Abe Gashahun got within one second of the men&rsquo;s course record to regain his title at the Great Ethiopian Run, while Tsigie Gebreselama finally triumphed in the women&rsquo;s race in Addis Ababa on Sunday (10) after finishing third in 2018 and second in 2019.
Both races were close. Gashahun, who won the race back in 2016 as an unheralded teenager, ran alongside Milkesa Mengesha and Tadese Worku, the world U20 cross-country gold and silver medallists respectively, for most of the race.
Mengesha&rsquo;s challenge faded in the second half, while Gashahun kicked past Worku in the closing stages to win by one second in 28:20. Mengesha placed third in 28:40.
Gashahun&rsquo;s winning time was just one second shy of the 28:19 course record set 15 years ago by Deriba Merga.
The women&rsquo;s race was similarly close. Gebreselama, the world U20 cross-country bronze medallist, held off a fierce challenge from little-known Medihen Gebreselasie to win by two seconds in 32:33 &ndash; the fourth-fastest winning time at the Great Ethiopian Run. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/greatethrun?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@greatethrun</a>. I'm happy to win. 📷 GER <a href="https://t.co/9zCUyFYDB9">pic.twitter.com/9zCUyFYDB9</a>
&mdash; Tsigie Gebreselama (@TGebreselama) <a href="https://twitter.com/TGebreselama/status/1348204550986067969?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2021</a></blockquote>
 Gebeyanesh Ayele was further back in third place, clocking 32:45. The top five women finished inside 33 minutes.
Usually held in November, the 20th edition of the Great Ethiopian Run was moved from November 2020 to January 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Organisers also significantly reduced the size of the mass field from 50,000 to 12,500 runners to comply with the Ethiopian government&rsquo;s directives.
<h3>Leading results</h3>
Men 1 Abe Gashahun 28:20 2 Tadese Worku 28:21 3 Milkesa Mengesha 28:40 4 Dagnachew Adere 28:54 5 Lencho Tesfaye 29:01
Women 1 Tsigie Gebreselama 32:33 2 Medihen Gebreselasie 32:35 3 Gebeyanesh Ayele 32:45 4 Bosena Mulate 32:52 5 Melknat Wedu 32:55

Abe Gashahun and Tsigie Gebreselama were the winners of the 2021 Great Ethiopian Run

Gashahun and Gebreselama victorious at Great Ethiopian Run

Making their bids to rise from the crowded ranks of their nation's deep well of distance talent,&nbsp;junior runners Abe Gashahun and Fotyen Tesfay were the surprise winners at the 16th Great Ethiopian Run 10km road race in Addis Ababa on Sunday (20).
Gashahun, 18, won one of the closest finishes in the race&rsquo;s 16-year history, just edging Kenyan Jerome Lumbasi by one second in 28:53.
Four athletes entered the final home straight locked together before Gashahun clinched victory just a few metres from the finish.
Gashahun, who is coached by Haji Ajilo comes from Debre Birhan, 120 kilometres northeast of Addis Ababa, and had travelled to the capital yesterday for this race.
&ldquo;I hope that my win today will give me more opportunities to compete in international races abroad,&rdquo; said Gashahun, who finished eighth at the 2015 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Guiyang, China, and fifth over 5000m at the African Junior Championships that same year, also in Addis Ababa.
Lumbasi, 19, became the first Kenyan male to place in the top three since Nathan Naibei finished runner-up in 2005.
Like Gashahun in the men&rsquo;s race, Tesfay was also making her Great Ethiopian Run debut in the women&rsquo;s contest, where she sprung a surprise over better-known names. Her winning time of 33:09 was one of the fastest performances in race history.
&ldquo;This is my biggest race victory by a long way," said Tesfay, also 18. &ldquo;It is in fact my first race over 10km, and I am so happy to win here.&rdquo;
Tesfay runs for the Messebo club based in the northern province of Tigray and is still relatively new to the racing scene in Addis Ababa. But she&rsquo;s already represented Ethiopian internationally, having finished fourth in the 3000m at the IAAF World U20 Championships Bydgoszcz 2016 last July.
Among those she defeated was 2:22 marathon runner Tadelech Bekele, who recently finished second in the Toronto Waterfront Marathon where she clocked 2:26:31. Here, Bekele was a distant third in 33:25, eight seconds behind runner-up Muluye Dakamaw.
Two weeks into his new role as Ethiopian Athletics Federation President, race founder Haile Gebrselassie expressed his delight that the race had once again helped bring young talent to the larger domestic stage provided by the this massive event in the Ethiopian capital.
The race incorporated a wave start this year to accommodate the growing number of participants. More than 40,000 runners took part this year, with race organisers now confident that the number could grow towards 50,000 in the coming years.
Organisers for the IAAF
<h3>Leading results</h3>
Men 1 Abe Gashahun (ETH) 28:53 2 Jerome Lumbasi (KEN) 28:54 3 Adugna Tekele (ETH) 28:55
Women 1 Fotyen Tesfay (ETH) 33:09 2 Muluye Dakamaw (ETH) 33:17 3 Tadelech Bekele (ETH) 33:25

Making their bids to rise from the crowded ranks of their nation's deep well of distance talent, junior runners Abe Gashahun and Fotyen Tesfay were the surprise winners at the 16th Great Ethiopian Run 10km road race in Addis Ababa on Sunday (20).

Gashahun and Gebreselama victorious at Great Ethiopian Run

Unheralded Gashahun and Tesfay triumph at Great Ethiopian Run