The Bahrain nationalized Kenyan Marius Kimutai established, with a time of 2:05:06, the second best world mark of the year, while the Ethiopian Zeineba Yimer, with 2:19:44, was the winner in the women’s category of the Zurich Marathon in Barcelona; both also broke career records.
The 44th edition of the test, which was held on the urban circuit of Barcelona with the participation of 15,200 runners (3,600 female), began at 8:30 am. The initial temperature of 12ºC, which gradually rose to 15ºC, with somewhat cloudy skies and 80 percent humidity were favorable conditions for the athletes to seek to beat the best marks in the event.
In the men’s category with high-level participants, a group of runners launched and another of twenty, with several ‘hares’ among them, set a pace below the record (2h05:53 in 2022). He passed kilometer ten with 30 seconds below the record (29:18) and remained in step for the half marathon (1h.02:26). The ‘hares’ left the main group at kilometer 30 and three runners -the Turkish Kaan Kigen Ozbilen, the Moroccan Othmane El Goumri and Marius Kimutai- set the pace. At the time they were 28 seconds off the record.
Kaan Kigen could not keep up with the rhythm of El Goumri and Kimutai and was left off the hook at kilometer 38. Shortly after, after passing kilometer 40, with 1h.58:38 (36 seconds below the record), it was Kimutai who He launched the final attack to prevail with a time of 2:05:06, the new best time of the race. Kimutai beat the mark achieved last year by the Ethiopian Yihunilgne Adame (2:05:53) by 47 seconds. El Goumri was second with 2:05:12 and the Turkish Kanna Kigen, third with 2:05:37. Marius Kimutai, 30, lowered his personal best by 41 seconds, which was 2:05:47 (Amsterdam 2016), and also achieved the second best mark this year for a marathon in Spain.
Carles Montllor from Sabadell, with a time of 2:25:11 and in twentieth position, was the best Spaniard. The athlete from Les Franqueses del Vallés, Jordi Madera, won in the wheelchair category with 1h.35:20
In the women’s category, after a sensational race, the fight was between five runners: the Kenyan Selly Chpeyego, the Ethiopian Zeineba Yimer, the Romanian of Kenyan origin Delvine Meringor and the Ethiopians Buzunesi Getachew and Zenebu Tikadu. The passage through kilometer 10 was done in 32:31 (1 minute less than the previous year’s record. It went up to two minutes at kilometer 15 (48:52) and two and a half in the half marathon with 1h.09:05 ( 1h.11:35 in 2022).
At kilometer 30, Chepyego, Merigor and Yimer passed with almost three minutes below the record (1h.38:21). And it was the Ethiopian Yimer, the great favourite, who gave the final change of pace to win with 2h.19:44, lowering the mark achieved last year by her compatriot Meseret Gebre by 3’25” (2h.23.09). Second was the Kenyan Selly Chepyego, 20 seconds away (2:20:04) and Delvine Meringor was third on the podium with 2:20:48 Zeineba Yimer Worku, 24, eighth in the 2021 London Marathon and with a best mark of 2h.19:28 (Valencia 2019), achieved the second world mark of the year and the best in Spain in 2023.
