Total domination. Athletes from Ethiopia triumphed at the Berlin Marathon
Ethiopian athletes dominated the Berlin Marathon: Milkeza Mengesha won the men's race, while Tigist Ketema took first place among women.
Notably, 24-year-old Mengesha set a personal record, completing the distance in 2 hours, 3 minutes, and 17 seconds, beating Kenyan athlete Sibrian Kotut (2:03:22) and his compatriot Haimanot Aleu. The final kilometer saw a tense battle between Mengesha and Kotut, but in the final stretch, Mengesha increased his pace and pulled ahead by five seconds.
The women's podium was entirely Ethiopian. Ketema's time of 2:16:42 allowed her to cross the finish line more than two minutes ahead of Mestawet Fikir and Bosenah Mulat.
Ketema significantly pulled away in the first half of the race and claimed victory, achieving the third-best time in marathon history. However, her time is five minutes slower than last year's winning result of Tigst Assefa — 2:11:53, which stands as the world record for women in the marathon.
Additionally, some well-known athletes did not attend the Berlin Marathon, as it took place just a month after the conclusion of the Olympic Games in Paris.
Alex Olise
Dailysports's expert
Translated by the editors
