Herpa Guta inspires Ethiopian 1-2 finish to win 2023 Lagos City Marathon

Herpa won the 2023 Lagos City Marathon

ATHLETICS Herpa Guta inspires Ethiopian 1-2 finish to win 2023 Lagos City Marathon

Funmilayo Fameso 16:51 - 04.02.2023

Guta reclaimed her title from 2018, to win the 2023 Lagos City Marathon in a close finish.

Ethiopia's Herpa Guta has inspired a 1-2 finish for her country by winning the 2023 Access Bank Lagos City Marathon, crossing the finish line in 2:40:42, slightly ahead of Kebene Chala Urisa with 2:40:44, and Kenya's Naomi Jepkosgei Maiyo with 2:40:56.

The top three finishers at the 2023 Lagos City Marathon

It is Guta's fourth time competing at the Lagos Marathon, having won in 2018 and finished second in 2019 and 2022 respectively.

Guta is well known to compete in marathon events around the world, her last being the 2022 Gabon Marathon, where she finished second in 2:48:54.

Guta and Urisa crossing the finish line

Also, she has a Personal Best (PB) of 2:33:20, which placed her as one of the fastest runners coming to Lagos.

Second-placed Urisa is still yet to find her winning gear in Lagos. She came third in 2019 and second in 2020. Though she has the second-fastest PB of 2:30:49 among the three medallists and won the Tunisia Marathon with a fast 2:31:09 in December 2022, just 0.02s was the luck that eluded her from Lagos glory this year.

Maiyo came to Lagos with the fastest PB of 2:30:09 but ended up with the bronze medal. It is the same colour of medal she settled for in 2022.

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