Degefa and Deksisa lead elite field for Dubai Marathon

A powerful field of elite athletes will come together for the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon, a World Athletics Gold Label road race, on 24 January.

Ethiopia‘s 2017 winner Worknesh Degefa and Kebede Alemu Megertu head up the women’s elite field, while Solomon Deksisa and Seifu Tura – also from Ethiopia – lead the men’s entries.

Ethiopian record-holder Worknesh Degefa will start as red-hot favourite thanks to an enviable record running the flat and fast streets of Dubai.

In 2017, the diminutive 29-year-old stunned an experienced field by winning in Dubai on what was her marathon debut. A year later, she broke the 2:20 mark for the first time but had to settle for fourth, while last year saw her finish second in Dubai in a remarkable time of 2:17:41. Not only did Degefa smash the Ethiopian record by 15 seconds, she also set what is now the fifth fastest time in history.

Read more at: World Athletics