Overview
- Tigst Assefa completed and won the Berlin Marathon in 2:11:04 after suffering a rupture of her right Achilles in the final kilometers.
- Her agent and Demadonna Athletics Promotion confirmed on Tuesday that she had successful surgery in Munich and faces roughly six to seven months out of competition.
- Assefa had run at near-world-record pace for most of the race, passing the half in 1:04:57 and reaching 40 km nine seconds under the record split before pain began at about kilometer 31.
- The injury ended her immediate plans to chase the 2:09:56 mark set by Ruth Chepngetich in 2024 and shifts Assefa’s short-term focus to recovery and rehab with a possible return in spring 2027.
- Assefa’s win adds to an elite record that includes multiple Berlin and London victories and Olympic and world silver medals, making her rehabilitation a key story for the sport and its record debates.