Kipserem, Yeshaneh claim Abu Dhabi Marathon titles
abu dhabi — It was the inaugural ADNOC Abu Dhabi Marathon and the Capital woke up early to host yet another world-class sports event. Kenya’s Marius Kipserem overcame compatriot Abraham Kiptum in the final stretch to secure the men’s elite race.
Kipserem finished with a personal best time of 2:04:04 followed by Kiptum at 2:04:16.
“I feel very good and happy because I ran my personal best today. The route was perfect and it was great weather,” Kipserem said.
Ethiopia’s Dejena Debela Gonfa was third at 2:07:06.
Meanwhile, Ababel Yeshaneh of Ethiopia clocked 2:20:16 to win the women’s race.
Eunice Chumba Chebichii of Bahrain and Ethiopian Gelete Burka took the second and third places respectively. Yeshaneh expressed her delight on winning the race.
“I’m pleased with my result and personal best performance. It’s my first time in Abu Dhabi and I was very happy with the route of the marathon,” Yeshaneh said.
Bahrain’s Eunice Chumba, on the other hand, said the race was very competitive.
“I am proud and I ran a good time for second place. It was a competitive race and it is my first time in Abu Dhabi. Everyone is very friendly and I am so happy to be here,” Chumba said.
It was in October that Kiptum had notched a world record in half marathon and landed in Abu Dhabi as a firm favourite.
However, it was the 2016 Rotterdam winner Kipserem that took home the grand prize of $100,000 on Friday
The start of the elite race at 6am saw all athletes in a pack but halfway through both Kipserem and Kiptum broke away.
Kipserem maintained the lead for most part of the race, but towards the end Kiptum made his move. However, Kipserem regained lead with his own move and Kiptum didn’t have enough energy to counter.
Kipserem, thus, made his 16th marathon finish in grand style.
In the elite wheelchair category, Emirati Husain Al Mazam took the first place and Rashed Al Dhaheri was second.
In 10km race, Kenya’s Richard Kipkorir Kimunyan won the title.
He was followed by Uganda’s Maxwell Kortek Rotich and Samir Jouaher. The event was attended by over 10,000 professional and novice runners who took part across four categories — 42k, 10k, 5k and 2.5k - and were able to take in the capital’s iconic landmarks including Emirates Heritage Village and Qasr Al Hosn.
In a special awards ceremony held outside the headquarters of the marathon’s title sponsor, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, the event’s trophies were presented to first, second and third place and finishers in the 42k, 10k and wheelchair races.
All participants also received congratulatory medals.
“Bringing a new world-class sports event to the city of Abu Dhabi has been an exciting and rewarding challenge,” Aref Al Awani, General Secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, said.
“The success of the first edition of the ADNOC Abu Dhabi Marathon has been cemented with over 10,000 runners taking part across the four race categories and we aim to build on this in the coming years.”