ADDIS ABABA – Yalemzerf Yehalaw came out first in the 19th edition of the 10 kilo meters Great Ethiopian Run, GER that was held on Sunday leaving behind Tsige Gebreselassie and Alem Negusie to take the second and third places, in the order of that.
In the men’s event Berihu Aregawi was the winner while Andamlak Belhu finished second. The third place was won by Gemechu Dada.
The10km race that began and ended at Meskel square went through Mexico square, Balcha Hospital, Wabishebele Hotel, National Theatre, Harambe Hotel, Filwuha, National Palace, Kazanchis, Saint Ourael Church and Bambis.
The winners both in women’s and men’s events pocketed Birr 100,000. The second and third finishers also received their share.
The annual race brought together 45 thousand participants, according to the organizers statement given on Friday. In the last 19 years the total participants of the GER were 564, 890 the organizers said.
The elite race put together 400 club athletes along with athletes from Kenya, Djibouti and Eritrea. Over 500 foreign participants were also in the race.
Founded in 2001 by renowned economist Peter Middlebrook, British marathon Olympian Richard Nerurkar and the most successful distance runner of all time, Haile Gebrselassie, the Great Ethiopian Run is ten kilometers of running revelry, looping through the streets of central Addis Ababa.
At the front the race could hardly be more competitive. Distance legends like Kenenisa Bekele and Tirunesh Dibaba have competed in the event, and its winners consistently go on to have successful international careers. Indeed, the race is the number-one showcase for Ethiopia’s outstanding talent pool. No other street race in Africa offers a similar mix of competition and atmosphere and, in a country which idolizes its runners; this is where legends are born.
The legendary Ethiopian athlete Haile Gebreselassie was the winner of the first GER 19 years ago. He is now the Board chairman of GER.
When GER began 19 years ago the participants were 10, 000. Few expected that the organizers would get participants of that high at that time. When one observes 45,000 participants at this time it is easy to see the difference.
The guest of the 19th edition was the Kenyan athlete Helen Oberie who is the current world cross country champion and the best 5,000m runner.
The Ethiopian Herald November19, 2019
BY SOLOMON BEKELE
