Ethiopia’s Emane Seifu Hayile improved the women-only 50 kilometre world record by four minutes at the Nedbank Runified Breaking Barriers Ultramarathon. She won the race in the time of 3:00:29 in Port Elizabeth or Gqeberha, South Africa on Sunday, February 26.
Meanwhile, South Africa’s Tete Dijana, won the men’s race in a new course record time of 2:39:04, which was faster than the ratified world record of 2:40:13, set last year by South African Stephen Mokoka, but is just 21 seconds shy of American CJ Albertson’s performance from October 2022, which is still pending ratification.
Emane Seifu Hayile is all alone at the front and hunting down the women's record 🇪🇹#NedbankRunified #MoreThanAClub pic.twitter.com/mBbBAvCR3n
— Nedbank Sport (@nedbanksport) February 26, 2023
Hayile ran the first 10K in 36:09. Fellow Ethiopians Amelework Fikadu, Tinebeb Nebiyu as well as Swede Hanna Lindholm ran with Hayile through the 15K split clocking a 54:16, the identical pace of the first 10K. At this point Lindholm was dropped.
The Ethiopians hit the half-way mark in 90:28, which was just off three-hour pace and just outside of American Des Linden’s mixed-race world record of 2:59:54.
Slowly, each of Hayile’s competitors began to drop off.
She ran through 40K on her own in the time of 2:24:46. She clocked the marathon distance in 2:32:21.
Her winning time of 3:00:29 is the fastest time in a women’s-only race. She bettered South Africa’s Irvette Van Zyl’s mark of 3:04:24 set two years ago.
Fikadu finished second, in 3:06:24, while Lindholm placed third in 3:08:56, passing Nebiyu near the end.
“I am lost for words and don’t know how to describe it,” said Hayile. “All in all, it was an exciting event. I’m very happy.”
USATF Half Marathon Championships
Meanwhile Jacob Thomson and Aliphine Tuliamuk won the USATF Half Marathon Championships in Fort Worth, Texas on the 26th.
Thompson ran 62:38, while Tuliamuk clocked a 69:37 finish.
Men
1. Jacob Thomson – 1:02:38
2. Leonard Korir – 1:02:39
3. Futsum Zienasellassie – 1:02:39
4. Biya Simbasa – 1:02:41
5. Brian Srader – 1:02:43
6. Scott Fauble – 1:02:50
7. Tyler McCandless – 1:02:53
8. Colin Bennie – 1:03:08
9. Colin Mickow – 1:03:23
10. Matt McDonal – 1:03:43
Women
1. Aliphine Tuliamuk – 1:09:37
2. Lauren Paquette – 1:09:51
3. Nell Rojas – 1:11:08
4. Molly Grabill – 1:11:17
5. Jessa Hanson – 1:11:26
6. Paige Wood – 1:11:32
7. Katja Goldring – 1:12:36
8. Molly Seidel – 1:13:08
9. Bridget Belyeu – 1:15:06
10. Lindsey Bradley – 1:15:13
