PARIS: Mulugeta Uma and Mestawut Fikir won the Paris Marathon men’s and women’s races on Sunday to give Ethiopia a double in the event for the first time in five years.

On a course that was different from the Olympic event in August, Uma won with a time of 2:05:33, beating Kenyans Titus Kipruto and Elisha Rotich.

Kipruto finished 15 seconds behind Uma while Rotich was more than a minute behind. Rotich was the pre-race favourite going into the event having set the course record in 2021.

In the women’s race, Fikir finished with a time of 2:20:45 in her first marathon, pipping compatriot Enat Tirusew to the line by three seconds, while Kenyan Vivian Cheruiyot was third.

The last time Ethiopia achieved the double in Paris, Abrha Milaw and Gelete Burka won the men’s and women’s races in 2019.

At the Olympics, the men’s marathon will be held on Aug 10 followed by the women’s race a day later.

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2024