World record holder warms up for London with Lisbon showdown

Since her world record-breaking run at the Chicago Marathon, Ruth Chepngetich was back on the road this weekend, running the Lisbon Half on Sunday for a second-place finish.

Chepngetich, who clocked 1:06:20 for silver was using the race as part of her preparations for the upcoming London Marathon set for 27 April where she is set to go up against former record holder Tigist Assefa, Olympic champion Sifan Hassan and women’s-only world record holder Peres Jepchirchir.

A 1:04:02 runner in the 21km race, Chepngetich’s time in Lisbon was slower than her first halves during her record-breaking feat in Chicago in October (64:16 and 65:40).

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Chepngetich lost to Tsigie Gebreselama who significantly improved her personal best in the distance, with a 1:04:21 course record, obliterating Almaz Ayana’s 1:05:30 from 2023.

The Ethiopian surged to the lead before the 10-kilometer mark. With Chepng’etich falling behind, Gebreselama followed the official pacer and, with a steady performance, crossed the finish line in 1:04:21, shaving more than a minute off both her previous personal best (1:05:14) and the course record (1:05:30).

Abeba Aregawi clocked 1:06:36, setting a new Swedish national record—in her half marathon debut. Additionally, the fourth-place finisher, Fentaye Azale, also improved her personal best.

In the men’s race, Portugal’s Samuel Barata stayed with the leading pack from the early stages, only dropping off at the 13-kilometer mark. In the end, it was a historic moment for Djibouti, as Abdi Waiss claimed victory with a superb personal best of 59:44.

He was followed by Kenya’s Shadrack Kipkemei (59:49) and fellow Djiboutian Mohamed Ismail (59:54), all setting new personal records.

Impressively, six more athletes within the top 10 also bettered their personal bests. One of them, fifth-place finisher Gashau Ayale, shattered the Israeli national record, cutting 48 seconds off the previous best of 1:00:47, set by Tadesse Getahon.

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The event also featured Portugal’s top athletes competing for the national half-marathon title. In the men’s category, Samuel Barata made his dominance clear, securing the national title with a ninth-place overall finish in 1:01:10. The podium was completed by debutant Luís Oliveira (1:04:17) and Rafael Lopes (1:04:49).

In the women’s race, Susana Santos claimed a decisive victory in 1:12:39. She was followed by veteran runners Mónica Silva (1:14:08) and Carla Martinho (1:14:43), who, at 41 and 48 years old, respectively, secured silver and bronze in the Portuguese championship.