Seville photo finish: Shura Kitata and Asrar Hiyrden both clock 2:03:59 and both fall
Judges gave Kitata the win after the two Ethiopians went down on the line; Finland's Alisa Vainio won the women's race in a national record 2:20:39.
Photograph: Shura Kitata at the 2017 Frankfurt Marathon, by JeLuF, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsThe 41st Zurich Maratón de Sevilla has 38 turns and ten metres of elevation change, and calls itself the flattest marathon in Europe. On Sunday it produced the fastest time in the world this year and the strangest finish. Shura Kitata and Asrar Hiyrden, both Ethiopian, sprinted the last straight side by side, leaned at the tape at more than 20 km/h and went down hard on the finish mat. Both were given 2:03:59. The judges looked at the photo and gave the win to Kitata, who got up with the marks of the fall on his face and shoulders.
Kitata won London in 2020; this was a personal best, from 2:04:49 in 2018. Hiyrden won here in 2022 in 2:04:43, then the course record. The lead group had 18 men at 10 km and five at 35 km. Dejene Hailu broke away from the rest for third in 2:04:15, Justus Limo of Kenya was fourth in 2:04:55, and 23 men broke 2:10. Ilias Fifa was the first Spaniard, 13th in 2:08:36.
Alisa Vainio of Finland, fifth at the World Championships in Tokyo last year, won the women's race in 2:20:39, taking nine seconds off her own national record from Valencia in December. Mulat Tekle of Ethiopia led on her debut until 35 km and faded to third in 2:22:03 behind Beatrice Jepchirchir Cheserek of Kenya, 2:21:56. Vainio is the first European to win here since 2017. Elisa Palmero of Italy ran 2:24:10 on debut and Spain's Fátima Ouhaddou 2:24:16.
Seventeen thousand people had entered, a record. Marathon finishes should not need a photo. This one needed a photo and a first-aid kit.
Sources: AIMS; Athletics Illustrated; LetsRun.
