Ethiopia’s Sisay Lemma victorious as Kelvin Kiptum’s course record broken in Valencia Marathon

Ethiopia's Sisay Lemma added another significant triumph to his resume when he crossed the finish line first in a record 2:01:48 at the Valencia Marathon held on Sunday, December 3, 2023.

The champion of the 2021 London Marathon made a decisive move, distancing himself from Ethiopian Dawit Wolde and Kenya's Kandiwott Kandie with just 7km remaining in the challenging 42.195km race.

Even though the three leading men kept a pace well within reach of the World Record at the 30km mark, Lemma ultimately emerged victorious, falling just over one minute short of Kelvin Kiptum's record set in Chicago in October 2022.  Lemma (33) shaved five seconds off Kiptum's course record set a year ago.

In a surprising turn of events, the second-place finish went to Kenya’s Alexander Mutiso, champion of the Prague Marathon from Kenya. Mutiso, who had previously clocked 2:03:29 and secured third place in the 2022 Valencia Marathon, improved his performance with a time of 2:03:10.

Ethiopian star Dawit Wolde claimed the third spot, finishing in 2:03:48, an improvement of 19 seconds compared to his previous race.

Men’s Results (Top 10)

1. Sisay Lemma (ETH) 2:01:48
2. Alexander Mutiso (KEN) 2:03:11
3. Dawit Wolde (ETH) 2:03:48
4. Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) 2:04:19
5. Gabriel Geay (ETH) 2:04:33
6. Kibiwott Kandie (KEN) 2:04:48
7. Chalu Deso (ETH) 2:05:14
8. Mohamed Esa Huseydin (ETH) 2:05:40
9. Mehdi Frere (FRA) 2:05:43
10. Gashau Ayale (ETH) 2:05:46