Injured Assefa narrowly misses world record in Berlin
Tigst Assefa won the Berlin Marathon with the third-fastest women's time in history, finishing in 2 hours 11 minutes and 4 seconds despite suffering a severe injury near the end. She was on pace to break the world record before experiencing physical distress in the final stages of the race.
Why it matters
It highlights an incredible display of resilience and athletic achievement at the elite marathon level, though an injury prevented a historic world record.
An injured Tigst Assefa hobbled over the line at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday after looking set to smash the women's world record.
The Ethiopian still won with the third-fastest time in history in two hours 11 minutes four seconds.
But the 29-year-old, a silver medallist at the Paris Olympics two years ago, had been cruising to a new record before fading in the final stages.
Kenyan athlete Ruth Chepngetich's time of 2:09:56, set at the 2024 Chicago Marathon, remains the world record time, though that result is overshadowed by the three-year doping ban she received in 2025.
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