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Deso Gelmisa Leads an Ethiopian Sweep in the Tokyo Marathon

The 25-year-old surges ahead of his compatriots down the home stretch to claim the victory in the Tokyo Marathon, which had a field of about 38,000 runners.

Published

1 year ago

March 5, 2023

Jim Armstrong

Ethiopia's Deso Gelmisa wins the men's race at the Tokyo Marathon, followed by his compatriot Mohamed Esa on March 5. (Zhang Xiaoyu/Pool/via AP)

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Deso Gelmisa of Ethiopia edged compatriot Mohamed Esa to earn his first World Marathon Majors win with a thrilling victory in the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday, March 5.

The 25-year-old Gelmisa clocked a winning time of 2 hours, 5 minutes and 22 seconds as he crossed the finish line in front of Tokyo Station less than a second ahead of Esa.

Tsegaye Getachew was just three seconds off the pace to claim third and complete an Ethiopian sweep of the podium.

The 16th Tokyo Marathon, one of six races in the World Marathon Majors series, was held with about 38,000 runners participating. The figure has returned to the pre-pandemic level.

Ichitaka Yamashita gave local fans a thrill when he took the lead at 33 kilometers and held it until a sudden surge by the overseas runners at 37 kilometers.

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