Ethiopian athletes dominated the 43rd Athens Authentic Marathon on Sunday, setting new course records in both the men’s and women’s races as thousands of runners took part in the historic event.
Manazut Siyoum Taferi claimed victory in the men’s marathon, completing the 42.195-kilometre course from the town of Marathon to the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens in 2 hours, 10 minutes and 3 seconds.
His time broke the previous course record of 2:10:34, set by Kenya’s Edwin Kiptoo in 2023.
Fellow Ethiopian Asefa Tefera Mengisha finished second in 2:10:18, also running faster than the previous record, while Kenya’s Patrick Keter Kiplagat took third place in 2:11:22.
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Ethiopia also claimed the top two positions in the women’s race.
Yatane Kormose Dusa won in 2:30:04, breaking the previous course record of 2:31:06, established by Lithuania’s Rasa Drazdauskaite in 2010.
Her compatriot Tsiyon Abebe Temesgen finished second in 2:30:29, while American runner Jane Chemkemboy Bareikis secured third place in 2:32:59.
Greek athletes also delivered notable performances.
Stamatia Noula finished sixth overall in the women’s marathon with a time of 2:35:13, setting a new Greek national record for the historic Athens course and surpassing the previous mark held by Maria Polyzou.
Konstantinos Stamoulis was the first Greek man across the finish line, placing eighth overall in 2:17:37.
Earlier in the day, Panagiotis Petroulakis won the men’s 10-kilometre race in a record time of 29:40, while Anastasia Marinakou secured her sixth consecutive victory in the women’s 10-kilometre event.
The Athens Authentic Marathon follows the legendary route associated with the ancient Greek messenger Pheidippides, connecting the historic town of Marathon with the Panathenaic Stadium, the site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.
