Who is Ethiopia runner Tigist Ketema as she creates marathon record, biography, age and timing

Who is Ethiopia runner Tigist Ketema as she creates marathon record, biography, age and timing

Here is all you need to know about Tigist Ketema including her biography, age, career, records and more 

After cutting over a minute off the course record on Sunday, Ethiopian racer Tigist Ketema smashed the global record for the fastest marathon debut in Dubai.

Who is Ethiopia runner Tigist Ketema as she creates marathon record, biography, age, timing and career

With Ruti Aga (2:18:09) and Dera Dida (2:19:29) placing second and third, respectively, Ethiopia dominated the women’s podium in Dubai.

Meanwhile, Ketema, the 25-year-old won gold and broke the Dubai course record by 61 seconds with a run of 2:16:07, making her the eighth-fastest female marathoner in history.

Aga led a five-woman lead pack over 10km in 32:18, showing that she was ready to exact revenge for her narrow loss the previous year. It was at 1:08:07 when Dida started to give ground to Aga as the field started to split apart after halfway.

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However, Ketema’s ease of going started to seem increasingly concerning to her more seasoned competitors as the race progressed. With just five km to go, she launched a forceful attack that allowed her to pass Aga by two minutes, crossing the finish line in 2:16:07, a report in World Athletics outlet suggests.

Men’s winner of the World Athletics Label road event, Addisu Gobena, a 19-year-old compatriot, finished in 2:05:01 as another first-time marathoner.

 

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Who is Tigist Ketema?

Tigist Ketema is an Ethiopian track and field athlete who was born on 15 September 1998.

She won the gold medal in the 800 metres at the former African Under-20 Championships, and her victory in the Great Ethiopian Run 10 km competition in 2022 solidified her status as a long-distance running potential.

The 25-year-old won an 800-meter bronze medal at the 2016 World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz. 2016 saw her win the national title at that distance, and in June 2017, she took home the gold in the African U20 Championships in Athletics over 800 metres in Tlemcen, Algeria.

She won the women’s 10 km Great Ethiopian Run race in Addis Ababa in November 2022. At the Diamond League meeting in Paris on June 9, 2023, she broke the world record over 5000 metres by acting as Faith Kipyegon’s pacemaker.

After working with world record holder Tigist Assefa and world champion Amane Beriso, Ketema’s time would have also been an Ethiopian record just eighteen months ago. However, she currently ranks third on her country’s all-time list.

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