Ethiopian runner Tigst Assefa clinched victory at the Berlin Marathon today, finishing in two hours 11 minutes four seconds. This time marks the third-fastest in women's marathon history, despite Assefa reportedly suffering an injury in the race's final stages.
The 29-year-old, a silver medallist at the Paris Olympics two years ago, had been on track to break the world record, leading the field by a minute at the 15km mark and maintaining a pace ahead of the record at 35km. However, clear discomfort caused her pace to slow as she approached the finish line.
Assefa's performance still saw her break her own Berlin course record of 2:11:53, which she set in 2023. She also improved upon her time of 2:15:41 from the London Marathon earlier this year. The top five finishers in the women's race were all from Ethiopia, with Bedatu Hirpa taking second place and Dera Dida finishing third. Guye Adola, also from Ethiopia, won the men's race with a time of 2:02:50.