Paris Olympics: Tamirat Tola replaces Sisay Lemma in men’s marathon
Reading Time: 2min | Sat. 27.07.24. | 16:06
He joins 41-year-old Kenenisa Bekele and Deresa Geleta in Ethiopia's Olympic marathon team
Former World Champion, Tamirat Tola will represent Ethiopia in the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
The 32-year-old steps in for Boston Marathon champion Sisay Lemma who has withdrawn from the team due to injury.
He won the 2024 Boston Marathon in 2:06:17, leading the race from wire to wire, finishing 41 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Mohamed Esa (2:06:58) to initially make the team to Paris.
The 2022 marathon world champion, Tamrat Tola will represent Ethiopia in the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics, stepping in for Sisay Lemma, who has withdrawn himself from the team due to injury.#Paris2024 #TeamEthiopia pic.twitter.com/4RAS6MkH6J
— Bizuayehu Wagaw (@buzi2011) July 26, 2024
Tola, third at both the 2023 London Marathon and 2021 Tokyo Marathon, is a two-time medalist at the World Athletics Championships Marathon, winning gold in 2022 in a championship-record time of 2:05:36 in Eugene, Oregon.
In 2016, he won bronze in the 10,000m at the Rio Olympics and helped Ethiopia to the team gold medal at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships.
He joins 41-year-old Kenenisa Bekele who will renew rivalry with defending champion and former world record holder Eliud Kipchoge. Kenenisa won three Olympic and five world golds over 5000m and 10,000m before turning to the marathon, last competed at the Games in 2012, when he was fourth in the 10,000m in London.
After failing to make the Olympic team in 2016 and 2021, he earned his place in Paris with an astonishing performance at the London Marathon in April, where he finished second in 2:04:15, 14 seconds behind Kenya’s Alexander Mutiso Munyao, who is the third selected member of the Kenyan team.
Deresa Geleta who won this year’s Seville Marathon in a course record time of 2:03:27, setting his personal best and becoming the 20th fastest marathon runner in history completes the Ethiopian trio.
The last Ethiopian to win the men’s Olympic marathon title was Gezahegne Abera at the 2004 Athens Games. They are keen to wrestle the title from Team Kenya who have Kipchoge, Mutiso, and Benson Kipruto.
Meanwhile, the men who followed Kipchoge home at the Tokyo Olympics are contesting places on the podium once again – silver medalist Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands, ninth on this year’s world list after winning the Rotterdam Marathon in 2:04:45, and bronze medalist Bashir Abdi of Belgium.
Uganda’s team includes world champion Victor Kiplangat. A 2:05:09 performer at his best, Kiplangat has a season’s best of 2:07:44.
Others to watch out for include the Eritrean trio of Samson Amare, Berhane Tesfay, and Henok Tesfay, Italy’s European half marathon champion, and 2022 10,000m champion Yemaneberhan Crippa and Britain’s Emile Cairess.
