By Editorial - Athleticspodium.com
Having come to the Berlin Marathon to reclaim the world record she had previously set on the course, a title now held by Ruth Chepngetich with a time of 2:09:56, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa delivered a historic performance after a fiercely contested race. The 31-year-old former world-record holder ran at world-record pace until the 40-kilometre mark, but slowed in the final two kilometres after suffering cramps in her leg. Nevertheless, the Ethiopian star crossed the finish line in 2:11:04, the fastest time of her career. The performance ranks as the third-fastest marathon time in history, behind the world record.
Having won the Berlin Marathon twice before, Assefa prepared specifically for a record attempt and made her intentions clear from the start. She passed the 5-kilometre mark in 15:30 and ran faster than that pace on every subsequent 5-kilometre split. Averaging 19.5 kilometres per hour, Assefa reached halfway in 1:04:57, becoming only the second athlete in history to run the first half of a marathon in under 65 minutes.
After reaching 30 kilometres, Assefa increased her pace, running kilometres in 3:03 and bringing her projected finish time down to 2:09:35. At 40 kilometres, she was still at 2:09:45, about 10 seconds inside the world-record pace. However, she struggled in the closing stages. Suffering a cramp in her right leg, she covered the final two kilometres at a pace of 3:41 per kilometre. Despite this, Assefa managed to finish in 2:11:04, improving by 50 seconds on her previous personal best, which she had also set on the Berlin course.
Assefa now sits third on the all-time list behind world-record holder Chepngetich (2:09:56) and Fotyen Tesfay (2:10:51). The Olympic silver medalist also broke the women-only marathon world record in London earlier this year.
In the women’s race at the Berlin Marathon, Kenyan athletes also took second and third place, with both performances making history. Bedatu Hirpa finished second in 2:16:53, while last year’s runner-up Dera Dida was just two seconds behind in 2:16:55, making her the third-fastest woman ever on the Berlin course.
In the men’s race, Ethiopia’s Guye Adola claimed his second Berlin Marathon victory, five years after his first. The 35-year-old Adola broke away after the 30-kilometre mark and won in 2:02:50, finishing half a minute ahead of Gemechu Dida.
