The National Times - Mengesha and Ketema complete Ethiopian double at Berlin Marathon

Mengesha finished just five seconds ahead of Kenyan Kotut in an as yet unofficial time of 2hr 03min 17sec with both recording personal bests.

The times were outside the late Kelvin Kiptum's world record time of 2:00.35 and five-time Berlin winner Eliud Kipchoge's course record of 2:01.09, set in 2022.

Ketema, who ran her first marathon in January, won in an as yet unofficial time of 2:16.42.

Ketema's time was just under five minutes slower than training partner Tigist Assefa's world record of 2:11.53 but is the third-best winning time among the women in Berlin Marathon history.

With the Paris Olympics just over a month ago, many of the big names were missing from the starting blocks, including Kipchoge, who has broken the world mark twice in the German capital.

The leading men's group broke away early, setting a strong pace over the first 10 kilometres of 28:42, just outside world record time, but slowed gradually in sunny conditions.

Just before the 40-kilometre mark, four men pulled away from the pack: Mengesha, Kotut, Haymanot Alew and Stephen Kiprop.

With the Brandenburg Gate in sight, Mengesha and Kotut distanced themselves from the chasers and were neck and neck until the Ethiopian managed to edge ahead in the final metres.

Alongside fellow Ethiopian Azmera Gebru, Ketema opened up an early lead over the rest of the pack, pulling away after five kilometres.

Just before the halfway mark, Ketema began to pull away from Gebru, opening up a 12-second lead.

Ketema continued to pull away from her compatriot, eventually crossing the line two minutes and six seconds ahead of second-placed Mestawot Fikir.

The 26-year-old Ketema is a newcomer to marathons, having run her first in January in Dubai. Although it was unofficial, her time of 2:16.07 was the best ever recorded by a debutant, showing she belongs at this level.

W.Baxter--TNT