Tsegaye Getachew wins the Amsterdam Marathon (© AFP / Getty Images)
Tsegaye Getachew will defend his title at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon, which celebrates its 50th anniversary on Sunday (19) but the Ethiopian faces a field that includes two-time Olympic gold medallist Joshua Cheptegei at the World Athletics Platinum Label road race.
Meanwhile, a new champion will be crowned in the women’s race as 2022 world bronze medallist Lonah Salpeter faces a strong Ethiopian contingent.
Getachew set his lifetime best of 2:04:49 when winning in Amsterdam in 2022. After placing 16th at the 2023 World Championships, he returned to the Dutch capital last year and won again, this time clocking 2:05:38.
The 28-year-old hasn’t raced since then, so his current form is somewhat unknown. He’ll need to be near his best if he hopes to achieve a third victory, beating a field that includes the likes of Cheptegei, Gabriel Geay and Getaneh Molla.
Cheptegei, a three-time world champion over 10,000m, has contested just two marathons to date. He ran 2:08:59 on his debut in Valencia at the end of 2023, then took exactly three minutes off that PB when finishing ninth at the Tokyo Marathon earlier this year.
The Ugandan skipped the entire track season this year so that he could dedicate himself fully to road running. His last outing was a 27:53 victory over 10km in Bengaluru in April.
Geay – the fastest man in the field for Sunday – set a Tanzanian record of 2:03:00 when finishing second in Valencia in 2022. Four months later, he finished second again, this time in Boston. After failing to finish in Boston one year later, and at the Olympic Games later in 2024, he rebounded at the start of this year with a 2:05:20 triumph in Daegu.
Molla’s PB of 2:03:34 dates back to his marathon debut in 2019. He carries good momentum into Amsterdam, having clocked 2:06:04 in Osaka in February followed by a win in Lanzhou in 2:11:45.
Other Ethiopian contenders include Bute Gemechu, who won this year’s Dubai Marathon on his debut at the distance in 2:04:51, three-time Lisbon Marathon winner Andualem Shiferaw, two-time world 5000m champion Muktar Edris, and Bazezew Asmare, who finished third in Amsterdam in 2022.
The Kenyan charge, meanwhile, is led by Geoffrey Toroitich and Enock Kinyamal.
Olympic champion Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia was originally scheduled to compete but had to withdraw due to a stress fracture. His course record of 2:03:39, set in 2021, is expected to come under threat on Sunday.
The women’s title has been won by Ethiopian women at the past three editions of the Amsterdam Marathon, and a new name could join that roll of honour on Sunday with a quartet of Ethiopian sub-2:20 performers taking to the start line.
Tiruye Mesfin, Bosena Mulate, Zeineba Yimer and Yebrugual Melese are all sub-2:20 performers at their best.
Tiruye Mesfin clocked a PB of 2:18:35 in Valencia last year, and more recently she placed fourth in Rotterdam. Bosena Mulate has completed just two marathons to date, but in her last outing she placed third in Berlin in 2:19:00.
Zeineba Yimer has finished inside 2:20 in four of her six completed marathons to date. She set her PB of 2:19:07 in Berlin in 2023, while this year her best is 2:21:12. The highly experienced Yebrugual Melese is another sub-2:20 performer at her best. Earlier this year she finished second in Barcelona in 2:20:47, the third-fastest time of her career.
Lonah Salpeter has the fastest PB of the field with her 2:17:45 Israeli record set in 2020. She heads to Amsterdam with a season’s best of 2:24:03 and will be looking to bounce back after failing to finish at the World Championships in Tokyo.
On season’s bests, Bahrain’s Desi Jisa Mokonin is the fastest of the field. The 28-year-old clocked a PB of 2:20:07 earlier this year to finish sixth at the Tokyo Marathon. She finished fourth at the 2018 Amsterdam Marathon and eighth in last year’s race, so she’ll be keen to make her first podium in the Dutch capital.
Leading entries
Women
Lonah Salpeter (ISR) 2:17:45
Tiruye Mesfin (ETH) 2:18:35
Bosena Mulate (ETH) 2:19:00
Zeineba Yimer (ETH) 2:19:07
Yebrugual Melese (ETH) 2:19:36
Desi Jisa (BRN) 2:20:07
Waganesh Mekasha (ETH) 2:20:44
Bertukan Welde (ETH) 2:20:55
Gadise Mulu (ETH) 2:20:59
Zinah Senbeta (ETH) 2:21:05
Aynalem Desta (ETH) 2:22:11
Vivian Melly (KEN) 2:22:25
Rose Chelimo (BRN) 2:23:12
Mekides Shimeles (ETH) debut
Men
Gabriel Geay (TAN) 2:03:00
Getaneh Molla (ETH) 2:03:34
Andualem Shiferaw (ETH) 2:04:44
Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) 2:04:49
Bute Gemechu (ETH) 2:04:51
Bazezew Asmare (ETH) 2:04:57
Geoffrey Toroitich (KEN) 2:05:46
Joshua Cheptegei (UGA) 2:05:59
Muktar Edris (ETH) 2:05:59
Kenya Sonota (JPN) 2:05:59
Enock Kinyamal (KEN) 2:06:28
Lameck Too (KEN) 2:06:29
Merhawi Kesete (ERI) 2:06:36
Masresha Bere (ETH) 2:06:44
Afewerk Mesfin (ETH) 2:07:08
Boki Diriba (ETH) 2:07:13
Khalid Choukoud (NED) 2:07:37
Godadaw Belachew (ISR) 2:07:45
Mesfin Niguse (ETH) 2:07:58
Phil Sesemann (GBR) 2:08:04
Haftom Welday (GER) 2:08:24
Shadrack Kimining (KEN) 2:08:29
Benson Tunyo (KEN) 2:08:36
Takashi Ichida (JPN) 2:08:57
Aron Kifle (ERI) 2:09:39
Tadesse Getahon (ISR) debut
Daniel Tola (ETH) debut
