Tigist Gezahagn, a two-time Paralympic 1500 m champion, breaks the Vienna course record

Tigist Gezahagn won the 43rd Vienna City Marathon on Sunday in 2:20:06, a course record and a personal best. The old mark, Vibian Chepkirui's 2:20:59, had stood since 2022. Gezahagn, 26, is visually impaired and the Paralympic 1500 m champion of 2021 and 2024; she runs the roads with a guide alongside, giving warnings on bends and rough ground.

She went through 10 km in 33:30 with a 39-second gap on the chasers and halfway in 70:24 with her compatriot Haftamnesh Tesfaye, who was racing her first marathon since 2020 after maternity leave. The two were together until the Ringstraße, where Gezahagn pulled away around 41 km. Tesfaye was second in 2:20:18, matching a best she set seven years ago. Hellen Chepkorir of Kenya was third in 2:23:48 and Lindsay Flanagan of the United States seventh in 2:28:34.

Fanny Kiprotich of Kenya, 24, won the men's race in 2:06:53. His previous best was 2:11:21 from Tallinn last year. The lead group passed halfway in 63:06, Kiprotich surged near 28 km with Eritrea's Oqbe Kibrom on his shoulder, and ran the last ten alone after dropping him at 32 km. Kibrom was second in 2:08:10 and Charles Mneria third in 2:08:42. Andreas Vojta, 36, was the first Austrian in 2:15:07.

A record 12,995 had entered the marathon, and 49,379 people from 150 countries ran something over the weekend. On Saturday Lisa Redlinger ran 15:34 in the 5 km, an Austrian record.

A Paralympic champion holding a city marathon record is not a feel-good footnote. It is the fastest anyone has run that course.

Sources: German Road Races; Vienna.at.