Ethiopian marathon winners (የኢትዮጵያ ማራቶን አሸናፊዎች) have taken 83 titles at the seven World Marathon Majors as of November 11, 2026, 37 in the men’s races and 46 in the women’s races.
The first came in 1989, when Abebe Mekonnen won the Boston Marathon. Berlin is the most successful city for Ethiopia, with 22 wins. Tigst Assefa has the most major wins of any Ethiopian, with five.
In 2026 alone, Ethiopians won six major titles. Tadese Takele won in Tokyo, Tigst won in London and Berlin, Addisu Gobena won in Sydney, Guye Adola won in Berlin and Hawi Feysa won in Chicago. No Ethiopian won in Boston or New York this year.
The lists below count only the open races for men and women. Wheelchair races are not included. Winners are listed by the name used in official results and in the winners lists kept on Wikipedia for each race.
Ethiopian Wins at Each Major Marathon
| Marathon | Men | Women | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin | 9 | 13 | 22 |
| Tokyo | 8 | 8 | 16 |
| Boston | 7 | 8 | 15 |
| London | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| Chicago | 2 | 9 | 11 |
| New York | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Sydney | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 37 | 46 | 83 |
Sydney joined the World Marathon Majors in 2025, so only its 2025 and 2026 races are counted. Ethiopian women also won in Sydney before it became a major: Tigist Girma Getachew in 2022 and Workenesh Edesa in 2024.
The First Ethiopian Winners
Ethiopia had Olympic marathon champions long before it had major marathon winners. Abebe Bikila (አበበ ቢቂላ) won the Olympic marathon in Rome in 1960 and in Tokyo in 1964. The big city races came later.
Abebe Mekonnen became the first Ethiopian to win one of today’s majors when he won Boston in 1989. Eight years later, Fatuma Roba won the women’s race in Boston. She won it again in 1998 and 1999, three years in a row. She had already won the Olympic marathon in Atlanta in 1996.
Derartu Tulu (ደራርቱ ቱሉ) won London in 2001 and New York in 2009. In 2001, Tesfaye Jifar also won New York, in what was then a course record.
Berlin: Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele and Tigst Assefa
No city has been better for Ethiopian runners than Berlin. Haile Gebrselassie (ኃይሌ ገብረ ሥላሴ) won there four years in a row, from 2006 to 2009. He set world records on the Berlin course in 2007, in 2:04:26, and in 2008, in 2:03:59.
Kenenisa Bekele (ቀነኒሳ በቀለ) won Berlin in 2016 and 2019. His 2019 time of 2:01:41 was two seconds slower than the world record at the time. Aberu Kebede won the women’s race three times, in 2010, 2012 and 2016.
Tigst Assefa won Berlin in 2022 and again in 2023, when she ran 2:11:53, a world record at the time. On September 27, 2026, she won a third Berlin title in a course record of 2:11:04, even though she hurt her Achilles tendon in the closing stretch. On the same day Guye Adola won the men’s race in a personal best of 2:02:50, his second Berlin win after 2021, World Athletics reported.
Ethiopians won both Berlin races in eight different years: 2006, 2007, 2009, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024 and 2026. In 2024, for example, Milkesa Mengesha and Tigist Ketema took the two titles.
London: From Derartu Tulu to a Women Only World Record
London has 11 Ethiopian winners. Tsegaye Kebede won the men’s race in 2010 and 2013. Shura Kitata won in 2020 and Sisay Lemma won in 2021. Gezahegne Abera, the 2000 Olympic champion, won in 2003.
Aselefech Mergia was named the 2010 women’s winner after the two women who finished ahead of her were disqualified for doping. Tigist Tufa won in 2015 and Yalemzerf Yehualaw won in 2022.
Tigst Assefa won London in 2025 in 2:15:50, a world record for a race with women only. On April 26, 2026, she defended her title and lowered that record to 2:15:41, London Marathon Events reported.
Boston: Fatuma Roba, Lelisa Desisa and Sisay Lemma
Boston has 15 Ethiopian winners, seven men and eight women. Lelisa Desisa won the men’s race in 2013 and 2015. Deriba Merga won in 2009, Lemi Berhanu won in 2016 and Sisay Lemma won in 2024.
Among the women, Dire Tune won in 2008, Teyba Erkesso in 2010 and Atsede Baysa in 2016. Worknesh Degefa won in 2019. Buzunesh Deba was named the 2014 winner after Rita Jeptoo of Kenya was disqualified for doping. Her time of 2:19:59 was a course record at the time.
New York: Four Men and Two Women
New York has the fewest Ethiopian wins of the older majors. Tesfaye Jifar won the men’s race in 2001, Gebregziabher Gebremariam in 2010 and Lelisa Desisa in 2018. Derartu Tulu won the women’s race in 2009 and Firehiwot Dado won in 2011.
Tamirat Tola won in 2023 in 2:04:58, which is still the course record. Ethiopian runners have not won in New York since then. On November 1, 2026, Andreas Almgren of Sweden and Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won.
Chicago: A Race for Ethiopian Women
Chicago has 11 Ethiopian wins, and nine of them came in the women’s race. Berhane Adere won in 2006 and 2007. Atsede Baysa won in 2010 and 2012, Ejegayehu Dibaba in 2011, Mare Dibaba in 2014 and Tirunesh Dibaba (ጥሩነሽ ዲባባ) in 2017.
Three of those titles came after doping cases. Liliya Shobukhova of Russia crossed the line first in 2010 and 2011, and Rita Jeptoo of Kenya crossed the line first in 2014. Both were later disqualified, and the race record now lists the Ethiopian runners as winners.
Hawi Feysa won Chicago in 2025. On October 11, 2026, she defended her title in a personal best of 2:13:33. In the men’s race, Tsegaye Kebede won in 2012 and Seifu Tura won in 2021.
Tokyo and Sydney
Tokyo has 16 Ethiopian wins, eight in each race. Hailu Mekonnen was the first, in 2011. Birhanu Legese won the men’s race in 2019 and 2020. Birhane Dibaba won the women’s race in 2015 and 2018, and Sutume Kebede won in 2024 and 2025.
Tadese Takele won Tokyo in 2025. On March 1, 2026, he won again in 2:03:37 after a sprint over the last 200 meters, the Tokyo Marathon organizers reported.
In Sydney, Hailemaryam Kiros won the men’s race in 2025, the first year the race was a major. On August 30, 2026, Addisu Gobena won in 2:04:42, a course record and the fastest marathon ever run in Australia, World Athletics reported.
Ethiopian Marathon Winners by Year
This table lists every Ethiopian winner of a race that is now a World Marathon Major, by year. Within each year, the races are listed in their usual calendar order.
| Year | Marathon | Men’s winner | Women’s winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Boston | Abebe Mekonnen | |
| 1997 | Boston | Fatuma Roba | |
| 1998 | Boston | Fatuma Roba | |
| 1999 | Boston | Fatuma Roba | |
| 2001 | London | Derartu Tulu | |
| 2001 | New York | Tesfaye Jifar | |
| 2003 | London | Gezahegne Abera | |
| 2005 | Boston | Hailu Negussie | |
| 2006 | Berlin | Haile Gebrselassie | Gete Wami |
| 2006 | Chicago | Berhane Adere | |
| 2007 | Berlin | Haile Gebrselassie | Gete Wami |
| 2007 | Chicago | Berhane Adere | |
| 2008 | Boston | Dire Tune | |
| 2008 | Berlin | Haile Gebrselassie | |
| 2009 | Boston | Deriba Merga | |
| 2009 | Berlin | Haile Gebrselassie | Atsede Habtamu |
| 2009 | New York | Derartu Tulu | |
| 2010 | Boston | Teyba Erkesso | |
| 2010 | London | Tsegaye Kebede | Aselefech Mergia |
| 2010 | Berlin | Aberu Kebede | |
| 2010 | Chicago | Atsede Baysa | |
| 2010 | New York | Gebregziabher Gebremariam | |
| 2011 | Tokyo | Hailu Mekonnen | |
| 2011 | Chicago | Ejegayehu Dibaba | |
| 2011 | New York | Firehiwot Dado | |
| 2012 | Tokyo | Atsede Habtamu | |
| 2012 | Berlin | Aberu Kebede | |
| 2012 | Chicago | Tsegaye Kebede | Atsede Baysa |
| 2013 | Tokyo | Aberu Kebede | |
| 2013 | Boston | Lelisa Desisa | |
| 2013 | London | Tsegaye Kebede | |
| 2014 | Tokyo | Tirfi Tsegaye | |
| 2014 | Boston | Buzunesh Deba | |
| 2014 | Berlin | Tirfi Tsegaye | |
| 2014 | Chicago | Mare Dibaba | |
| 2015 | Tokyo | Endeshaw Negesse | Birhane Dibaba |
| 2015 | Boston | Lelisa Desisa | |
| 2015 | London | Tigist Tufa | |
| 2016 | Tokyo | Feyisa Lilesa | |
| 2016 | Boston | Lemi Berhanu | Atsede Baysa |
| 2016 | Berlin | Kenenisa Bekele | Aberu Kebede |
| 2017 | Chicago | Tirunesh Dibaba | |
| 2018 | Tokyo | Birhane Dibaba | |
| 2018 | New York | Lelisa Desisa | |
| 2019 | Tokyo | Birhanu Legese | Ruti Aga |
| 2019 | Boston | Worknesh Degefa | |
| 2019 | Berlin | Kenenisa Bekele | Ashete Bekere |
| 2020 | Tokyo | Birhanu Legese | |
| 2020 | London | Shura Kitata | |
| 2021 | London | Sisay Lemma | |
| 2021 | Berlin | Guye Adola | Gotytom Gebreslase |
| 2021 | Chicago | Seifu Tura | |
| 2022 | London | Yalemzerf Yehualaw | |
| 2022 | Berlin | Tigst Assefa | |
| 2023 | Tokyo | Deso Gelmisa | |
| 2023 | Berlin | Tigst Assefa | |
| 2023 | New York | Tamirat Tola | |
| 2024 | Tokyo | Sutume Kebede | |
| 2024 | Boston | Sisay Lemma | |
| 2024 | Berlin | Milkesa Mengesha | Tigist Ketema |
| 2025 | Tokyo | Tadese Takele | Sutume Kebede |
| 2025 | London | Tigst Assefa | |
| 2025 | Sydney | Hailemaryam Kiros | |
| 2025 | Chicago | Hawi Feysa | |
| 2026 | Tokyo | Tadese Takele | |
| 2026 | London | Tigst Assefa | |
| 2026 | Sydney | Addisu Gobena | |
| 2026 | Berlin | Guye Adola | Tigst Assefa |
| 2026 | Chicago | Hawi Feysa |
Ethiopians With the Most Major Marathon Wins
- Tigst Assefa: 5 wins (Berlin 2022, 2023, 2026; London 2025, 2026)
- Haile Gebrselassie: 4 wins (Berlin 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009)
- Aberu Kebede: 4 wins (Berlin 2010, 2012, 2016; Tokyo 2013)
- Fatuma Roba: 3 wins (Boston 1997, 1998, 1999)
- Tsegaye Kebede: 3 wins (London 2010, 2013; Chicago 2012)
- Atsede Baysa: 3 wins (Chicago 2010, 2012; Boston 2016)
- Lelisa Desisa: 3 wins (Boston 2013, 2015; New York 2018)
These runners have two wins each: Atsede Habtamu, Berhane Adere, Birhane Dibaba, Birhanu Legese, Derartu Tulu, Gete Wami, Guye Adola, Hawi Feysa, Kenenisa Bekele, Sisay Lemma, Sutume Kebede, Tadese Takele and Tirfi Tsegaye.
Other Ethiopian Marathon Wins in 2026
Ethiopian runners also won many races outside the majors this autumn. Jirata Dinki and Zeineba Yimer won in Frankfurt on October 25, and Abay Alemu Lesa and Zenebu Fikadu won in Dublin the same day. On November 1, Kasanesh Ayenew Baze won in Istanbul, and Kemal Husen Gebi and Kuftu Tahir Dadiso won in Hangzhou, China.
On November 8, Manazot Siyum Taferi and Yatane Kormoshe Dusha won the Athens Marathon in record times. On the same day, Ergat Kahsay Heshe won the women’s race in Porto, and Lemi Gerema won the race from Nice to Cannes in France.
