The Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan claimed her third medal of the Paris Olympics by winning gold in the women’s marathon with an Olympic record time of 2:22:55. Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa took silver, finishing three seconds behind, while Kenya’s Hellen Obiri secured bronze.
After grueling 13% climbs and muscle-pounding descents in the summer heat, Tigist and Sifan were side by side. Tigist, the 27-year-old marathon star who set a world record in Berlin last year, had been training 160 to 200 km per week for this Olympic title. With just 300 meters remaining, the race was still undecided. The Ethiopian-born runner who competes for the Netherlands, true to her signature tactic, lingered behind the leaders for most of the race before unleashing a powerful late-race kick that will be remembered as one of the sport’s finest.
Ethiopia’s Amane Beriso Shankule, who won the World Championships marathon in Budapest in August 2023, finished fifth. Another of her teammates, Alemu Megertu, who finished fourth at the London Marathon, abandoned the race after 25 kilometers.
Tigist Assefa began her athletic career as a middle-distance runner, earning bronze in the 800 meters and silver in the 4×400-meter relay at the 2013 African Junior Championships in Mauritius. She represented Ethiopia at the 2016 Rio Olympics but did not advance past the first round. After 2016, Tigist Assefa never raced on the track again.
An ongoing Achilles tendon injury, which made training in spike shoes unbearable, led Tigist Assefa to switch to road racing. Despite medical experts advising her that she might never run again, her support team encouraged her to focus on road racing.
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