Ethiopian marathon runner sets Olympic record and wins gold in Paris

Today is a particularly eventful day at the Paris Olympics, with a record number of medals set to be awarded. The day's first event was the men's marathon, where Ethiopian athlete and 2022 world champion Tamirat Tola crossed the finish line first. He completed the 42.195 km distance in 2 hours, 6 minutes, and 26 seconds.

This time sets a new Olympic record. The previous record was held by Kenyan Samuel Wanjiru, who completed the marathon in 2 hours, 6 minutes, and 32 seconds at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It's worth noting that the world record also belongs to a Kenyan, Kelvin Kiptum, who ran the marathon in 2 hours and 35 seconds in 2023.

Belgian Bashir Abdi finished second, trailing the leader by 21 seconds, while Benson Kipruto from Kenya secured third place with a time of 2 hours and 7 minutes.

Notably, two-time Olympic champion (2016 and 2020) Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya also started the marathon in Paris but withdrew from the race at the 31-kilometer mark. By the 30-kilometer point, Kipchoge was trailing the leader by more than eight minutes.

This gold medal marks Ethiopia's first at the current Olympics. The Ethiopian team also has two silver medals so far.