashed in Hamburg. Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw clocked 2:17:23 which at that time was an unofficial world debut record while Kenya’s Cybrian Kotut won with 2:04:47.

“I made up my mind quickly after the European Championships and decided to go for a spring marathon in 2023. Hamburg and its organiser MHV are a perfect fit for me,” said Richard Ringer, who travelled from the very southwest of Germany to the north to attend the press conference in Hamburg on Wednesday.

It was just two years ago when Richard Ringer ran his marathon debut in Valencia. Since then he has established himself as a strong championship runner. In the Olympic marathon in Sapporo in 2021 he achieved a fine 26th place and this summer he stormed to the European gold medal in sensational style in Munich. However when he will come back to Hamburg in April Richard Ringer will have a different goal. This one will be about a fast time on a flat course. The 33-year-old currently has a personal best of 2:08:49. He should be able to run considerably faster than that if weather conditions are favourable.

Additionally Richard Ringer plans further ahead: “I am already looking towards the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024. So it is important to me to run a good marathon time next spring.” With a fast time in Hamburg he could make an early and decisive step towards Olympic selection for Paris.

2022 - the year when international road racing got back to normal

There have been big city races with mass participation, high-profile clashes between the world’s elite distance runners, and numerous records broken across a range of distances.

Road running is back in a big way.

While some World Athletics Label road races in 2022 still had to be postponed or adapted in the face of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, road running as a whole is almost back to normal.

Nine Elite Platinum Label marathons have been held already this year, with the 10th and final one due to take place in Valencia on 4 December.

World Athletics Elite Platinum marathons in 2022

Tokyo – 6 March

Winners: Brigid Kosgei (KEN) 2:16:02 CR, Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) 2:02:40 CRWorld record-holders Brigid Kosgei and Eliud Kipchoge got their years off to a great start, winning in the Japanese capital with course records.Finishers: 18,272

Nagoya – 13 March

Winner: Ruth Chepngetich (KEN) 2:17:18 CRAfter an enthralling tussle with Israel’s Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, Ruth Chepngetich prevailed in 2:17:18, breaking the course record in the world’s largest women-only marathons.Finishers: 8698

Seoul – 17 April

Winners: Joan Chelimo Melly (KEN) 2:18:04 CR, Mosinet Geremew (ETH) 2:04:43 CREventual winners Joan Chelimo Melly and Mosinet Geremew were pushed all the way to course records in the Korean capital in two close races. Geremew won by six seconds, while Melly finished eight seconds ahead of her nearest rival.

Boston – 18 April

Winners: Peres Jepchirchir (KEN) 2:21:01, Evans Chebet (KEN) 2:06:51Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir maintained her winning streak to win in one of the world’s most prestigious races, finishing just four seconds ahead of Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh. Evans Chebet enjoyed a more comfortable victory in the men’s race.Finishers: 24,607

Berlin – 25 September

Winners: Tigist Assefa (ETH) 2:15:37 CR, Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) 2:01:09 WROlympic champion Eliud Kipchoge returned to the site of his last world record-breaking performance and improved on the mark by 30 seconds, setting a world record of 2:01:09. Meanwhile, Tigist Assefa smashed the women’s course record – and Ethiopian record – with her 2:15:37 victory.Finishers: 34,879

London – 2 October

Winners: Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH) 2:17:26, Amos Kipruto (KEN) 2:04:39Yalemzerf Yehualaw got the better of defending champion Joyciline Jepkosgei in an enthralling duel, while Amos Kipruto made a similar late-race break to take the men’s title.Finishers: 40,578

Chicago – 9 October

Winners: Ruth Chepngetich (KEN) 2:14:18 WL, Benson Kipruto (KEN) 2:04:24Ruth Chepngetich came within seconds of the world record to win in 2:14:18, the second-fastest time in history. Benson Kipruto, winner in Boston last year, added another US big city marathon win to his collection.Finishers: 39,420

Amsterdam – 16 October

Winners: Almaz Ayana (ETH) 2:17:20 CR, Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) 2:04:49Ethiopia’s 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion Almaz Ayana ran the fastest marathon debut in history to win in the Dutch capital, holding off former track rival and compatriot Genzebe Dibaba. Tsegaye Getachew made it an Ethiopian double, winning by just five seconds from Titus Kipruto.Finishers: 12,669

New York City – 6 November

Winners: Sharon Lokedi (KEN) 2:23:23, Evans Chebet (KEN) 2:08:41Kenya’s Sharon Lokedi pulled off one of the biggest road-running surprises of 2022, winning the New York City Marathon on her debut at the distance and beating many established stars of the sport. Evans Chebet added to his Boston win from earlier in the year.Finishers: 47,839

Valencia – 4 December

Elite field: includes Letesenbet Gidey, Sutume Kebede, Tiki Gelana, Tigist Girma, Etagegne Woldu, Amane Shankule and Tadelech Bekele in the women’s race, and Getaneh Molla, Tamirat Tola, Dawit Wolde, Jonathan Korir, Hiskel Tewelde, Chalu Deso and Gabriel Geay in the men’s race.Places: 30,000

For the masses

It’s not just elite runners who have been able to enjoy top-quality road racing. Events in most corners of the world have been able to stage mass races of some sort in 2022.

That looks set to continue in 2023 too, not just with Label road races but also at World Athletics Series events.

Ayana runs fastest ever women's marathon debut with 2:17:20 in Amsterdam

Ethiopia’s Almaz Ayana ran 2:17:20 to achieve the fastest ever women's marathon debut and win a high-quality clash at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon, a World Athletics Elite Platinum Label road race, on Sunday (16).

Setting a Dutch all-comers’ record, Ayana won the head-to-head against her fellow global track gold medallist and compatriot Genzebe Dibaba, who was also making her marathon debut, while Tsegaye Getachew made it an Ethiopian double, winning the men’s race in a PB of 2:04:49.

The women’s race in Amsterdam featured a trio of notable debutants and despite going up against some more experienced opponents when it comes to marathon running, the spotlight was on Ayana, Dibaba and their compatriot Tsehay Gemechu.

Ayana won world 5000m gold in 2015 and the world 10,000m title in 2017 as well as Olympic 10,000m gold in a world record in 2016, while Dibaba set the world 1500m record in 2015, going on to win the world title in that event later that year. Gemechu, meanwhile, finished fourth in the 5000m at the 2019 World Championships and they all formed part of the lead women’s group that followed male pacemakers through 5km in 16:13 and 10km in 32:43. They remained to the fore through the halfway point, passed in 1:09:26, and then started to break away from the group, going through 25km in 1:22:06 and 30km in 1:38:04.

Gemechu managed to hold on until 33km but was dropped by Ayana and Dibaba a short while later, Ayana a stride ahead as she reached 35km in 1:54:01.

Looking untroubled, Ayana eased away from Dibaba and was half a minute clear at 40km, passed in 2:10:07. She continued to push on and grew her advantage to 45 seconds by the finish, clocking 2:17:20 to beat the previous fastest ever women’s marathon debut time of 2:17:23 achieved by Yalemzerf Yehualaw in Hamburg in April.

The performance puts Ayana seventh on the women's world marathon all-time list, while Dibaba is now in the world marathon all-time top 20 thanks to her 2:18:05 run for second place.

Gemechu also dipped under 2:19, clocking 2:18:59 to finish third, while Eritrea’s Nasnet Amanuel ran 2:22:45 to finish fourth on her debut. Bahrain’s 2017 world champion Rose Chelimo finished fifth in 2:23:12.

While Ayana broke away over the final 5km of the women’s race, Getachew waited until the last 2km to make his move.Content to sit back in the lead pack, the 25-year-old passed 5km in 14:33 and 10km in 29:12 before reaching half way in 1:01:54. It was Kenya’s Josphat Boit who took over at the front when the pacemakers stepped aside at 30km, that point passed in 1:28:06, and 35km was reached in 1:43:09. But the pace soon proved too much for Boit, as Ethiopia’s Bazezew Asmare pushed ahead to lead a breakaway group of five.

Still feeling good as they reached 40km in 1:58:23, Getachew kicked and no one could challenge him. Kenya’s Titus Kipruto gave chase, with Asmare just behind them, but Getachew had the strength to stride clear, celebrating on his way to the finish line, which he crossed in 2:04:49. Kipruto held on for second place, five seconds back, while Asmare was a further three seconds behind him, finishing third in 2:04:57.

Kenya’s Abraham Kiptoo was fourth in 2:05:04 and Ethiopia’s Huseydin Mohamed fifth on his marathon debut in 2:05:05 as the top nine all finished under 2:06.

“The competition was very good, the spectators were great and there was a great atmosphere out on the course,” said Getachew after the biggest marathon win of his career so far, following previous victories in Riyadh, Izmir and Dalian.

“I was just very pleased. I felt very good in the last 5km as we went into the park, and especially as we left the park with 2km to go.”

Three global title winners ready to clash in Amsterdam

The TCS Amsterdam Marathon on Sunday (16) will bring together three winners of global titles. Almaz Ayana and Genzebe Dibaba will be making their marathon debuts at the World Athletics Elite Platinum Label road race, while 2017 world champion Rose Chelimo is also in the field.

The incredibly deep men’s field, meanwhile, includes nine men with PBs faster than 2:06, led by 2016 Boston Marathon champion Lemi Berhanu.

Ayana and Dibaba, who won the world 5000m and 1500m titles respectively back in 2015, have battled injuries in recent years but have still managed to make a promising transition to the roads. Ayana, the 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion, clocked 1:07:12 on her half marathon debut when winning in New Delhi in 2017. And since returning this year after a three-year break, she has placed fifth in Madrid in 1:08:22 and third at the Great North Run in 1:07:10.

Dibaba, meanwhile, hasn’t raced on the roads since 2020, but her performances then were impressive. The world 1500m record-holder won the Valencia Half Marathon on her debut at the distance in 1:05:18, then three weeks later won over 5km in Barcelona.

The Ethiopian duo have never raced one another on the roads, but they have clashed 12 times on the track. Dibaba has the upper hand, 8-4, but Ayana won their more significant duels, including the 2015 World Championships, 2015 Diamond League Final, and 2014 African Championships.

The marathon is another beast entirely, though, and experience can count for a lot. Chelimo has plenty of experience on the roads, having won 2017 world gold and 2019 world silver, but the 33-year-old from Bahrain has always been more of a championship performer than a big city marathon runner. Her most recent marathon was in Rotterdam earlier this year, where she placed 19th in 2:44:22.

Celestine Chepchirchir is a late addition to the field, following her withdrawal from last week’s Chicago Marathon. The Kenyan set a PB of 2:20:10 in Seoul earlier this year, making her the fastest entrant for this weekend’s race.

Ayana and Dibaba aren’t the only notable marathon debutants lining up in Amsterdam. Their compatriot Tsehay Gemechu, the fourth-place finisher over 5000m at the 2019 World Championships, has a strong record at the half marathon and heads to the Dutch city in good form. A two-time winner in New Delhi and Lisbon, Gemechu recently reduced her half marathon PB to 1:05:01 when finishing second to Yalemzerf Yehualaw in Antrim.

Fellow Ethiopian Azmera Gebru will be returning to Amsterdam, following her third-place finishes there in 2018 and 2019. Compatriot Gebeyanesh Ayele also returns, following her fourth-place finish last year, while Sintayehu Tilahun could be one to watch, following her recent PBs over the half marathon (1:07:41) and marathon (2:22:19).

After nine successive men’s victories in Amsterdam, Kenya’s winning streak came to an end last year. But Cybrian Kotut hopes to kick-start the trend on Sunday.

The 30-year-old has won his past three marathons, his most recent victory coming in April in Hamburg, where he set a lifetime best of 2:04:47. The Kenyan challenge is strengthened by the likes of Titus Kipruto, who won this year’s Milan Marathon in a PB of 2:05:05, Norbert Kigen, runner-up in Amsterdam in 2017 and winner in Prague earlier this year, and Laban Korir, who will be making his sixth appearance in Amsterdam.

But 2016 Boston Marathon champion Lemi Berhanu leads a strong Ethiopian contingent. Berhanu’s PB of 2:04:33 dates back to 2016, but his runner-up place in Boston last year shows he is still competitive.

He will be joined on the startline by compatriots Tsegaye Getachew, winner in Riyadh earlier this year and owner of a 2:05:11 PB, Adeladlew Mamo, who ran 2:05:12 on his marathon debut earlier this year, and 2:05:52 performer Adugna Takele.

Other contenders in the field include Eritrea’s Afewerki Berhane, Japan’s Shuho Dairokuno, and marathon debutant Victor Chumo.

Leading entries

WomenCelestine Chepchirchir (KEN) 2:20:10Azmera Gebru (ETH) 2:20:48Gebeyanesh Ayele (ETH) 2:21:22Sintayehu Tilahun (ETH) 2:22:19Rose Chelimo (BRN) 2:24:14Fikrte Wereta (ETH) 2:26:15Almaz Ayana (ETH) debutGenzebe Dibaba (ETH) debutTsehay Gemechu (ETH) debut

MenLemi Berhanu (ETH) 2:04:33Cybrian Kotut (KEN) 2:04:47Titus Kipruto (KEN) 2:05:05Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) 2:05:11Adeladlew Mamo (ETH) 2:05:12Norbert Kigen (KEN) 2:05:13Afewerki Berhane (ERI) 2:05:22Adugna Takele (ETH) 2:05:52Laban Korir (KEN) 2:05:54Masreshe Bere (ETH) 2:06:44Abraham Kiptoo (KEN) 2:06:59Shuho Dairokuno (JPN) 2:07:12Bazezew Asmare (ETH) 2:07:13Josphat Boit (KEN) 2:07:20Godadaw Belachew (ISR) 2:07:54Yuki Sato (JPN) 2:08:17Jake Robertson (NZL) 2:08:26Akira Tomiyasu (JPN) 2:08:55Deribe Tefera (ETH) 2:09:15Bekele Muluneh (ETH) 2:09:51Khalid Choukoud (NED) 2:09:55Victor Chumo (KEN) debutHuseydin Mohamed (ETH) debut

Joyciline Jepkosgei receives promotion in Kenyan army following her success at London Marathon

Here’s your feel-good story of the day: Kenyan marathoner Joyciline Jepkosgei has been recognized by her country for her second-place finish at the 2022 London Marathon, earning a promotion in the army.

On Tuesday, Kenya’s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), General Robert Kibochi, promoted Corporal Jepkosgei to the role of Sergeant (Sgt.) at the Kenyan Army Defence Headquarters in Nairobi.

General Kibochi congratulated Jepkosgei for her excellent work in representing the country in major races and for improving her time, which has seen her break multiple world records.

“We are very grateful for your continuous hard work and for representing Kenya and KDF well,” said General Kibochi. 

On Sunday, Jepkosgei clocked 2:18:07, to finish second to Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who won in 2:17:26. Jepkosgei won the London Marathon in 2021, and the New York City Marathon in 2019.

Jepkosgei is one of many world-class Kenyan athletes who work for official government organizations. 800m world record holder and two-time Olympic champion David Rudisha worked as a police officer during his running career, and so does two-time NYC Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, plus Canadian soil record holder and defending Toronto Waterfront Marathon champion Philemon Rono. 

If your workplace offered promotions for representing the company at a global marathon, would you train a little harder?

Yehualaw and Kipruto cruise to convincing wins at London Marathon

In just the second marathon of her career, Yalemzerf Yehualaw overcame a heavy fall to win the women’s race at the TCS London Marathon, while Kenya’s Amos Kipruto made a decisive move with two miles to go to take the men’s title at the World Athletics Elite Platinum road race on Sunday (2).

Yehualaw won in 2:17:26 – the third-fastest time ever achieved on the streets of London – while Kipruto’s closing speed brought him home in 2:04:39.

The opening pace in the women’s race was swift, as it often is on the slightly downhill section of the course. The lead pack of eight women – including Yehualaw and defending champion Joyciline Jepkosgei – passed through the first 5km in 16:01 and they reached 10km in 32:18. That early pace suggested a finishing time of 2:16:15 – well inside the women-only world record of 2:17:01 – but the tempo soon started to drop.

The same eight women were still together through 15km (48:51) and at half way, which was reached in 1:08:46. Hiwot Gebrekidan was unable to stay with the pack for much longer and the lead group was reduced to seven women by 25km (1:21:29), the pacemakers having now dropped out.

Asefa Kebede started to push the pace as the lead group embarked on the second half, with Yehualaw biding her time near the back of the pack. Jepkosgei and Joan Chelimo Melly, meanwhile, looked comfortable in the middle of the pack.

With about 10km to go, Yehualaw tripped on a bump in the road and fell hard, just as she had done at the 2020 World Half Marathon Championships where she went on to take bronze. She quickly got back up on her feet and rejoined the lead pack a minute or two later.

Melly and Ashete Bekere were next to drop off the pace, followed by Kebede, leaving just four women in the lead pack: Jepkosgei, world silver medallist Judith Jeptum, Alemu Megertu and Yehualaw. They reached 35km in 1:54:30, their predicted finishing time now outside 2:18:00, but the real racing was just beginning.

After two hours of running, Yehualaw started to increase her pace. A sizzling 4:43 split for the 24th mile broke up what was left of the lead pack, and within a couple of minutes the Ethiopian had a clear lead over Jepkosgei with Megertu and Jeptum further behind.

Showing no ill effects of her earlier fall, and running with the confidence of a seasoned marathon runner, Yehualaw continued to forge ahead in the closing stages and went on to win by 41 seconds in 2:17:26, just three seconds shy of the PB she set on her debut in Hamburg earlier this year. It’s also the third-fastest time ever recorded in London, behind the world records set by Paula Radcliffe (2:15:25) and Mary Keitany (2:17:01, women-only).

"I am so happy to win here in London," said Yehualaw. "I have worked very hard to prepare for this race and to take the victory is amazing."Jepkosgei held on to finish second in 2:18:07 and Megertu completed the podium in 2:18:32, a PB by 19 seconds. For the first time ever, six women finished in 2:19:30 or quicker.

Kipruto conquers quality field for first world marathon major

The opening pace in the men’s race was more steady and consistent than the women’s race, but the race unfolded in a similar fashion with a group of seven men running together through the early checkpoints. They covered 5km in 14:45, 10km in 29:26 and 15km in 44:20, suggesting a finishing time inside 2:05.

Kenenisa Bekele featured prominently in the lead pack, while defending champion Sisay Lemma held back slightly near the rear of the group. World and Olympic bronze medallist Bashir Abdi and Kenya’s Amos Kipruto were also in contention.

They reached 25km in 1:13:41, still on course for a finishing time just outside 2:04 and with the same seven men still running together. At about 33km, Bekele started to fall off the pace of the lead pack, but he stayed in the race and kept the leaders in sight.

About 15 minutes later – and at roughly the same part of the course where Yehualaw made her move in the women’s race – Kipruto accelerated away from the rest of the pack, opening up a significant lead within a relatively short space of time. A 4:21 split for the 25th mile proved decisive and it soon became clear that victory would be his.

He went on to win by more than half a minute, crossing the line in 2:04:39 to achieve his first victory in a marathon major, following three podium finishes in Berlin and Tokyo in recent years. Ethiopia’s Leul Gebresilase came through to take second place in 2:05:12, seven seconds ahead of Abdi.

Kinde Atanaw was fourth in 2:05:27, followed by Bekele in fifth in 2:05:53, his fastest time for three years. He also becomes the first 40-year-old to run a marathon faster than 2:06.

third photo: Gene Dykes on podium after winning the 70-74 age group with Eluid Kipchoge, the Goat!

London Marathon preview: will we see two course records broken?

For the third straight year, the TCS London Marathon is set to take place on the first Sunday of October (Oct. 2). Many of the world’s top marathoners have made their way to London for a shot at USD $55,000, plus added incentives for time bonuses and course records.

If anyone were to break Eliud Kipchoge’s world record of 2:01:09 in Berlin last weekend, they would earn a huge payday of USD $400,000+, between prize money and bonuses.

A number of the top athletes have scratched from the marathon this week due to injury, including the British Olympic champion of years past, Mo Farah, who is out with a hip injury; 2022 world championship silver medallist Mosinet Gemerew; and the women’s world record holder, Brigid Kosgei, who suffered a hamstring injury in the lead-up to the race.

Both the men’s and women’s fields are still loaded with former Olympic medalists and Abbott World Marathon Major champions. Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele headlines the men’s race, returning to London for the first time since 2018, after second-, third- and sixth-place finishes in his past three attempts. Bekele, 40, has not been in top form since he ran the second-fastest marathon of all time to win the 2019 Berlin Marathon (2:01:41).

His challenges will come from his Ethiopian compatriot and defending champion Sisay Lemma and two-time Tokyo Marathon winner Birhanu Legese, who holds a personal best of 2:02:48 and is the third-fastest man in history.

Another name not to ignore is Bashir Abdi of Belgium, who earlier this year became the first Belgian to win a medal at both the world championships and the Olympics in the marathon. Abdi won bronze in Tokyo and followed it up with another bronze in Eugene. 

Amos Kipruto of Kenya has been quiet this season after his PB and second-place finish to Kipchoge at the Tokyo Marathon in March. 

Women’s preview

With the two-time London Marathon champion and world record holder Kosgei out, her compatriot, Joyciline Jepkosgei, is the favourite. Jepkosgei brings experience and consistency to the field, having won this race last year in 2:17:43.

The dark horse is Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who previously held the half-marathon world record and ran the fastest debut marathon in women’s history, clocking 2:17:23 at Hamburg in April. She has gone undefeated in her last four road races and reached the podium in her last seven. 

Ashete Bekere of Ethiopia also has the experience, winning Berlin in 2019 and finishing third in London last year. Earlier this year, she was second to Kosgei at the Tokyo Marathon, where she ran her personal best of 2:17:58.

Judith Jeptum Korir of Kenya, the 2022 world championship silver medallist and reigning Paris Marathon champion, was originally planning to pace the leaders on Sunday, but has been a late addition to the elite list. London will be Korir’s third marathon in six months, but she has reached the podium in her last two. 

Ethiopians Yalemzerf Yehualaw and Jemal Yimer clinched repeat victories at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon

Adding another strong run to her CV, Yalemzerf Yehualaw clocked 1:04:22 to retain her crown at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon, a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race, in Larne, Northern Ireland, on Sunday (28).

Her Ethiopian compatriot Jemal Yimer also became a back-to-back winner at the event, the national record-holder running 59:04 as both athletes set UK all-comers' records.

For Yehualaw, who ran a 1:03:51 half marathon PB in Valencia last October, her performance is the equal fifth-fastest ever women’s half marathon achieved on a record-eligible course. The 23-year-old appeared to have broken the women’s world record with her 1:03:44 run in Larne last year, but the course was later found to have been 54 metres short. That world record has since been taken to a remarkable 1:02:52 by Letesenbet Gidey, who achieved the feat in Valencia last October, and Yehualaw was on pace to challenge that mark in the early stages of Sunday’s race in Larne. On a fast opening section of the course, she was paced through 5km in 14:44, with Gidey having recorded 15:00 for that split in Valencia 10 months ago.

Although that pace couldn’t be maintained, Yehualaw – who set a world 10km record of 29:14 in Castellon in February – still passed the 10km mark in 29:52, running behind pacemaker Roy Hoornweg and alongside Britain’s Callum Hawkins, the two-time world marathon fourth-place finisher who is making a comeback after injury.

Hoornweg stepped aside when the group reached 13km in around 39:10 and there started Yehualaw’s solo run to the finish line, with Hawkins striding ahead. Yehualaw, who ran the fastest ever women’s marathon debut with 2:17:23 in Hamburg in April, went on to pass the 15km mark in 45:27 and reached the finish in 1:04:22. Only she, Gidey, Ruth Chepngetich and Girmawit Gebrzihair have ever gone faster for the distance.

Moving to 12th on the world all-time list was Yehualaw’s compatriot Tsehay Gemechu, who passed 10km in 30:33 and went on to finish in a PB of 1:05:01 for the runner-up spot. Kenya’s Beatrice Chepkemoi Mutai was third in 1:07:37 and Ireland’s Fionnuala Ross fourth in 1:14:00.

“I am so happy to win this race,” Yehualaw said on the live BBC stream. “I was thinking of the world record. The first 10km was fast, the last 5km was slower. I will try it next time. I hope I will be back, I like this race.”

In the men’s race, Yimer was part of a lead group that passed 5km in 14:10 and he broke away a couple of kilometres later to lead by nine seconds at the 10km mark. He clocked 28:16 at that point, ahead of Kenya’s Alfred Ngeno and Shadrack Kimining, plus Ethiopia’s Tesfahun Akalnew.

Yimer had increased his lead to more than a minute by 15km, which he passed in 42:13, and he continued untroubled to reach the finish line in 59:04.

Ngeno held on for second in 1:01:00, while Kimining was third in 1:01:08 and Akalnew fourth in 1:01:44. Britain’s Marc Scott finished fifth in 1:02:58.

Ethiopians Yehualaw and Yimer look for fast times at Antrim Coast Half

British distance runners Marc Scott and Callum Hawkins are also set to race 13.1 miles while Haile Gebrselassie and Jo Pavey will run the one mile fun run this weekend.

Ethiopian distance running stars Ethiopians Yalemzerf Yehualaw and Jemal Yimer lead a world-class line-up at the ‘Mid & East Antrim’ Antrim Coast Half Marathon in Larne, Northern Ireland, on Sunday (Aug 28). There is plenty of British interest too with Marc Scott and Callum Hawkins among the entries.

The event, which is set to be covered live on BBC online from 8.55am, sees Yehualaw coming into this year’s race having broken the women’s world record over 10km with 29:14 in Castellon, Spain, earlier this year, in addition to running the fastest female debut marathon ever of 2:17:23 in Hamburg in April.

At the Antrim Coast event last year she appeared to break the world record for 13.1 miles with 63:43 but was denied the mark due to the course being found to be 54 metres short.

Yehualaw will be joined at this year’s Antrim Coast event by her training partner Tsehay Gemechu. The 23-year-old Ethiopian comes to this year’s with a personal best of 65:08 and has been winner of the Lisbon Half-Marathon two years in a row and Copenhagen Half-Marathon in 2021.

In addition for this World Athletics Elite Label road race there is Gete Alemayehu, who recorded 66:37 for second in Barcelona Half-Marathon in April. Beatrice Chepkemoi of Kenya, who has a PB of 67:29, will make it four women who have run under 67:30.

Three male pacemakers have been lined up and there is Northern Ireland interest courtesy of Emma Mitchell, Fionnuala Ross and Hannah Irwin.

The men’s field is led by Ethiopian record-holder and last year’s winner, Yimer. He is the quickest in the race with a PB of 58:33 but faces fellow Ethiopian Tesfahun Akalnew, who was was runner-up in Larne 12 months ago and has subsequently recorded a 2:06:55 marathon in Amsterdam.

Bethwel Birgen of Kenya is set to set the pace with Scott in particular hoping to be dragged under the 60 minute barrier. The Brit was not at his best in this summer’s track championships but has great pedigree on the roads after having won the Great North Run last year.

Could he get close to Mo Farah’s British record of 59:32 set in Lisbon seven years ago?

Also in the line-up are Shadrack Kimining of Kenya, Huseydin Mahamed of Ethiopia and Gizealew Ayana of Kenya, all of whom have broken the 60-minute barrier in the past.

Northern Ireland’s Stephen Scullion is also due to run plus Omar Ahmed of Birchfield Harriers.

The event has also secured a major coup with the signing of Haile Gebrselassie. The 49-year-old, who won multiple global titles during his career, will run the inaugural Antrim Coast Classic Street Mile for fun with Jo Pavey, young athletes and parents on Saturday evening (Aug 27) before joining race director James McIlroy to commentate on a half-marathon the next day.

Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei keen to defend London Marathon title

London Marathon champion Joyciline Jepkosgei will be seeking to defend her title in this edition set for October 2.

Last year, the 2016 Africa 10,000m bronze medalist obliterated a strong field to clinch the title in a personal best time of 2:17:43.

“My main aim is to defend my title and also lower my personal best,” Jepkosgei said.

Jepkosgei revealed she has invested a lot in training and expects this to repay handsomely on the streets of London.

“My main focus this season was on this marathon and I have trained very well for it. I know I will perform well,” she said.

Jepkosgei insisted she is not worried about the competition, where she will face the likes of compatriots Brigid Kosgei and Mary Ngugi, the Ethiopian duo of Degitu Azimeraw (2:17:58) and Ashete Bekere (2:17:58), who finished second and third respectively last year. Bekere finished second at the Tokyo Marathon in March.

Kosgei is the fastest in the field with her world record/personal best time of 2:14:04, ran at the 2019 Chicago marathon. Ngugi has a personal best time of 2:21:32 attained at this year’s Boston Marathon.

Commonwealth Games 10,000m winner Eilish McColgan will make her full marathon debut while another Ethiopian, Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:17:23), will be making her London Marathon debut. McColgan aims to replicate her mother — Liz McColgan — who won the 1996 edition.

“I enjoy running with elite runners. The race will be tough and that means I can post a good time,” she said.

The 28-year-old said she does not feel any pressure after training under her supportive husband/coach, Nicholas Koech.

“My coach has been a great support system for me and with that, I do not feel any pressure. He is also my adviser,” Jepkosgei said.

Meanwhile, Jepkosgei disclosed she is yet to make a decision on the 2023 World Championships in Budapest and the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“After the marathon, my coach and management will sit down and decide what next,” Jepkosgei said.

Commonwealth Games 10,000m winner Eilish McColgan will also be making her London Marathon debut with the aim of replicating Liz McColgan’s (her mother) win in the 1996 edition.

Joyciline Jepkosgei, Brigid Kosgei ready to clash in London Marathon

Defending champion Joyciline Jepkosgei will confront two times champion and world record holder Brigid Kosgei at this year's London Marathon on October 22 in the British capital.

Jepkosgei, who claimed her maiden victory in the British capital in a personal best and eighth fastest time of two hours, 17 minutes and 43 seconds last year, and Kosgei, the 2019 and 2020 winner, are part of the elite field heading for the race.

Jepkosgei became the 10th Kenyan woman to win the London Marathon on her third appearance in 2019.

In the same year, she won the New York Marathon in 2:22:38 and finished second at the Valencia Marathon (2:18:40).

Kosgei, who set the world record of 2:14:04 at the 2019 Chicago Marathon, finished a surprise fourth last year, but bounced back to win this year’s Tokyo Marathon in a world-lead time of 2:16:02.

Jepkosgei, 28, joined the long list of Kenyan athletes who have won the London Marathon; Joyce Chepchumba (2), Tegla Loroupe (1), Margaret Okayo (1), Keitany (3), Prisca Jeptoo (1), Edna Kiplagat (1), Jemima Sumgong (1), Vivian Cheruiyot (1) and Kosgei (2).

“It was a great achievement for me,” said Jepkosgei on the London marathon website.

“It was not an easy race.There were a lot of strong competitors and I stayed with them until there were only a few kilometres left."

“Then I was on my own. It was hard, but the cheerers around me kept me motivated and got me to the end. I was so happy to get to the finish line.”

Jepkosgei’s delight at winning was hard to miss and stayed with her throughout the night:

“I didn’t sleep at all, I was so happy,” she said.

“This achievement will stay with me forever. It was a great achievement and will last a lifetime.”

The other Kenyan in the race is Mary Ngugi, 33, who for the second consecutive time, came third during the Boston Marathon on April 18, but this time around in a personal best of 2:21:32.

The Kenyans will take on the fastest-ever female marathon debutant Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who leads a horde of Ethiopian runners to the London streets.

The 22-year-old Yehualaw is the current 10K world record holder (29:14) and ran 2:17:23 to win the Hamburg Marathon in April, the fastest marathon debut ever.

Ethiopian duo Degitu Azimeraw and Ashete Bekere, who finished second and third last year, also return.

Bekere finished second behind Kosgei at this year’s Tokyo Marathon in a personal best of 2:17:58.

ELITE FIELD

Brigid Kosgei (Ken) 2:14:04 (WR)

Yalemzerf Yehualaw (Eth)2:17:23

Joyciline Jepksogei (Ken)2:17:43

Degitu AZIMERAW (Eth)2:17:58

Ashete BEKERE (Eth) 2:17:58

Joan Chelimo MELLY ROU 2:18:04

Sutume Asefa KEBEDE (Eth) 2:18:12

Alemu MEGERTU (Eth) 2:18:51

Hiwot GEBREKIDAN (Eth) 2:19:10

Ababel YESHANEH (Eth) 2:20:51

Mary NGUGI (Ken) 2:21:32.

British half-marathon record-holder Eilish McColgan to make marathon debut in London

Eilish McColgan will make her much anticipated marathon debut in London on October 2 as she takes on a world-class field around the streets of the British capital.

The 31-year-old Scot broke Paula Radcliffe’s British half-marathon record of 66:47 on February 19, after clocking 66:26 at Ras Al Khaimah and now feels like it’s the right time to take on the marathon.

Since McColgan started competing on the roads she has broken the British 5km record, European 10km record and set a British best over 10 miles.

Given her natural progression through the longer distances on both track and field, it was always a question of not if but when McColgan took on 26.2 miles.

“It’s really just coming from a confidence side of things,” McColgan says. “I think I’ve known for like a very long time that this is where my career would go. I think my mum and my dad have known even longer than I have. From being a young kid they always said the marathon was the event I’d end up going to.

“The way I’ve progressed over the years now through the distances, taking on both the 5km and 10km, I remember thinking, ‘I’ll never ever run a half-marathon’. And yet now, I’m excited. I couldn’t wait to get out and race it against some of those the top athletes in the world.

“It is my choice. I feel I’m going to do it when I’m ready to do it and I think that’s that time is coming now. I think there’s no better place to do that than the London Marathon.

McColgan takes to the streets of the British capital 26 years after her mum, Liz McColgan won the race. Like Eilish, Liz started out on the track and gradually progressed to the marathon, winning on her debut in New York in 1991 before her triumph in London five years later.

“It’s amazing and it’s a bit surreal,” McColgan adds. “The more iconic images I’ve got in my head as a youngster were my mum running the London Marathon with Buckingham Palace in the background. It’s just incredible that so many years later I’m following in her footsteps and I think she’s excited to see that finally come into action.

“It’s always the iconic event. It was the one where I always watched my mum run as a kid when I sat in the hospitality area and ate all the free food! There’s not a London Marathon that my mum and dad have ever missed. It’s just got a buzz and everyone speaks about it, even those who don’t know much about athletics.”

Although this is McColgan’s debut marathon she does have experience of the London circuit though, having been the pacemaker for Charlotte Purdue last year.

Purdue is also part of the line-up this year which includes world marathon record-holder Brigid Kosgei, defending champion and fellow Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei and the fastest-ever female marathon debutante Yalemzerf Yehualaw of Ethiopia.

“It just feels surreal to me [to hear that],” McColgan adds. “I remember watching Paula [Radcliffe] on the side of the road in Athens and being as devastated as she was. I watched her run the world record in 2003 and it was strange watching it because, given her pace, it was like watching a robot. You thought there was no way somebody could keep it up for 26.2 miles.

“Out of all the records she set this is by far the one the hardest she set. It’s difficult for me to believe that’s it’s almost possible but if you asked me two years ago would I run 30 minutes for 10km, I’d have told you no chance but now I believe I can break that record.”

McColgan also has a busy summer on the track as she races over both 5000m and 10,000m at the World Championships in Oregon before representing Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Ahead of Paris 2024, she wants to focus on the marathon and compete in more road races in the near future.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw runs sensational 2:17:23 marathon debut in Hamburg and Kipchoge’s course record was shattered in men’s race

Yalemzerf Yehualaw won the Haspa Marathon Hamburg, producing a sensational marathon debut. The 22 year-old Ethiopian clocked 2:17:23 which is the fastest time by a debutant ever. So far Paula Radcliffe’s time of 2:18:56 from London in 2002 was the fastest debut time by a woman.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw became the sixth fastest women in the history of marathon running, broke the course record and set a German Allcomer record. Fikrte Wereta took second in 2:26:15 and Bone Cheluke made it an all-Ethiopian podium with 2:26:23 for third place. 

In the men’s race Eliud Kipchoge’s 2:05:30 course record from 2013 was broken by fellow-Kenyan Cybrian Kotut. He clocked 2:04:47, just edging Uganda’s debutant Stephen Kissa who crossed the line one second behind the winner. Ethiopia’s Workineh Tadesse followed in third place with 2:05:07. 

A total of 20,000 entries from 68 nations were registered by organisers for the 36th edition of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg, including shorter running events on Sunday. Around 10,500 of them competed in the marathon. Additionally 9,000 children participated in a 4.2 k run on Saturday. 

“That was a great spring comeback for us. We presented a stunning race on the streets of Hamburg and we are proud of the extremely strong results including two course records and a unique debut by Yalemzerf Yehualaw,“ said chief organiser Frank Thaleiser.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw came in late on Thursday and missed the pre-race press conference, but she took centre stage on Sunday when it mattered. In sunny but windy conditions and temperatures around 10 Celsius Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw dominated the women’s race from the beginning and constantly increased her lead.

She ran past the half marathon mark in a super fast 68:30. At this point she was already over two and a half minutes ahead. At the end of the race the gap between her and the second runner was almost nine minutes. “The race went well for me considering this was my first marathon. The fast Hamburg course suited me and the spectators helped me a lot,“ said the winner.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw was around four and a half minutes faster than former Hamburg course record holder Meselech Melkamu of Ethiopia (2:21:54 in 2016). Additionally she broke the German Allcomers record of Kenya’s Gladys Cherono who ran 2:18:11 in Berlin in 2018.

In the men’s race things looked a lot closer from the beginning. 17 men passed the 10k mark in 29:29. A major surge came late in the race with only four kilometres to go. Cybrian Kotut and Stephen Kissa, a debutant from Uganda, broke away from the leading group which included six runners at that point. Both delivered a stunning showdown right to the finish line.

In the final sprint Cybrian Kotut pushed himself to a close victory in 2:04:47, a second ahead of Stephen Kissa (2:04:48). Ethiopia’s Workineh Tadesse took third spot in 2:05:07. All three runners were within the former course record of Eliud Kipchoge which stood at 2:05:30. The Kenyan superstar set this record back in 2013 running his marathon debut in Hamburg. ’’I am very happy that I broke the course record.

The pacemakers covered me well from the wind. It was not easy with the wind, but overall the conditions were very good,“ said Cybrian Kotut.

The fastest German runner was Florian Röser. He ran a solid marathon debut in 2:15:03. ’’I’m very surprised to be the fastest German athlete. The race was not ideal for me but considering that this was my debut it was good,“ he said.

Kristina Hendel was the dominant German woman in the field. She finished the race in a strong fifth position with a  personal best of 2:27:29. “We had to fight against the wind from kilometer 8 till 31. On top of that I got cramps but they eased later in the race. I broke my personal best and I am very proud of that. I hope I will run in a German vest at the European Championships in Munich,“ said Christina Hendel.

The former Croatian gained German citizenship in 2021 but is not eligible yet to compete for Germany internationally. Deborah Schöneborn finished the race as the second fastest German woman in 9th place with a time of 2:29:51.

Men:

1.  Cybrian Kotut KEN 2:04:47

2.  Stephen Kissa UGA 2:04:48

3.  Workineh Tadesse ETH 2:05:07

4.  Victor Kiplangat UGA 2:05:09

5.  Abebe Negewo ETH 2:06:05

6.  Masresha Bere ETH 2:06:44

7.  Edwin Kiptoo KEN 2:06:52

8.  Abraham Kiptoo KEN 2:06:59

9.  Bazewe Asmare ETH 2:07:13

10. Bernard Ngeno KEN 2:07:27

Women:

1.  Yalemzerf Yehualaw ETH 2:17:13

2.  Fikrte Wereta ETH 2:26:15

3.  Bone Cheluke ETH 2:26:23

4.  Tseginesh Mekonnen ETH 2:26:29

5.  Kristina Hendel CRO 2:27:29

6.  Priscah Jeptoo KEN 2:28:48

7.  Rosa Chacha ECU 2:28:52

8.  Gadise Mulu ETH 2:28:37

9.  Deborah Schöneborn GER 2:29:51

10. Jana Soethout GER 2:34:28

Yehualaw runs 2:17:23 in Hamburg for fastest ever women's marathon debut

Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw made history in Hamburg on Sunday (24), running 2:17:23 for the fastest ever women’s marathon debut.

The 22-year-old won the Haspa Marathon Hamburg by almost nine minutes, breaking the Ethiopian record and German all-comers’ record, while just a second separated the top two in the men’s race. Kenya’s Cybrian Kotut clocked 2:04:47 to pip Uganda’s Stephen Kissa as the top four were all under the previous men’s course record of 2:05:30 set by Eliud Kipchoge in 2013.

Having broken the world 10km record with 29:14 in Castellon in February and with a half marathon best of 1:03:51 to her name, Yehualaw’s marathon debut was highly anticipated and she delivered in fine style.

Fast from the start, she ran with her male pacemakers through 10km in 32:39 and was on exactly 2:17 marathon pace through half way (1:08:30). Slowing only marginally in the second half, she went through 30km in 1:37:34 before running solo through 35km in 1:53:55 once her pacemakers had done their job.

The world half marathon bronze medallist continued on to eventually reach the finish line with 2:17:23 on the clock, well under the previous fastest ever women’s marathon debut time of 2:18:56 achieved by Paula Radcliffe in 2002.

The performance puts Yehualaw sixth on the women's world marathon all time list, topped by Brigid Kosgei’s world record of 2:14:04 set in 2019, and is the third-fastest time of the year so far.

She led an Ethiopian top three, with Fikrte Wereta and Bone Cheluke clocking respective times of 2:26:15 and 2:26:23, also on their marathon debuts.

In the men’s race, Kotut and Kissa had broken away from a six-strong group that passed 35km in 1:43:38, and so began their fierce battle for the finish. They were together through 40km in 1:58:18 and with two hours on the clock Kissa kicked, looking for a win on his marathon debut, but his rival responded.

It was Kotut, last year’s Florence Marathon winner and a training partner of recent Boston Marathon winner Evans Chebet, who had the stronger finish and he edged Kissa at the end - 2:04:47 to 2:04:48.

It was a PB for Kotut, improving on his previous best of 2:07:11 from 2016, while Kissa was rewarded with a Ugandan record on his debut.

Joining them under the previous course record were Ethiopia's Workineh Tadesse with a 2:05:07 PB and Uganda's Victor Kiplangat with a 2:05:09 PB.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw among strong field of elite runners in Hamburg

The Haspa Marathon Hamburg returns to its traditional spring date on Sunday for the first time since 2019 with probably the strongest elite fields in the history of the event. Last year’s race was held under strict Covid regulations with less than 5,000 runners and almost no elite athletes.

The event on Sunday (April 24) will be the complete opposite: Including events at shorter distances organisers registered over 20,000 athletes from 65 nations and the elite fields boost eleven runners with personal bests of sub 2:08 and seven women who ran below 2:27. However the star name on the start list is not among them: Ethiopia’s 10k world record holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw will run her much anticipated debut at the Haspa Marathon Hamburg.

Germany’s biggest spring marathon, which will see its 36th edition, will be streamed live worldwide on Sunday from 9.20am (European time) at: www.haspa-marathon-hamburg.de 

“We are happy to be back in the spring with a large race and with a very strong elite field. I am really looking forward to some very good performances. We hope to see a women’s course record on Sunday,“ said chief organiser Frank Thaleiser.

The city of Hamburg might well be the place to see a new marathon star emerge on Sunday. And it would not be the first time this happens in the “Hansestadt“: Kenya’s superstar Eliud Kipchoge won his marathon debut here in 2013 with 2:05:30 which is still the course record.

Could Yalemzerf Yehualaw start an extraordinary marathon career in Hamburg as well? The 22 year-old Ethiopian brings all the requirements and characteristics for success in the marathon. With a half marathon PB of 63:51 she is the second fastest ever at this distance. Additionally Yalemzerf Yehualaw smashed the 10k world record this February with 29:14 in Castellon, Spain. 

“Yalemzerf has trained well and we are looking forward to a promising and interesting marathon debut,“ said Jurrie van der Velden, who is the elite coordinator of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg.

Unfortunately Yalemzerf Yehualaw’s flight to Hamburg was delayed so that she missed the press conference on Thursday. The Ethiopian could produce one of the fastest debuts ever and break the course record. Fellow-Ethiopian Meselech Melkamu is the current course record holder with a time of 2:21:54 from 2016. Despite running her debut Yalemzerf Yehualaw must be regarded as the favourite.

While the Olympic silver medallist of the London Games in 2021, Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya, is the fastest on the start list with 2:20:14 there are two women in the field who have won the Haspa Marathon Hamburg. Gadise Mulu is the defending champion and fellow-Ethiopian Dibabe Kuma, who took the race in 2019, is the second fastest on the start list with her PB of 2:23:24.

While the elite women often have their individual pacemakers Jurrie van der Velden hopes that a group of athletes will run together for at least the first half of the race. “The pace for this group will likely be between 70:30 and 71:00,“ he said.

Deborah Schöneborn and Kristina Hendel are the the top German runners in Hamburg. Schöneborn, who achieved a strong 18th place in the Olympic marathon last year, has a PB of 2:26:55. However she carried an injury during the winter months and is probably not yet at her best. Hendel has received German citizenship and hopes to be eligible to compete for Germany at the European Championships. Internationally at the moment she is still registered as Croatian. Kristina Hendel ran a 2:27:31 debut marathon last autumn and hopes to improve to around 2:25 in Hamburg.

Three men will be going to the starting line on Sunday knowing they have run faster than Eliud Kipchoge’s Hamburg course record of 2:05:30. Since Guye Adola had to withdraw due to an injury fellow-Ethiopian Abebe Negewo, who was also known as Abebe Degefa, now heads the start lists with a PB of 2:04:06 which he ran in Valencia in 2019. With Ethiopia’s Tsegaye Mekonnen the winner of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg 2017 returns.

He still is the unofficial world junior record holder with a time of 2:04:32. It was around half a year ago when Barselius Kipyego of Kenya clocked his PB of 2:04:48 in Paris. 

“For a number of athletes this will be their first major international race since the start of the pandemic. We hope that they will do very well,“ said Jurrie van der Velden. “The weather looks good at the moment. If it is like this on Sunday we are optimistic to see times of around 2:05.“

Philipp Pflieger, who has a personal best of 2:12:15, and Johannes Motschmann carry national hopes on Sunday. Motschmann ran 2:12:18 in Rotterdam last autumn and showed promising form recently at the Berlin Half Marathon where he improved to 61:45. As a number of other athletes he hopes to achieve the qualifying standard for the World Championships of 2:11:30 in Hamburg.

Elite runners with personal bests

Men:

Abebe Negewo ETH 2:04:06

Tsegaye Mekonnen ETH 2:04:32

Barselius Kipyego KEN 2:04:48

Dejene Debele ETH 2:05:46

Simon Kipkosgei KEN 2:07:07

Cybrian Kotut KEN 2:07:11

Bernard Ngeno KEN 2:07:18

Amos Mitei KEN 2:07:28

Workineh Tadesse ETH 2:07:42

Abrar Osman ERI 2:07:46

Mustafa Kedir ETH 2:07:49

Alfred Koech KEN 2:09:01

Victor Kiplangat UGA 2:10:18

Bazezew Asmare ETH 2:10:51

Masresha Bere ETH 2:10:55

Arturo Esparza MEX 2:11:04

Philipp Pflieger GER 2:12:15

Johannes Motschmann GER 2:12:18

Gasper Csere HUN 2:14:34

Dario Castro MEX 2:14:51

Marco Salami ITA 2:14:57

Stephen Kissa UGA Debut

Ronald Kirui KEN Debut

Ibrahim Hassan DJI Debut

Filimon Abraham GER Debut

Women:

Priscah Jeptoo KEN 2:20:14

Dibabe Kuma ETH 2:23:24

Carla Rocha POR 2:24:47

Tseginesh Mekonnen ETH 2:24:50

Gadise Mulu ETH 2:26:20

Alice Cherono KEN 2:26:51

Deborah Schöneborn GER 2:26:55

Kristina Hendel CRO 2:27:31

Rosa Chacha ECU 2:28:17

Andreia Hessel BRA 2:34:55

Maria Sagnes Wagan NOR 2:35:34

Camilla Elofsson SWE 2:35:37

Yalemzerf Yehualaw ETH Debut

Alia Mohamed UAE Debut

Berlin champion Guye Adola and Hamburg winner Tsegaye Mekonnen are set to run in Hamburg

Former Hamburg winner Tsegaye Mekonnen and reigning Berlin Marathon champion Guye Adola are among the top runners for the Haspa Marathon Hamburg on 24th April. The two Ethiopians feature personal bests of sub 2:05 as do three other runners on the start list. Guye Adola heads this list with a time of 2:03:46. Organizers announced athletes of the men’s elite field today. The women’s race will feature the debut marathon of Ethiopia’s 10k world record holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw, which was announced a fortnight ago.

Organizers of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg expect a total of 20,000 runners including races at shorter distances on 24th April. Online entry is still possible at: www.haspa-marathon-hamburg.de

It was back in 2017 when Guye Adola ran a sensational marathon debut in Berlin. Clocking an unofficial world debut record of 2:03:46 which remains his PB he came surprisingly close to beating Kenya’s superstar Eliud Kipchoge. Adola was even leading the Olympic Champion until around 40 k before Kipchoge finally managed to overhaul him and win by just 14 seconds.

Injuries, health problems and Covid 19 restrictions stopped him from competing a couple of times in the past few years. However Guye Adola then came back to Berlin to beat Ethiopia’s superstar and pre-race favorite Kenenisa Bekele comfortably in September last year. In very warm conditions the 31 year-old clocked 2:05:45.

Having coped so well against the fastest marathon runners on the planet Guye Adola could be in a position to take away the course record from Eliud Kipchoge. The Kenyan won his debut race at the distance in Hamburg in 2013 and set the current mark of 2:05:30.

While Guye Adola has never raced in Hamburg Tsegaye Mekonnen is a former winner of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg. The 26 year-old clocked 2:07:26 in 2017 when he took the race, denying the 2012 Olympic Champion Stephen Kiprotich of Uganda by just five seconds. Tsegaye Mekonnen had made headlines before when he triumphed at the Dubai Marathon in 2014. As an 18 year-old he achieved a time of 2:04:32 which still stands as the unofficial world junior record today (World Athletics does not recognize junior records in the marathon).

There are four other runners on the start list of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg who have run faster than Kipchoge’s course record. Kinde Atanaw ran 2:03:51 when he took the Valencia Marathon in 2019 while fellow-Ethiopian Abebe Degefa was fourth in that race with 2:04:51. Barselius Kipyego of Kenya showed fine form last autumn when he ran 2:04:48 for fourth place in Paris. Eritrea’s Afewerki Berhane, who has a personal best of 2:05:22, is also going for Germany’s biggest spring marathon.

Among a number of debutants Stephen Kissa might be capable of a surprise. The Ugandan ran a very fast half marathon time of 58:56 in New Delhi in 2020.

More information about the Haspa Marathon Hamburg and online entry is available at: Haspa-Marathon-Hamburg.de.

World record holder Yalemzerf Yehualaw will run debut marathon in Hamburg

Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who has smashed the world 10 k record just a few days ago, now sets her sights on her marathon debut. The 22 year-old Ethiopian has chosen the Haspa Marathon Hamburg on 24th April for her first race at the classic distance.

This was announced by organizers during a press conference in Hamburg today. Germany’s biggest spring marathon returns to its traditional date for the first time since 2019 and looks likely to come back with a bang. Yalemzerf Yehualaw clearly has the potential to run a very good first marathon. Organizers of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg expect a total of 20,000 runners including races at shorter distances on 24th April. Online entry is still possible at: www.haspa-marathon-hamburg.de

“We are thrilled to have Yalemzerf Yehualaw, one of the most exciting marathon talents of the world, on the start line of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg,“ said chief organizer Frank Thaleiser.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who improved the world 10 k record by a huge margin of 24 seconds to 29:14 last Sunday in Castello, Spain, is also the world’s second fastest half marathon runner. She clocked 63:51 in Valencia last October. Additionally at the World Half Marathon Championships in 2020 she won the bronze medal. Her half marathon PB suggests that she has the potential to run spectacular marathon times as well in the future.

“I am really happy to be able to run my marathon debut in Hamburg. My coach Tessema suggested to me to go to Hamburg for my debut since he ran here himself,“ said Yalemzerf Yehualaw. Tessema Abshero ran his lifetime best in Hamburg back in 2008 when he was fourth with 2:08:26. It was the only time he clocked a sub 2:10 time during his career.

Organizers showed Yalemzerf Yehualaw the Hamburg course and she then said during the press conference: „I am looking forward to this race and want to break the course record.“ Fellow-Ethiopian Meselech Melkamu holds the current Hamburg course best with a time of 2:21:54 from 2016.

The fastest woman runner on Hamburg’s start list is Priscah Jeptoo. The Olympic silver medalist from London 2012 has a PB of 2:20:14. While this personal record is ten years old more recently the Kenyan ran 2:24:16 in Valencia in 2019.

Two former winners of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg are returning to the race. Gadise Mulu will start as the defending champion. The Ethiopian took first place last September when the race was held in a much smaller format and with only a few elite runners due to the pandemic. Gadise Mulu improved significantly in Hamburg when she broke 2:30 for the first time and clocked 2:26:20.

Dibabe Kuma is the other Hamburg winner who comes back to the race. The Ethiopian was the winner in 2019, when she ran 2:24:41. She has a PB of 2:23:24.

Deborah Schöneborn heads the national elite entries of the Haspa Marathon Hamburg. The 27 year-old ran surprisingly well in the Olympic marathon in Sapporo last summer, where she finished 18th. She was the fifth fastest European athlete in this race. Deborah Schöneborn has a personal best of 2:26:55 and aims to qualify for the European Championships this summer.

Ethiopian runner Yalemzerf Yehualaw has clocked 29:14 for a women’s world 10km record in a mixed race

Yalemzerf Yehualaw has broken the women’s 10km road record in Castellon, Spain, with a time of 29:14.

The 22-year-old sliced 24 seconds from Kalkidan Gezahegne’s world record of 29:38 on Sunday (Feb 27) in Spain.

It comes after a couple of record-breaking near misses. In the Antrim Coast Half-Marathon last September she set what appeared to be a world record of 63:43 before it transpired the course was 54 metres short. Then, in the Great Ethiopian Run last month, she seemingly clocked an African all-comers’ record of 30:14 at high altitude in Addis Ababa, only to see the time adjusted to 31:17 due to a timing error.

Yalemzerf said: “Today a dream came true. I felt really great in the race. The first 5km was very fast. I was struggling a little bit in the second 5km but I was still able to maintain a high pace.

“I’m so happy with this record! I want to thank the race organisers for this fantastic opportunity,” added Yehualaw, who ran splits of 14:28 and 14:46.

Yehualaw won a bronze medal at the World Half Marathon Championships whereas last year she became the second fastest women’s half-marathon runner in history, clocking 63:51 in Valencia to finish behind the world record run of her NN Running Team team-mate Letesenbet Gidey.

Ethiopian runner Yalemzerf Yehualaw plans to defend her title at Northern Ireland event in August

Ethiopian runner plans to defend her title at Northern Ireland event in August on a course which organizers promise will be accurate this time after the 2021 short-course issue.

Yalemzerf Yehualaw has not enjoyed much luck in road races lately. In the Antrim Coast Half-Marathon last September she set what appeared to be a world record of 63:43 before it transpired the course was 54 meters short. Then, in the Great Ethiopian Run this month, she seemingly clocked an African all-comers’ record of 30:14 at high altitude in Addis Ababa, only to see the time adjusted to 31:17 due to a timing error.

The 22-year-old hopes things will start going in her favor this year and on August 28 she competes again in the ‘Mid & East Antrim’ Antrim Coast Half-Marathon, a World Athletics Elite Label race which organizers this time are sure will see performances properly ratified.

Elite race director James McIlroy said: ‘The one name we wanted back after last year’s unratified world record was Yalemzerf – and to get this news at the beginning of the season means so much. She loves the course, the people and the support she got last year along the route really spurred her on, so to have her confirm that she’s returning to the province is very special.

“As it stands, she has run four of the seven fastest all-time half marathons and just last week she ran the fastest ever 10km at altitude in winning the Great Ethiopian Run against some of the best distance runners in the world. At 22 years old she’s got so much more to come.”

Yehualaw’s ratified half-marathon best is 63:51 set in Valencia last year and she has also won bronze at the World Half-Marathon Championships. Only one athlete has run quicker over the 13.1-mile distance – world record-holder Letesenbet Gidey with 62:52, which was also set in Valencia last year.

When asked about the course being found to be 54 meters short, he said: “It was very disappointing for everyone concerned; the event, the course measurers, who are two of the most experienced in the UK, but most of all the athlete. But we did follow the protocol to the letter, and the main issue was around not having both measurements done at the same time.

“This unfortunately wasn’t possible due to the travel restrictions in place at that time because of Covid. Moving forward in 2022, we will have the course measured, verified and a racing line put down ahead of the race in August.”

McIlroy, a former AW cover star himself during his 800m racing days, added he has a big announcement coming soon in the men’s race, even going as far as to say that it’s as exciting news as you can get when it comes to global distance running.

Also already set to race on August 28 are Great North Run winner Marc Scott and last year’s Antrim Coast runner-up Tesfahun Akalnew.

World half marathon bronze medalist Yalemzerf Yehualaw breaks race record at Great Ethiopian Run

Yalemzerf Yehualaw opened her 2022 season in spectacular style by claiming victory at the Total Energies Great Ethiopian Run 10km, taking 38 seconds off her own race record with 31:17.

Her winning time is the fastest 10km ever recorded at altitude, with Addis Ababa standing 2350m above sea level. Gemechu Dida won a close men's race in 28:24, just five seconds shy of the long-standing race record.

Yehualaw, who set the previous event record of 31:55 in 2019, came into the race eager to impress after having to withdraw from the Valencia 10km just two weeks ago. Today she ran a smart race, making her break from long-time leader Girmawit Gebregziabiher, the 2018 world U20 5000m bronze medalist, just past the 7.5km mark after cresting the hill near the National Palace.

At the 9km turn at Urael Church, Yehuawlaw accelerated dramatically and pulled clear of her rival, cruising to the finish line to win by 12 seconds from Gebregziabiher, who clocked 31:29. Double world U20 medalist Melknat Wedu, still just 17 years of age, finished third in 31:45.

The men’s race was much closer, with six athletes still in contention in the final 500 meters. In the end it was Dida who took a surprise victory over former Dubai Marathon champion Getaneh Molla with Boki Diriba finishing third as two seconds separated the podium finishers.

The highest-placed non-Ethiopian athlete was Kenya’s Cornelius Kibet Kemboi, who finished sixth in 28:39. A total of 17,600 runners finished the mass race.

Leading results

Women

1 Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH) 31:17

2 Girmawit Gebrzihair (ETH) 31:29

3 Melknat Wedu (ETH) 31:45

4 Gete Alemayehu (ETH) 32:06

5 Bosena Mulate (ETH) 32:17

6 Hawi Feyisa (ETH) 32:18

7 Birtukan Wolde (ETH) 32:22

8 Anchinalu Desse (ETH) 32:38

9 Mebrat Gidey (ETH) 32:42

10 Ayenaddis Teshome (ETH) 32:49

Men

1 Gemechu Dida (ETH) 28:24

2 Getaneh Molla (ETH) 28:25

3 Boki Diriba (ETH) 28:26

4 Moges Tuemay (ETH) 28:31

5 Getachew Masresha (ETH) 28:33

6 Cornelius Kibet Kemboi (KEN) 28:39

7 Teresa Ggnakola (ETH) 28:43

8 Solomon Berihun (ETH) 28:55

9 Ashenafi Kiros (ETH) 28:59

10 Antenayehu Dagnachew (ETH) 29:05.

Fast 10km times expected in Valencia

Two years ago at the 10K Valencia Ibercaja, Kenya’s Rhonex Kipruto set the current men’s world record with his impressive 26:24 performance. This year, organizers hoped to match that feat in the women’s event at the World Athletics Label Road Race by bringing together some of the most outstanding distance athletes, including Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw and Kenya’s Norah Jeruto.

Unfortunately Yehualaw, the main candidate to improve the 29:38 mark achieved by Bahrain’s Kalkidan Gezahegne in Geneva last October, will be unable to compete in Valencia on Sunday (9) after testing positive for Covid-19 just before travelling on Thursday. Gezahegne's performance is awaiting ratification as the women's world 10km record set in a mixed race, with the current ratified mark the 29:43 run by Joyciline Jepkosgei in 2017.

The 22-year-old Yehualaw holds the second-quickest ever time in the half marathon, courtesy of her 1:03:51 run in Valencia on 24 October, when she covered the opening 10km in 29:45. Her 3:01 per kilometer average pace suggested the world 10km record was well within the world half marathon bronze medallist's capabilities.

Jeruto will be in the Mediterranean city this Sunday, however, and is a classic contender in the event, having recorded times of 29:51 in January 2020 and 30:08 in October 2021. She boasts the world’s third-quickest 3000m steeplechase time in history with a stunning 8:53.65 clocking to her credit and confirmed her top shape by winning the Italica cross country meeting on 21 November against some top competition.

The European record that belongs to Great Britain’s Paula Radcliffe seems to be in jeopardy thanks to the presence of the newly-crowned European cross country champion Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal. In Dublin the 31-year-old Norwegian achieved at last the elusive gold medal she had chased for many years, having previously won one silver and four bronze medals.

Boosted by her recent success, Grovdal should improve her lifetime best of 30:32 set in 2020 to attack the European record of 30:21 set by Radcliffe in 2003, when it was a world record. Sweden’s 2014 European 5000m champion Meraf Bahta, silver medalist in Dublin, will also be looking for a fast time after setting a national 5km record of 15:04 on 31 December in Barcelona.

Grovdal and Bahta will likely be joined by Kenya’s Gladys Chepkurui, who achieved a career best of 30:34 on the Spanish soil of Laredo last year, while the British pair of Charlotte Purdue and Samantha Harrison will try to break the 32-minute barrier for the first time.

Reportedly, Grovdal plans to go through the first half of the race in a moderate 15:15, to then pick up the pace during the second and more favorable closing 5km.

Men target sub-27:00 performance

Although somewhat overshadowed by the women’s event, the men’s race is also shaping up well and is headed by the Kenyan trio of Daniel Simiu Ebenyo, Boniface Kibiwott and Jacob Krop. The former won the 2020 San Silvestre Vallecana, boasts a fine 27:12 10km lifetime best and lowered his 5000m clocking to 12:55.88 last summer, while Kibiwott timed 27:13 in Geneva for third place last October. As for Krop, he’s a talented athlete who placed sixth at the World Athletics Championships in Doha over 5000m aged 18. He set his lifetime best of 27:30 in Valencia in 2020 and showed fine fitness during his last appearance in Herzogenaurach, where he won the 5km event in a PB of 13:06.

The Ethiopian response should come from the 17-year-old Chimdesa Debele, winner of the Lille 10km last November thanks to a career best of 27:16, while Switzerland’s Julien Wanders and Spain’s Carlos Mayo will be the leading Europeans. The Swiss athlete set the current European record of 27:13 here two years ago while Mayo, a 27:25.00 performer on the track, is targeting a national record to improve the mark which currently stands at 27:48.

In addition to the elite competition, there will be a mass race with 10,000 entrants divided into five waves as a security measure. Runners from 58 different countries will be looking to improve their PBs over one of the quickest circuits worldwide.

Weather forecasters predict a sunny but windy day on Sunday, with temperatures between 12 and 14ºC by the time of the event.

Gidey smashes world half marathon record in Valencia

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey smashed the world record* at the Valencia Half Marathon Trinidad Alfonso EDP, clocking 1:02:52 on her debut at the distance at the World Athletics Elite Label road race on Sunday (24).

Competing in the same Spanish city where she broke the world 5000m record last year, Gidey took 70 seconds off the previous world record of 1:04:02 set by world marathon champion Ruth Chepngetich earlier this year.

In doing so, 23-year-old Gidey becomes the first woman to officially break the 64 and 63-minute barriers. She’s also the first debutante to set a world record for the distance.

Perfectly paced by her compatriot Mebrahtu Kiros, Gidey went through the opening 5km in 15:00, well inside world record pace, with her compatriot Yalemzerf Yehualaw running five metres down. Yehualaw, whose recent 1:03:44 clocking in Larne could not be ratified as a world record due to the course being too short, drifted further back over the next few kilometres as Gidey reached 10km in 29:45 – the third-fastest clocking in history for the distance and just seven seconds shy of the world record set just a few weeks ago by Kalkidan Gezahegne.

While Yehualaw began to lose ground shortly afterwards, Gidey maintained her relentless rhythm to cover the next 5km segment in 14:44, reaching the 15km point in 44:29, barely nine seconds slower than her own world best for the distance.

Although her pace dropped very slightly in the last quarter of the race, Gidey had done more than enough to ensure victory in a world record time. She crossed the line in 1:02:52, adding a third world record to her name to go alongside the marks she owns for 5000m (14:06.62) and 10,000m (29:01.03).

Underscoring the quality of Gidey’s performance, she crossed the finish line alongside Spain’s Javier Guerra, a 2:07:27 marathon runner.

“I knew I could run this kind of time as my training sessions in the altitude of Addis Abeba have gone very well,” said an ecstatic Gidey, the Olympic bronze medallist and world silver medallist over 10,000m. “In future I’m thinking of competing at the marathon distance but I’m not sure that will come before the Paris 2024 Olympic Games or later.”

Yehualaw finished second in 1:03:51, also inside the previous world record. Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui bettered her lifetime best by 45 seconds to complete the podium in 1:04:54.

The men’s race may not have witnessed a world record, but it still had record depth with an unprecedented seven men covering the distance within 59 minutes.

The leading group went through the opening 5km in 13:45, right on schedule for a 58-minute finishing time. Kenya’s world 10km record holder Rhonex Kipruto ran comfortably close to the pacemakers alongside compatriots Abel Kipchumba, Philemon Kiplimo, Felix Kipkoech, Daniel Mateiko and Kennedy Kimutai plus Ethiopia’s world 5000m champion Muktar Edris.

Surprisingly, the three pacemakers – Josphat Kiptoo Chumo, Emmanuel Maru and Evans Kipkemei Kurui – dropped out before the seventh kilometre and from then on the main favourites took turns in the lead to keep a swift pace. The 10km checkpoint was reached in 27:35, slightly outside their target, with Kipruto and 58:48 world leader Kipchumba making most of the pacing duties alongside the surprise package Mateiko, whose career best was 59:25 set in Copenhagen last month. At that point, 10 men still remained in the lead pack.

The first serious move came in the 12th kilometre when Mateiko, a training partner of Eliud Kipchoge, tried to break away from the rest but he was soon reeled in by the main contenders, who were now running in single file.

Shortly after reaching 15km in 41:16, Kipchumba moved to the front and only Kipruto could live with his pace. With about half a kilometre to go, Kipruto surged and gained a few metres on Kipchumba, but the latter never gave up and overtook Kipruto in the closing stages to win in a world-leading 58:07 with Kipruto taking second place in 58:09.

Kipchumba’s winning time elevates him to sixth on the world all-time list. Mateiko set a huge PB of 58:24 to secure a Kenyan sweep of the podium places.

Ethiopians Letesenbet Gidey and Yalemzerf Yehualaw target world half marathon record in Valencia

The Valencia Half Marathon Trinidad Alfonso EDP witnessed a men’s world record last year as Kibiwott Kandie ran a stunning 57:32. This time the women’s world record is the target and organisers have assembled a star-studded line-up for the World Athletics Elite Label road race on Sunday (24).

Ethiopians Letesenbet Gidey and Yalemzerf Yehualaw will clash in a long-awaited showdown. Gidey is the world 5000m and 10,000m record-holder, while Yehualaw ran 1:03:44 in August, and although that time will not be ratified as a world half marathon record the two athletes will now go head-to-head in Valencia as they target the 1:04:02 run by Ruth Chepngetich in Istanbul in April, a mark which is pending world record ratification.

The 23-year-old Gidey has competed sparingly this year but managed to set a world 10,000m record by running 29:01.03 in Hengelo before claiming bronze at the Tokyo Olympics. While the diminutive Yehualaw is an accomplished half marathon specialist, with nine outings over the last three seasons, Gidey will tackle the distance for the first time but her impressive 44:20 world best for the 15km set in Nijmegen in 2019 suggests she might become the first debutante to set a world record for the distance.

Reportedly, each of the Ethiopian aces will be joined by their respective pacemakers – Mebrahtu Kiros and Genetu Molalign – in a battle which promises to be fierce, while the organisers will provide an official pacemaker for the rest of the elite targeting a 1:05 clocking.

That second group looks set to be led by Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi, the winner in 2019 thanks to a 1:05:32 time; her compatriot Hawi Feysa, fresh from a 1:05:41 PB in Copenhagen last month; Sheila Chepkirui, runner-up last year in a career best of 1:05:39; and her fellow Kenyan Brenda Jepleting, a 1:06:52 performer.

After last year’s climax, when no fewer than four men ran inside the then world record of 58:01, one of them – Rhonex Kipruto – will be the marquee athlete this time. The Kenyan star, who clocked a 57:49 debut last year, also excelled in Valencia in January 2020 when he set the world 10km record of 26:24. He couldn’t place higher than ninth at the Tokyo Olympics over 10,000m but proved to be in top form in September when he recorded 26:43 at a 10km road race in Herzogenaurach.

While a men’s world record assault is not planned on this occasion, the pacemakers are set to go through the opening 10km in 27:30 on the hunt for a sub-58:00 finish time.

In addition to Kipruto, Sunday’s field includes another four Kenyan athletes with PBs under 59 minutes: Philemon Kiplimo, who was fifth last year in Valencia in a career best of 58:11, plus Kelvin Kiptum (58:42), Abel Kipchumba (58:48) and Felix Kipkoech (58:57).

Yet Kipruto’s toughest opposition might come from the two-time world 5000m champion Muktar Edris. The 27-year-old Ethiopian posted a promising debut over the distance last November by clocking 59:04 in New Delhi and should play a key role on Sunday, while the European challenge will be headed by Norway’s Sondre Moen and Spain’s Carlos Mayo.

Weather forecasters predict an ideal morning for running, with a 13ºC temperature and a very slight breeze. After the four records set in Valencia last year – the men’s 10km, half marathon and 10,000m, plus the women’s 5000m – the city could witness another world best on Sunday.

Valencia Half Marathon announces its international elite runners aiming to achieve new records for this weekend

The Valencia Half Marathon Trinidad Alfonso EDP, organized by SD Correcaminos, has confirmed the names of the international elite that will take to the streets of Valencia Ciudad del Running on October 24th.

After the Elite Edition last year in which a new male world record for the distance was set, 57:32 by Kibiwott Kandie, and four runners ran under 58 minutes, the Valencia Half Marathon aims to become the world’s fastest in 2021, all of this without losing sight of the challenge of the women’s world record, currently set at 1:03:44. 

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey, current 5000m record holder (14:06.62 at the NN Valencia World Record Day in 2020), 10,000 (29:01.03, Hengelo) and 15K record holder (44:20), will try to improve upon her bronze medal in the 10,000m at Tokyo 2020 debuting at the Valencia Half Marathon at a world–class level. Alongside her, the last two winners of the event, Genzebe Dibaba (1:05:18 in 2020) and Senbere Teferi (1:05:32 in 2019 and 5K recordwoman with 14:29), as well as Yalemzerf Yehualaw (1:04:40), third in the last World Half Marathon in Gdynia (Poland), and who took 19 seconds off the world half marathon record, running a remarkable 1:03:44 at the P&O Ferries Antrim Coast Half Marathon.

In spite of the immeasurable records that were registered in the men’s category in 2020, with four runners under 58 minutes and the previous world record, the Valencia Half Marathon will also set up a race of an immensely high level in the men’s category. The third classified of the Elite Edition, Rhonex Kipruto (57:49 and the current 10K road world record) will return and the Ethiopian Muktar Edris, double world champion in 5.000m on track and with a time of 59:04 in half marathon, in his only experience in road race. They will be joined by several sub 59-minute runners over the distance and some world-class debutants from the track.

Marc Roig: “Dreaming about a world record is possible and desired”.

Marc Roig, manager of the international elite of the race, said that “Olympic years always have a special atmosphere, but the calendar does not stop and the half marathon (non-Olympic distance) has other crowns to share out. And they want them, both those who triumphed in Tokyo and those who fell short. That’s why dreaming about the world record is possible and desired”. 

The Valencia Half Marathon is working with the teams of the top elite athletes so that their training in the weeks leading up to the event will culminate in an unprecedented peak of performance in Valencia.

Gemechu breaks course record at Copenhagen Half Marathon

sehay Gemechu set a course record while Amedework Walelegn made it an Ethiopian double at the Copenhagen Half Marathon, a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race, on Sunday (19).

Making the most of the flat course in Denmark’s capital city, Gemechu took 52 seconds off her almost two-year-old PB, running a dominant 1:05:08 to improve the course record set by Sifan Hassan in 2018 by seven seconds. Walelegn, meanwhile, won a much closer men's race, holding off a challenge from Kenya’s Keneth Renju to win by two seconds in 59:10.

Running behind her pacemaker Roy Hoornweg, who also paced Yalemzerf Yehualaw to her world half marathon record in Larne last month, Gemechu had her sights on the 1:05:15 race record set by the now double Olympic champion Hassan three years ago, but the big pre-event favourite wasn’t alone in the opening stages. Her fellow Ethiopians Hawi Feysa, Gete Alemayehu and Beyenu Degefa, plus Kenya’s Vivian Kiplagat, joined her in a lead group which went through 5km in 15:16 and by 10km (30:48) the pack was starting to stretch, with Alemayehu having been dropped and Gemechu still to the fore and looking comfortable.

A couple of kilometres later Gemechu, who finished fourth in the 2019 world 5000m final in Doha, had broken away and was running clear ahead of her compatriot Feysa, the 2017 U20 world cross country silver medallist. By 15km Gemechu, now running without her pacemaker, had a 13-second lead ahead of Feysa, with Kiplagat another 22 seconds back. That is how the positions remained to the finish line, but with Gemechu’s advantage having grown to half a minute.

Feysa, who has a 2:23:36 marathon PB from Dubai last year but was making her half marathon debut, finished second in 1:05:41, with Kiplagat clocking 1:06:07 to take 31 seconds off her PB in third. Degefa was fourth (1:08:15) and Ethiopia’s Yitayish Mekonene fifth (1:08:53).

“I was hoping to break my personal best and run close to 65 minutes, and beating Sifan Hassan’s race record of course is something special,” said Gemechu. “I am very happy. It was a bit windy, so I had to work hard.”

The men’s race saw a group of nine athletes, plus pacemaker Abel Sikowo, pass the 5km mark in 13:55 and the 10km point in 28:01. As Sikowo dropped back just before 15km it was the pre-race favourite Walelegn, who claimed bronze at last year’s World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, who took control, taking the field through that checkpoint in 42:15.

The podium was decided over the next kilometre, with Walelegn making a move along with Kenya’s Daniel Mateiko and Renju. With around two kilometres remaining, Walelegn tried to break away but with a glance over his shoulder he could see it wasn't enough to lose his rivals. Then it was Renju’s turn to push the pace and while Walelegn stuck close behind him, Mateiko was dropped and the race was down to two.

Covering Renju’s move, Walelegn was determined to take the top spot and with another look over his shoulder at 21km he strode down the final stretch to victory. Renju’s runner-up time of 59:12 was a PB and his first half marathon under the hour, while Mateiko was third in a PB of 59:25. The top four all ran under 60 minutes, with Ethiopia’s Abe Tilahun finishing fourth in a PB of 59:46, while Norway’s Zerei Kbrom, returning to the half marathon for the first time since 2016, ran a more than six-minute PB of 1:00:07 for fifth.

The event incorporated the Danish Championships, with Annah Ritah Nagadya (1:16:49) and Abdi Hakin Ulad (1:03:30) claiming the national titles.

Behind the elite action, the mass event had close to 20,000 entries.

2021 Valencia Half Marathon hopes for new records

The Valencia Half Marathon Trinidad Alfonso EDP, organized by SD Correcaminos, has confirmed the first names of the international elite that will take to the streets of Valencia Ciudad del Running on October 24th.

After the Elite Edition last year in which a new male world record for the distance was set, 57:32 by Kibiwott Kandie, and four runners ran under 58 minutes, the Valencia Half Marathon aims to become the world’s fastest in 2021, all of this without losing sight of the challenge of the women’s world record, currently set at 1:04:02 in the hands of the Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich.

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey, current 5000m record holder (14:06.62 at the NN Valencia World Record Day in 2020), 10,000 (29:01.03, Hengelo) and 15K record holder (44:20), will try to improve upon her bronze medal in the 10,000m at Tokyo 2020 debuting at the Valencia Half Marathon at a world–class level. Alongside her, the last two winners of the event, Genzebe Dibaba (1:05:18 in 2020) and Senbere Teferi (1:05:32 in 2019), as well as Yalemzerf Yehualaw (1:04:40), third in the last World Half Marathon in Gdynia (Poland), and who improves her personal performance in each new asphalt race she takes part in.

In spite of the immeasurable records that were registered in the men’s category in 2020, with four runners under 58 minutes and the previous world record, the Valencia Half Marathon will also set up a race of an immensely high level in the men’s category. The third classified of the Elite Edition, Rhonex Kipruto (57:49 and the current 10K road world record) will return and the Ethiopian Muktar Edris, double world champion in 5.000m on track and with a time of 59:04 in half marathon, in his only experience in road race. They will be joined by several sub 59-minute runners over the distance and some world-class debutants from the track.

Marc Roig, manager of the international elite of the race, said that “Olympic years always have a special atmosphere, but the calendar does not stop and the half marathon (non-Olympic distance) has other crowns to share out. And they want them, both those who triumphed in Tokyo and those who fell short. That’s why dreaming about the world record is possible and desired.”

The Valencia Half Marathon is working with the teams of the top elite athletes so that their training in the weeks leading up to the event will culminate in an unprecedented peak of performance in Valencia.

Yehualaw smashes world half marathon record in Larne

Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw took 18 seconds off the world half marathon record, running a remarkable 1:03:44* at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon, a World Athletics Label Road Race, in Larne, Northern Ireland, on Sunday (29).

Yehualaw becomes the first woman to break 64 minutes for the half marathon, with her mark improving on the 1:04:02 world record which had been set by Kenya’s world marathon champion Ruth Chepngetich in Istanbul on 4 April.

Yehualaw had been second in that race in Istanbul, running 1:04:40, but this time her dominant performance saw her win the women's race by six minutes ahead of Kenya’s Jane Nyaboke (1:09:45). Britain's Rose Harvey was third (1:10:29) and Georgie Schwiening fourth (1:11:13), with Northern Ireland's Fionnuala Ross (1:13:10) and Ann-Marie McGlynn (1:13:13) fifth and sixth respectively. Yehualaw's time placed her ninth overall.

Paced by Roy Hoornweg and Mohamed Ali, Yehualaw was part of a pack of runners which went through the 5km mark in 15:05 and hit 10km in 30:22. Turning to run back along the coast, Yehualaw passed the 15km mark in 45:24 looking comfortable and continued to push on, eventually crossing the finish line full of emotion, with 1:03:44 on the clock.

“This was a dream come true for me,” said 22-year-old Yehualaw. “I have tried twice before to break the world record but it didn’t happen, but I’m so happy it happened today in Larne.”

The performance would have meant even more to Yehualaw after she finished fourth in the Ethiopian Trials 10,000m and did not make the team for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. She was also left motivated after her third-place finish at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia last October.

“At the World Half Marathon Championships I was trying to win gold but it didn’t happen,” Yehualaw added. “But today I’m so happy.”

Coached by Tessema Abshero as part of the NN Running Team, Yalemzerf made her international debut in 2019 when she won the Rabat Half Marathon in 1:09:13. Returning to Rabat four months later, she won the African Games title and then finished second at the Delhi Half Marathon.

Her bronze medal win at the 2020 World Half Marathon Championships was followed by victory in Delhi, where her winning time of 1:04:46 was then the second-fastest ever women’s time on a record-eligible course. In Istanbul in April she improved to 1:04:40 which put her third on a world all-time list since rewritten thanks to her 1:03:44 in Larne.

It was an Ethiopian double in Larne as national record-holder Jemal Yimer won a close men's race in 1:00:30 ahead of his compatriot Tesfahun Akalnew (1:00:31) and Kenya's Shadrack Kimining (1:00:32).

A lead group of four had broken away early on and Kimining led Britain's Marc Scott, Yimer and Akalnew through 10km in 28:53. Kimining remained to the fore as the group passed 15km in 43:29 but as the race came down to a sprint finish it was 2017 world 10,000m fifth-placer Yimer who had the strongest kick and he held off Akalnew by a single second, with Kimining just another second behind. Scott finished fourth in 1:00:35 and Nigel Martin fifth in 1:03:22, with Ireland's Ryan Creech sixth in 1:03:26.

"I am happy with my win," said Yimer. "I had prepared for a course record but due to the wind and the circumstances I didn’t make sub-60 but I am happy with the win."

Stephen Scullion and Paul Pollock ready for big guns in Antrim Coast Half Marathon

Tokyo Olympians Stephen Scullion and Paul Pollock will spearhead the local challenge against a star-studded international field in the Antrim Coast Half Marathon on Sunday.

Sir Mo Farah - who won the 5,000m and 10,000m double at both London 2012 and Rio 2016 before missing out on Tokyo qualification - is unable to defend the inaugural title he won last year in a time of one hour and 27 seconds due to injury but will be at the event as race starter and will also carry out media and ambassadorial roles. Sir Mo said: "I can't wait to be involved this time around, especially with the kids race.

I aim to be back for another crack at the race next year." Big-race organiser James McIlroy - an 800m semi-finalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and who roomed with Sir Mo on Team GB trips - feels it will be one of the strongest half marathon line-ups ever seen on these islands.

"It promises to be one of the greatest half marathons ever assembled in the UK or Ireland with 53 men and 25 women taking to the start. With three full national teams confirmed, and runners from Africa, America, Europe, UK and Ireland, this year’s first ever World Athletics event in the province promises to be one of the leading road races in the world for 2021," said the Larne man, grandson of Belfast Celtic legend Sid McIlroy.

In addition to boasting 11 Olympians, headlining the men’s race will be Ethiopian record holder Jemal Yimer. Yimer won his last half marathon outing at the Houston half marathon in 2020 and has also achieved the fastest ever debut half marathon in 59:00 achieved in R’as al Khaimah in the UAE back in 2019.

He will be joined by countryman Tesfahun Akalnew, who has a personal best of 59:22, previously finished second in the African Games and comes to the Antrim Coast with strong runs in 2020, finishing fifth in the Barcelona Half Marathon and sixth in New Delhi. Completing the African trio will be Shadrack Kimining, winner of the 2016 Cardiff Half Marathon and in Gothenburg in 2018 and 2019.

Leading the UK and Ireland challenge will be Tokyo Olympians Scullion, Pollock and Marc Scott, the latter the two-time European record holder and second fastest all-time Briton behind Sir Mo over 10,000m. On Sunday Scott will seek to become only the second Briton to break the 60-minute barrier.

Belfast ace Scullion finish fourth in last year’s race on the way to setting a new Northern Ireland record of 61.12. Pollock, fresh from his second Olympics, will make his debut on the fast scenic course and should also threaten the top positions.

Barcelona Olympian and multiple World record holder Tommy Hughes will have huge crowd support as he makes his latest bid on the Vet +60 World record, which he smashed at last year’s race in a time of 71.09. McIlroy added: "With full strength teams from Ireland, England and Northern Ireland, we may well see the first ever sub-60-minute half marathon in Ireland." The women’s race is headlined by Ethiopian sensation Yalemzerf Yehualaw.

The 22-year-old finished third in last year’s World Half Marathon Championship after tripping on the finishers mat, and has targeted the Antrim Coast's fast course since lthe inaugural event last September. The elite race starts at 8.00am in Larne with the mass participation event - cancelled last year due to the Covid pandemic - starting at 9.30am. There will be live coverage on the BBC.

World record holder Letesenbet Gidey to make debut at the Valencia Half Marathon

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey, who is the current 5,000m (14:06.62), and 10,000m (29:01.03) world record holder is taking on her first half-marathon at the 2021 Valencia Half Marathon on Oct. 24.

This will mark Gidey’s first time stepping up to the half-marathon distance, as the experienced long-distance track runner is known for using her exceptional endurance to wear down the field.

In addition to her world records, Gidey has the world’s best time over 15 km on the road, running a jaw-dropping 44:20 last fall in Nijmegen, Netherlands. If she can hold her 15K pace for six more kilometres, she will crush Ruth Chepngetich’s half-marathon world record of 1:04:02 by a minute and a half.

Gidey will be challenged by the last two winners of this event, Genzebe Dibaba (1:05:18) and Senbere Teferi (1:05:32), as well as Yalemzerf Yehualaw (1:04:40), who was third at the World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland in 2020.

On the men’s side, the Valencia Half Marathon is stacked with high-level competition. Kenya’s Rhonex Kipruto is returning after running the second-fastest half marathon ever in 2020 (57:49). He also holds the 10K road world record at 26:24. Also in the race is Ethiopian Muktar Edris, a double world champion in the 5,000m who ran a 59:04 in his half-marathon debut.

The men’s half-marathon world record has been broken twice in Valencia over the past two years. The depth of the women’s and men’s fields are certain to threaten the record books this Oct. 24.

Star-studded field 2021, announced for Antrim Coast Half Marathon

With over 100 runners in the International elite race, over 400 in the sub-elite and with record numbers entering the mass race, this year’s Antrim Coast Half Marathon will be arguably one of the best half marathons in Europe, and one of the greatest ever in the United Kingdom.

The men’s race has seven men confirmed who have run under the 60-minute barrier.

Headlining the African contingent will be Jemal Yimer – winner of the Valencia Half Marathon in 2018. The current 6th fastest man of all time, Ethiopian record holder and ranked second in the world for the last two years, with a PB of 58:32 will be looking to better his own personal best on the super-fast route.

Joining Yimer will be fellow countryman Tesfahun Akalnew, the 21-year-old sensation, with a personal best time of 59:22 from the New Delhi Half Marathon will also look to better his time at this year’s event.

Shadrack Kimining, one of three Kenyans confirmed in this year’s race, twice breaking 60 minutes last year, placing third in Houston and running a PB in New Delhi with a time of 59:27 is also a confirmed starter.

Abrar Osman the Eritrean Olympic finalist and bronze medallist is looking to better his personal best of 59.47 set at the Lisbon International Half Marathon. A former winner of the African Games, he was seventh in the World Half Marathon championships in Cardiff in 2016.

Kenya’s latest star Daniel Mateiko, part of the postponed 2021 Kenyan World Cross Country team will be competing in his first ever half marathon after his world-class 10,00m debut in Hengelo last month, recording a time of 27:03, the fastest ever debut 10,000m.

With hopefully one global superstar still to announce, the British challenge will come from last year’s second place finisher, two-time European record holder and second fastest Briton all-time over 10,000m Marc Scott, looking to break the 60-minute barrier for the first time, returning fresh from the 5000m/10,000m double at the Tokyo Olympics.

British Olympian and Berlin Marathon fifth placer Scott Overall will also return to this year’s race.

The Irish contingent in the men’s race will be headlined by four Olympian’s young and old.

Belfast native Paul Pollock, post Tokyo Olympics will be looking to better his 62:09 and reclaim his Northern Ireland record broken at last year’s race by Stephen Scullion.

The women’s race will be headlined by Ethiopian sensation and third fastest ever Yalemzerf Yehualaw targeting the World Record on the super-fast course, a feat only ever achieved by Khalid Kannouchi and Paula Radcliffe in the UK, on both occasions set at the London Marathon.

After posting personal bests earlier in the year over the half marathon distance in Istanbul, with a time of 64:40 and running her first ever 5,000m in Paris last month, in a sensational debut of 14:53 her preparation has been perfect for an assault on the women’s world record.

Ethiopian stablemate Tsehay Gemechu will arrive fresh from her assault at the Olympic 10,000m in Tokyo, where she will be looking to better her two fourth place in the World Championships and sixth in the World Cross Country.

Gemechu will attack her own personal best of 66 min 0 sec, which she set winning the New Delhi Half Marathon in 2019.

Two-time World Half Marathon medallist Mary Ngugi is also confirmed and will look to get back to her form of 2016 which saw her take the silver medal at the World Half marathon championships in Cardiff, before targeting one of the major city marathons in October.

The British contingent will be headlined by last year’s fourth placer Becky Briggs, Tracey Barlow, and Ellie Davis with Irish distance stars Ann Marie McGlynn and Marie McCambridge also confirmed to start.

Last year’s winner Lily Partridge has had to pull out of defending her title due to an operation on her ankle, but has confirmed she will still make the journey to the province to support on the day.

World Records in danger at Istanbul Half Marathon Sunday

Super-strong fields tackle 13.1 miles in Turkish city on Sunday with Hellen Obiri, Brigid Kosgei, Peres Jepchirchir, Kibiwott Kandie and Geoffrey Kamworor among the entries

World records could fall at the Istanbul Half Marathon on Sunday (April 4) due to the red-hot line-ups that have been assembled.

The women’s race features marathon world record-holder Brigid Kosgei, world half-marathon gold medallist Peres Jepchirchir and world cross-country and 5000m champion Hellen Obiri.

Whereas the men’s race sees world half-marathon record-holder Kibiwott Kandie against former world record-holder Geoffrey Kamworor.

Obiri makes her half-marathon debut and she could hardly have picked a tougher first race.

In addition to Kosgei and Jepchirchir, the Kenyan faces world marathon champion Ruth Chepngetich, plus Ethiopian Yalemzerf Yehualaw, Melat Kejeta of Germany and Yasemin Can of Turkey.

All eyes will be on Kandie and Kamworor in the men’s race but watch out too for Ethiopia’s Amdework Walelegn and Uganda’s Stephen Kissa plus Turkey’s Kaan Kigen Ozbilen.

Kandie and Kamworor were due to have a much-anticipated showdown at the RAK Half on February 19 but it was called off due to the pandemic.

If conditions are good Kandie’s world record of 57:32 – which was set in Valencia in December – will be under threat, whereas the women’s world record of 64:31 held by Ababel Yeshaneh is also in danger.

The races start 10am local time on Sunday April 4.

The most remarkable line-up has been announced for Istanbul Half Marathon

Organizers of the N Kolay Istanbul Half Marathon have announced the most remarkable line-up in the history of this World Athletics Elite Label road race, to be held on 4 April.

Having staged a successful edition under intense measures against Covid-19 in September last year, the event is now set to host a limited number of 4000 participants on its traditional date of the first Sunday of April.

The race will see the long-awaited clash of the reigning and former world record-holders over the distance. Kibiwott Kandie of Kenya, now the world’s fastest half-marathon runner, improved the time set by his compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor in Valencia in December, bringing down the world record to 57:32 from 58:01. Kamworor, who has three World Athletics Half Marathon Championships gold medals under his belt, will be back on the roads following his recovery from surgery after he was hit by a motorcycle in June last year.

The two Kenyans will be joined by two sub-59 minute runners in Amedework Walelegn of Ethiopia, the Istanbul Half Marathon record-holder who won in 59:50 in 2018, and Uganda's Stephen Kissa, who made his debut over the distance in February 2020 and finished the year with a time of 58:56. Kenya’s Leonard Barsoton, sixth at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia last year, will also be one of the fastest athletes on the start line.

Home hopes in Istanbul will be led by Kaan Kigen Ozbilen, who holds the national record with 59:48. Aras Kaya, European cross country champion in 2019, will also be a strong contender in the event that incorporates the National Half Marathon Championships.

The women’s field is equally as strong. Kenya’s marathon world record-holder Brigid Kosgei and the women-only half-marathon world record-holder Peres Jepchirchir, plus the second fastest female half-marathon runner of all time Yalemzerf Yehualaw of Ethiopia, will head the line-up.

Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich, the race record-holder and the reigning world marathon champion, will be a co-favorite in the race along with Joan Chelimo Melly.

The European women-only record-holder Melat Kejeta from Germany will also be on the start line on 4 April. The home crowd expects Kejeta’s record to be challenged by Yasemin Can.

Kamworor, Kandie, Kosgei and Yehualaw had been among the athletes set to race at the Ras Al Khamimah Half Marathon in February before it was cancelled due to the pandemic.

World records could be the order of the day at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon as Ethiopia star Yalemzerf Yehualaw confirms spot

World records could be the order of the day at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon with four-time Olympic gold medallist and defending champion Sir Mo Farah set to be joined by Ethiopian distance sensation and second fastest woman of all time Yalemzerf Yehualaw.

Elite race organiser James McIlroy - who himself reached the 800m semi-finals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics - has swooped to sign up Yehualaw for the August 29 showpiece and the athlete's agent has made clear that the opportunity to break the world record of 64 minutes 31 seconds on what is a very fast course is one of the main attractions drawing her there.

The 21-year-old boasts a PB of 64.46 and the Antrim Coast Half Marathon will be one of only four events she will contest this year and the first after the Tokyo Olympics.

Yehualaw's agent Daan van den Berg said: "Yalemzerf will only do two half marathons this year - Istanbul and the Antrim Coast Half - along with two 10,000m before the Olympic Games.

"The Antrim Coast coming three weeks after the Olympics is perfect timing, and we know if the Irish crowd get behind her she can break the world record as last year's race looked brilliant, with 35 out of 62 runners recording personal bests."

Yehualaw finished third at last year's World Championship after leading for most of the race before tripping on the finishing straight mat, and will be joined at the Larne event by Ethiopian team-mates Yitasyish Mekonnen and Tsehay Gemechu.

The African stars will be joined by early confirmed British internationals Jo Pavey, Sam Harrison, Tracy Barlow and Kirsty Longley.

The men's race will be one of the greatest half marathon fields ever assembled in the UK or Ireland. Race organisers have made no secret of attacking the 60-minute barrier and already have a strong international line-up, with four sub-60 runners already confirmed.

Making their first appearance ever in Ireland will be the African quartet of Tesfahun Akalnew (59.22), Victor Kiplangat (59.26), both from Uganda, Abrar Osman (59.47) of Eritrea and up and coming Kenyan Daniel Mateiko, all of whom will be attacking Sir Mo's course record 60.27 from last year.

It is hoped Sir Mo - coached by Larne-born Gary Lough, who is married to distance legend Paula Radcliffe - could be coming to Larne with Olympic gold number five tucked safely away after Tokyo.