Can Assefa strike Berlin gold again?

One of the best ways to consign one of history’s finest ever marathon performances to a footnote is to produce it on the same day as Eliud Kipchoge obliterates the men’s world record.
 
That was the misfortune that befell Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa at last year’s BMW BERLIN-MARATHON.
 
While Kipchoge was busy grabbing the headlines for his 2:01:09 show-stopper, the 26-year-old from Addis Ababa ran what was then the third fastest time in the history of women’s marathon running.
 
She clocked 2:15:37, which was all the more astonishing given her only previous marathon time – in Riyadh earlier in 2022 – was completed in an underwhelming 2:34.
 
Granted, conditions in the Arabian heat are a far cry from the almost-optimal climate offered by Berlin, but it was a steep improvement, and gave Assefa the unique status as the only woman to break sub-two minutes for the 800m and sub 2:20 for the marathon.
 
Range is all the rage these days. Just ask Sifan Hassan.
 
It emerged after the race, per some probing by Runner’s World, that Assefa had moved from track to road following a barren spell caused by the pandemic in which she had barely raced, and had been significantly out of shape for that marathon debut.

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Under the tutelage of coach Gemedu Dedefo and with the support of the athlete stable managed by agent Gianni Demadonna, she was clearly in far better condition for Berlin, and catapulted herself into the rarefied air occupied by the likes of Brigid Kosgei and Ruth Chepngetich, who went on to better Assefa’s time in Chicago. She missed Kosgei’s 2:14:04 world record by 16 seconds in the Windy City.
 
And so Assefa returns to Berlin this weekend as the favourite, but she will face a sizeable challenge from Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui.
 
In 2022, Chepkirui tasted victory in Berlin at the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON, with a time of 65:02, a course record. She was third in a fast Valencia Marathon at the back end of that year with a time of 2:17:29, and she ran 2:18:51 in London in April for fourth place.
 
Challenges will also come from Assefa’s countrywomen Tigist Abayechew, third here last year, and Hiwot Gebrekidan, who was second in Berlin in 2021.
 
Assefa can no longer fly under the radar on the AbbottWMM circuit. Instead, she will line up on Sunday with a target on her back.
 
The women’s title has belonged to Ethiopia for the last three editions of this fabled race, and she is well-placed to extend that run.

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