Tigist Assefa, the reigning champion, shattered the Women’s Marathon World Record at the Berlin Marathon on September 24, setting a mind-blowing new record of 2 hours, 11 minutes, and 53 seconds.
This remarkable achievement left spectators speechless and obliterated the previous record held by Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei since 2019, surpassing it by over two minutes.
Assefa’s journey to marathon stardom is a remarkable tale. Transitioning from an 800m specialist to a marathon powerhouse in just a few months, she displayed unwavering dedication and hard work throughout her journey.
During the early stages of the race, Assefa set a scorching pace, reaching the halfway point in an astonishing one hour, six minutes, and 20 seconds.
At the 37km mark (23 miles), she was just three seconds per kilometer behind Eliud Kipchoge’s incredible pace in the men’s race.
Expressing her joy, Assefa exclaimed, “I am thrilled. I had aimed to break the marathon world record, but I couldn’t have imagined achieving a time under 2:12.”
On the men’s side, the legendary Eliud Kipchoge, a double Olympic champion, secured his record fifth Berlin victory with a time of 2:02.42. While he didn’t break his own world record this time, his performance was nothing short of exceptional.
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