Ljubljana Marathon: Kenyan, Ethiopian runners set new records
Kenyan runner Enock Onchari and Ethiopia's Haftamnesh Tesfay Haylu won the men's and women's races at the 30th Ljubljana Marathon, both setting course records in the Slovenian capital.
Onchari clocked two hours, four minutes and 55 seconds over the 42-kilometre course, shaving three seconds off the previous record set by Ethiopia's Sissay Lemma in 2018 and improving his personal best by 35 seconds, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
Haylu finished in 2:19:17, improving the women's record set by Kenya's Joyce Chepkemoi Tele in 2024 by exactly one minute.
The men's race featured the strongest international field in the event's history. By the 35-kilometre mark, Onchari and compatriot Hillary Kipkoech had established a clear lead over the rest of the field. Kipkoech finished second in 2:05:08, while Eritrea's Ogbe Ruesom took third in 2:05:46.
Onchari said he had deliberately held back early in the race to conserve energy for the second half.
"I didn't start out the fastest because you have to conserve energy for the second half. That's usually the hardest part of a marathon. So thanks to my smart pacing, I had enough energy to pick up the pace in the final stretch and set a new record," he said.
He added that he had not expected to beat Lemma's record during the first half of the race.
Lemma went on to win the London Marathon in 2021 and the Boston Marathon in 2024 after setting the Ljubljana course record. Onchari said he hoped to achieve similar results in the remainder of his career.
"That is my goal for the rest of my career: to achieve more notable finishes," he said, adding that the course's second half was faster than he had expected and that the record would eventually be broken again.
The leading Slovenian finisher was Anže Roblek, who placed fifth in 2:22:53. Four more Slovenian runners finished in the top 10: Primož Kobe was seventh, Simon Navodnik eighth, Jernej Markovc ninth and Matej Zrimšek tenth.
The race marked the end of Kobe's career. The 45-year-old, who set the Slovenian marathon record of 2:17:03 last year, had hoped for a stronger performance but said he had contracted an intestinal infection while preparing in Kenya.
"I'm completely dehydrated. I regret not showing what I am capable of at my farewell race. But I'm happy that I persisted and finished it," he said.
In the women's race, Kenya's Esther Kipkech took second in 2:19:24, followed by Ethiopia's Tigist Gezahagn in 2:20:04.
Saša Pisk was the fastest Slovenian woman, finishing in 2:49:39 to claim the national championship title. She said she had repeatedly considered dropping out but managed to persevere despite struggling in the foggy conditions.
"Every five kilometres, I found myself wondering whether to keep going or quit. But I fought through it anyway and won the Slovenian championship title," she said, adding that she had run faster in the spring but had struggled to find her rhythm in the autumn race.
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