Tigst Assefa goes for the marathon world record in Berlin

Here’s the secret of the Berlin Marathon. You have a fast course and a wonderful finish in one of the world’s most important cities!

My visits in 2009 and 2010 were alot of fun. The races were fascinating, the city was so amazing, and the sponsor, adidas, was so gracious! Berlin always has great pressers.

Here’s the release on the Women’s elite race! A world record could actually happen in Berlin, without the embarrassment of a positive test months later.

The challenge for all race directors is this: you want fast times, you like the media coverage a the big bonus, and you have to pray the athletes don’t test positive.

adidas did a great job on the Men’s WR, where they tested athletes almost weekly, breaking most chances of an athlete effectively cheating.

Unfortunately, this is the challenge today in the elite world of marathoning.

NEWS RELEASE – 52nd BMW BERLIN-MARATHON ON SUNDAY:

Tigst Assefa goes for the marathon world record in Berlin

Can Tigst Assefa put the icing on the cake once more at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON? The Ethiopian long-distance star wants to get the world record back on Sunday. Three years ago, she took the women’s marathon to new heights, clocking 2:11:53 at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate. But since then, the world record has improved to 2:09:56. While Tigst Assefa eyes the 2:10:00 barrier, Germany’s Esther Pfeiffer hopes to go sub-2:20:00 in an attempt to break the long-standing German record. Irina Mikitenko set the record in 2008 with 2:19:19.

Berlin has recorded 13 world records during the race’s history. This is a record in itself because there is no other marathon race worldwide that comes close to such a number. Tigst Assefa now goes for Berlin’s world record number 14. However, at the press conference, the 29-year-old held back a bit. When the question about the world record came in English, Tigst Assefa understood and smiled happily before she replied in Amharic with the help of the interpreter: “I am really looking forward to running on the fast course in Berlin again and hope that I can continue my success story here on Sunday. I am very well prepared and want to run a personal best.” Her 2:11:53 PB is still the Berlin course record. With that time, she would have won the first eleven editions of the BMW BERLIN MARATHON in the 1970s and 1980s – that shows the tremendous development of the world’s leading female marathon runners.

In Berlin, Tigist Assefa will face the defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru. However, the Kenyan will not follow Assefa’s world-record pace. Her aim is to improve her PB of 2:16:14 to under 2:15:00. The Ethiopians Bedatu Hirpa (PB: 2:18:27), Dera Dida (2:18:32) and Zeineba Yimer (2:18:47) are also aiming for such a time. Dida is the wife of Olympic marathon champion Tamirat Tola and a training partner of Tigst Assefa. “We know each other very well, of course, and I expect us to produce strong performances,” said Dera Dida.

The third women’s group is expected to run sub-2:20:00 pace. Finnish European Champion Alisa Vainio (2:20:39), who is competing in Berlin despite the short interval since the continental championships in Birmingham on 16 August, will probably join this group. “My aim is to improve my personal best and hopefully run under 2:20,“ said Alisa Vainio, who also competed at the Finnish Championships’ marathon in Jyväskylä just twelve days ago. She won this one as well with 2:27:47. “But for me this was just like a training run, and it felt fine.“

Esther and Hendrik Pfeiffer at the press conference in
2026 Berlin Marathon Weekend
Berlin, Germany September 27, 2026
Photo: Victah Sailer@PhotoRun
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www.photorun.NET

Germany’s Esther Pfeiffer is also aiming for a sub-2:20:00 time. “I plan to run a pace that will lead to the German record. This is my big goal, and my chase begins on Sunday,” said the 29-year-old, who has only run one marathon so far: In 2023 she won the Cologne Marathon in 2:37:00 and took the German title in a race without any significant challengers. Since then, Esther Pfeiffer has strongly improved her personal bests at shorter distances. She clocked 67:25 at the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON in March and improved her 10 k time to 30:45 after that. On Sunday, her husband Hendrik Pfeiffer, one of Germany’s leading marathon runners, will pace her.

Berlin’s elite field has strong depth once more. Seven runners on the start list have personal bests of sub 2:20:00. There have never been more than that in Berlin. And a record 13 women have entered with PBs under 2:22:00.

Injury forces Kenenisa Bekele to withdraw

Ethiopia’s running legend Kenenisa Bekele had bad luck. In one of his last training sessions before the planned journey to Berlin, he injured his left Achilles tendon. The two-time Berlin winner had to withdraw from the race.

Elite Women for the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON:

Tigst Assefa ETH 2:11:53

Rosemary Wanjiru KEN 2:16:14

Bedatu Hirpa ETH 2:18:27

Dera Dida ETH 2:18:32

Zeineba Yimer ETH 2:18:47

Misgane Alemayehu ETH 2:19:08

Bekelech Gudeta ETH 2:19:39

Evaline Chirchir KEN 2:20:33

Alisa Vainio FIN 2:20:39

Deshun Zhang CHN 2:20:53

Eebbisee Addunyaa ETH 2:21:13