Ethiopia dominates the Budapest women's marathon 2023
70 athletes from 47 countries started at 7am in the women's marathon on August 26, with the temperature of 23 degrees Celsius then increased to nearly 30 degrees Celsius.
In particular, the leading group of about 20 athletes - including the defending champion Gebreslase, who competes with the golden bib - splits the top at the 15km mark with Rebecca Cheptegei of Uganda leading.
Keira D'Amato - the eighth-ranked American runner at Eugene 2022 - took the lead when he finished the half-marathon in 1 hour 14 minutes 29 seconds, with the heat and humidity soaring.
This lead group reduced to nine people, including Kenyan-Israeli runner Lonah Salpeter, as they accelerated and hit the 30 km mark in 1 hour 44 minutes 27 seconds.
The Ethiopian trio of Gotytom Gebreslase, Beriso and Yalemzerf Yehualaw surpassed the 33 km mark, while compatriot Tsehay Gemechu gave up earlier than expected. Gemechu seemed to be in pain when he had to put his hands on his hips.
Beriso - who finished second to Kenya's Hellen Obiri at the 2023 Boston Marathon - maintained his lead and won the gold with a personal best of the season (SB) of 2 hours 24 minutes 23 seconds.
She helped Ethiopia win the women's marathon for the second time in a row at the world athletics tournament, after Gebreslase won the gold medal at Eugene 2022 with 2 hours 18 minutes 11 seconds. In Budapest 2023, Gebreslase won silver with a PB of 2 hours 24 minutes 34 seconds, while the bronze medal belonged to Fatima Ezzahra Gardadi of Morocco with 2 hours 25 minutes 17 seconds.
Beriso lay down on the field and raised the Ethiopian flag and celebrated the victory with his teammates. The 31-year-old runner revealed that his initial goal was for Ethiopia to win all three medals, but was happy with two leads. Beriso said the hot weather made it difficult for many competitors, but not for her.
Not defending the title, but Gebreslase was still pleased when Ethiopia won the gold medal against fierce competition from Kenya. "The main goal is to bring home the gold medal," she expressed. "I am proud that Ethiopia continues to hold the title. I am also proud of Beriso and I am really surprised to be able to win more world medals."
Meanwhile, Gardadi proudly won a bronze medal in his first marathon outside Morocco after winning in the capital Rabat last year. Before the tournament, she only aimed to be in the top 5 and attend the 2024 Paris Olympics.
