Athletics: Ethiopian runners claim five out of six podium places at Tokyo Marathon
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Deso Gelmisa (centre), Mohamed Esa (left) and Getachew Kebede compete during the Tokyo Marathon.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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TOKYO – It was a near perfect day for Ethiopia at the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday, with runners from the East African nation taking five out of six podium places.
In a thrilling men’s race in which there was barely anything to separate the top two, Deso Gelmisa – who broke the Paris Marathon record in 2022 with his 2hr 5min 7sec – outsprinted compatriot Mohamed Esa in the Japanese capital to win in 2:05:22.
Esa also finished in the same time but could collect only the silver.
Their teammate Tsegaya Getachew was third in 2:05:25.
The Tokyo Marathon – one of the six World Marathon Majors along with Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York – has restored its full capacity by allowing 38,000 runners to compete, having previously limited the number of entrants due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This is the 16th event for the Tokyo Marathon, (which has) a full capacity of 38,000 Japan and overseas runners for the first time in four years,” said Shizuo Ito, chief executive of the race.
“This includes about 12,000 overseas runners. The theme for this year’s race is ‘One Step Ahead’ which is filled with our strong desire that we can move forward, one step at a time.”
The Ethiopian trio’s impressive performance showed the strength of their country’s distance running.
In 2022, world record holder Eliud Kipchoge won the race ahead of fellow Kenyan Amos Kipruto, while Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola was third but it was a clean sweep for Ethiopia on Sunday.
In February, Ethiopia’s Hailemaryam Kiros also broke the meet record to win the Osaka Marathon. He clocked 2:06:01, beating the previous mark of 2:07:31 set by Hoshi Gaku of Japan in 2022.
In another highlight of the day, Canada’s Cam Levins, who was fifth in 2:05:36, beat the 21-year-old North American record by 2sec. The previous mark was set by Khalid Khannouchi of the United States in the 2002 London Marathon.
Ethiopians also took the second and third places in the women’s race, which was won by Kenya’s Rosemary Wanjiru in 2:16:28.
Tsehay Gemechu finished second in 2:16:56 and Ashete Bekere was third in 2:19:11. Worknesh Edesa, also of Ethiopia, ended fourth in 2:20:13.
Deso Gelmisa (centre) of Ethiopia wins first place in the men’s marathon during the Tokyo Marathon 2023 in Tokyo, Japan, on March 5.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Also in athletics, Olympic 100m champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs suffered a surprise loss to his unheralded Italian teammate Samuele Ceccarelli in the 60m at the European Indoor Championships on Saturday.
Jacobs, who appeared to have suffered an injury in winning his semi-final in Istanbul, was slower out of his blocks in the final than the fast-starting Ceccarelli who won in 6.48sec to his 6.50.
“This is not the medal that I wanted, I obviously wanted the gold,” Jacobs said.
“My leg wasn’t the best today, it was really tough. I will try to recover from the hamstring injury as soon as possible.”
Henrik Larsson of Sweden took the bronze in 6.53sec while one of the pre-race favourites, British sprinter Reece Prescod, had a disastrous start and came last. XINHUA, AFP
