Reigning champions Debela and Armino return to Xiamen

Ethiopia’s defending champions Dejene Debela and Medina Deme Armino will both return to China with the aim of retaining their titles at the Xiamen Marathon, the first World Athletics Gold Label road race of the year on Sunday (5).

The tall and long-legged Debela, who will celebrate his 25th birthday next Thursday, edged compatriot Afewerk Mesfin by just two seconds last year to take a second successive Xiamen victory in 2:09:26.

He went on to earn a runner-up finish in Chicago last October in 2:05:46, improving his personal best by 84 seconds, which suggests he has the ability to challenge the 2:06:19 course record set by Moses Mosop of Kenya in 2015.

Debela has an unbeaten record on Chinese soil, winning two titles in Xiamen and emerging victorious at the 2018 Beijing Marathon.

Read more at: World Athletics