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Birhanu Legese Gurmesa (born 11 September 1994)[2] is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He won the 2019 and 2020 Tokyo Marathon and finished second at the 2019 Berlin Marathon.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth name | Birhanu Legese Gurmesa | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 11 September 1994 Woliso, Oromia, Ethiopia[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Ethiopia | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Long-distance running | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | NN Running Team | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Jos Hermens | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best | Marathon: 2:02:48 (Berlin 2019) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Legese is currently part of the NN Running Team, which is managed by Global Sports Communication.[3]
Born and raised in Woliso, around 100 km south west of Addis Ababa, Birhanu Legese started out as a talented sprinter, winning area 100 metres and 200 m titles.[1]
In 2012, he ran 10 kilometres races, finishing second at the Great Ethiopian Run and, in his international debut, winning the Corrida de Houilles in France.[2]
In 2013, the then 18-year-old finished second in the 10 km in Taroudant, Morocco with a time of 27:34, the third-fastest 10 km road time in the world for 2013.[2][4]
In 2015, Legese claimed victory at the Berlin Half Marathon (59:45) before winning Delhi Half Marathon in a time of 59:20, the joint third-fastest time in the world that year.[2][5]
Further half marathon victories followed at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in the United Arab Emirates in 2016 (1:00:40) and New Delhi once again in 2017 (59:46).[6][2]
In January 2018, Legese made his marathon debut at the Dubai Marathon, finishing sixth with a time of 2:04:15.[2]
In March 2019, the 24-year-old claimed his biggest victory up to that point by winning his first World Marathon Major at the Tokyo Marathon by a two-minute margin, clocking 2:04:48 despite cold and rainy conditions.[7] In September that year, Legese finished second at the Berlin Marathon with a time of 2:02:48 to move to third on the world all-time list behind only Eliud Kipchoge and Kenenisa Bekele.[2][8]
He successfully defended his title at the 2020 Tokyo Marathon by winning the race with a time of 2:04:15. He ran 2:03:16 for third at the Valencia Marathon in December that year.[2]
Legese placed fifth at the 2021 London Marathon, and sixth at the 2022 London Marathon.[2]
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- 2018 Dubai Marathon – 2:04:15 (6th)
- 2018 Chicago Marathon – 2:08:41 (10th)
- 2019 Tokyo Marathon – 2:04:48 (1st)
- 2019 Berlin Marathon – 2:02:48 (2nd)
- 2020 Tokyo Marathon – 2:04:15 (1st)
- 2020 Valencia Marathon – 2:03.16 (3rd)
- 2021 London Marathon – 2:06.10 (5th)
- 2022 London Marathon – 2:06.11 (6th)
- 2023 Amsterdam Marathon – 2:04.43 (4th)
Birhanu Legese's personal bests are:[2]
| Distance | Time | Place | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1500 Metres | 3:44.07 | Luanda, Angola | 2 January 2014 |
| 3000 Metres | 7:51.09 | Hengelo, Netherlands | 8 June 2014 |
| 5000 Metres | 13:08.88 | Shanghai, China | 18 May 2014 |
| 10 Kilometres | 27:34 | Taroudant, Morocco | 10 March 2013 |
| 10 Miles Road | 45:38 | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 17 September 2017 |
| Half Marathon | 59:20 | New Delhi, India | 29 November 2015 |
| 25 Kilometres | 1:12:54 | Kolkata, India | 18 December 2022 |
| Marathon | 2:02:48 | Berlin, Germany | 29 September 2019 |
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