Tigst Assefa was on world-record pace deep into the race before late cramps disrupted her finish, but the Ethiopian star still won the Berlin Marathon 2026 in the third-fastest women’s marathon time ever.
Tigst Assefa produced a remarkable performance at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, September 27, winning the women’s race in 2:11:04 after spending almost the entire race on course for a new world record.
The Ethiopian runner appeared to have the women’s marathon record within reach before cramps struck during the closing stages. She slowed dramatically over the final kilometres and crossed the finish line visibly struggling, but her huge advantage over the field was enough to secure her third Berlin Marathon victory.
Her winning time was also a new Berlin course record and a personal best, improving the 2:11:53 she ran when she won the race in 2023. World Athletics confirmed that the performance ranks as the third-fastest women’s marathon in history.
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Assefa was on record pace for almost the entire race
Assefa’s performance initially looked like it could become one of the most significant marathon world-record attempts ever.
She immediately separated herself from the main women’s field, reaching 5 kilometres in 15:30 and 10 kilometres in 30:48. By halfway, she had run 1:04:57, one of the fastest half-marathon splits ever recorded in a women’s marathon.
Rather than slowing in the second half, Assefa continued to accelerate.
She reached 25 kilometres in 1:17:00 and 30 kilometres in 1:32:15. Her pace at that stage put her back inside the world-record schedule, with a projected finishing time of approximately 2:09:45.
The decisive acceleration came between 30 and 35 kilometres. Assefa covered that five-kilometre section in 15:17, reaching 35 kilometres in 1:47:32.
Reuters reported that she was around 20 seconds inside world-record pace at the 35-kilometre mark, leaving the large Berlin crowd anticipating a possible breakthrough.
The world record disappeared in the final two kilometres
Assefa reached the 40-kilometre checkpoint in approximately 2:03:00, with her pace still projecting a finish around 2:09:44.
That meant she remained on course to challenge Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich, whose 2:09:56 from the 2024 Chicago Marathon remains the women’s marathon world record.
But shortly after the 40-kilometre mark, Assefa’s race changed dramatically.
She began to limp and visibly struggled with cramps. Her pace dropped sharply as she approached the Brandenburg Gate and the finish line.
Despite the problem, she refused to stop. Assefa continued forward and crossed the line in 2:11:04 before collapsing and receiving assistance.
Reuters reported that the Ethiopian had been firmly on record pace until the final two kilometres, while AP described the late cramps as the reason her world-record attempt slipped away.
A new course record and the third-fastest time ever
Although Assefa missed the world record, her final time was still extraordinary.
Her 2:11:04 was 49 seconds faster than her previous Berlin best of 2:11:53. It also moved her to third on the women’s all-time marathon list, behind Chepngetich’s 2:09:56 and Ethiopia’s Fotyen Tesfay, who ran 2:10:51 in Barcelona earlier in 2026.
Assefa’s 2023 Berlin performance had made her the world-record holder at the time. Chepngetich subsequently lowered that mark in Chicago in 2024.
Chepngetich was not part of Sunday’s Berlin field. She is currently serving a three-year ban following a doping violation, while her 2:09:56 mark remains the recognized world record.
Third Berlin victory for Assefa
The victory was Assefa’s third at Berlin.
She previously won the race in 2022 and 2023, making Sunday’s result another significant chapter in her relationship with one of marathon running’s fastest courses.
It was also her third marathon victory in her last four starts. Earlier in 2026, she won the London Marathon in 2:15:41, setting a women’s-only marathon world record at that event.
Her latest Berlin performance therefore adds another elite-level result to a résumé that already includes an Olympic silver medal and a former outright marathon world record.
Ethiopian runners dominate the women’s podium
Assefa’s victory was followed by an all-Ethiopian top five.
Bedatu Hirpa finished second in 2:16:53, narrowly holding off compatriot Dera Dida, who finished third in 2:16:55.
Bekelech Gudeta took fourth in 2:18:58, while Alemitu Tariku completed the top five in 2:19:01.
Hirpa’s battle with Dida provided the closest contest behind Assefa, with only two seconds separating the two runners at the finish.
Guye Adola completes Ethiopian double
The men’s race also ended with an Ethiopian victory.
Guye Adola won the men’s Berlin Marathon in 2:02:50, completing an Ethiopian sweep of the elite men’s and women’s races.
Adola stayed within the leading group through the early stages before making his decisive move after 30 kilometres. He gradually opened the gap and crossed the finish line comfortably ahead of the chasing runners.
Gemechu Dida finished second in 2:03:19, while Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay was third in 2:03:59.
The victory was Adola’s second Berlin title, following his 2021 triumph. World Athletics also noted that his winning time was a personal best.
What makes Assefa’s performance significant
The most remarkable aspect of Assefa’s Berlin performance was not simply the victory or even the course record.
For much of the race, she was running at a pace that suggested the women’s world record could fall.
Her splits showed remarkable consistency, and she was still projected to break Chepngetich’s record at 40 kilometres. Only the dramatic physical problems in the closing stages prevented what had looked like a historic world-record run.
Instead, Assefa finished with a result that still ranks among the greatest women’s marathon performances ever recorded.
The contrast between the near-perfect first 40 kilometres and the difficult final stretch will likely be one of the defining images of the 2026 Berlin Marathon.
The world record remains intact
Assefa’s victory leaves Chepngetich’s 2:09:56 world record intact.
But Sunday’s race demonstrated that Assefa remains capable of running at that level. Her 2:11:04 was achieved despite losing significant time in the final section, meaning the Ethiopian’s record attempt came remarkably close to producing a new benchmark before the late cramps intervened.
For now, the world record remains untouched.
Assefa, however, leaves Berlin with another title, a new course record and the third-fastest women’s marathon time in history.
Women’s Berlin Marathon 2026 Top Five
| Position | Athlete | Country | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tigst Assefa | Ethiopia | 2:11:04 |
| 2 | Bedatu Hirpa | Ethiopia | 2:16:53 |
| 3 | Dera Dida | Ethiopia | 2:16:55 |
| 4 | Bekelech Gudeta | Ethiopia | 2:18:58 |
| 5 | Alemitu Tariku | Ethiopia | 2:19:01 |
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