Copenhagen Marathon: Race records narrowly missed

Berhane Tesfaye (ERI) and Sharon Kiptugen (KEN) were crowned winners of the Copenhagen Marathon on Sunday. Clocking 2:08.25 and 2:23.19 they missed the race records by only two and five seconds respectively.

With 11 degrees and almost no wind, the conditions in the Danish capital were optimal.

Reuben Rono, the Kenyan pacer led a group of 11 men through the first half in 1:03.43, indicating a new race record. When Rono dropped out, Boaz Kipkemei (KEN) took the lead and was able to establish a small gap. At 30 km, however, he was overtaken by debutant Vincent Mutai (KEN) and the eventual winner Tesfaye. The two then ran side-by-side until 40 km. On the last stretch, the 38-year-old Tesfaye proved to be the strongest and won by a solid margin of 44 seconds.

“I was indeed aware of the record, but I suffered from pain in my legs and just couldn’t finish faster. The conditions were really good,” Tesfaye told the press after his victory, which was his second consecutive one having also won the Mumbai Marathon in January.

Solid victory for marathon debutant Kitugen
In the women’s race, a group of five Africans passed the half marathon mark in 1:11.27. Soon after, Kenyan debutant Sharon Kitugen eased away steadily increasing her lead. Crossing the finish line in 2:23.19 she missed the race record by five second but could grab a superb first spot by over three minutes down to runner-up, the 2012 Olympic silver medalist at 3000M steeplechase, Sofia Assefa of Ethiopia.

“I didn’t know I was so close to the record, but I’m just happy for the win,” Kitugen said.

Coming up
With 21.000 registered for the race, the 45^th edition of the Copenhagen Marathon was by far the largest ever on Danish soil. Next year, the Copenhagen Marathon will take place on May 10th, and registration for the race will open May 27th 2025.

The next big race in Copenhagen will be the Copenhagen Half Marathon on September 14^th, building up to the World Athletics Road Running Championships Copenhagen 26. Here the world champions on Half Marathon, 5km and One Mile will be crowned with up to 65,000 runners in their footsteps.

Men
1. Berhane Tesfaye ERI 2:08,25
2. Vincent Mutai KEN 2:09,09 PB
3. Yismaw Atinafu ETH 2:10,32

Women
1. Sharon Kiptugen KEN 2:23,19 PB
2. Sofia Assefa ETH 2:26,21
3. Abebech Afework ETH 2:28,37

Facts about the Copenhagen Marathon

• 21.141 runners were registered for the Copenhagen Marathon 25
• 19.088 crossed the start line
• Copenhagen Marathon will take place May 10th 2026
• Registration for next years' race opens May 27th 2025
• Copenhagen Marathon took place for the first time in 1980
• Sparta Athletics & Running is the organizer of Copenhagen Marathon
• Learn more: www.copenhagenmarathon.dk