Feyisa Lilesa
Encyclopedia
Feyisa Lilesa is a male long-distance runner from Ethiopia
. He became the youngest man to run under 2:06 when he set his personal best (2:05:23) in the men's marathon at the 2010 Rotterdam Marathon
. This makes him the third fastest Ethiopian runner ever over the distance, behind Haile Gebrselassie
and Tsegay Kebede. He won the Dublin Marathon
in 2009 in his debut race and then won the Xiamen International Marathon
in 2010.
, where his 14th place finish in the junior race helped the Ethiopians to the team silver medal
s. He ran at the inaugural edition of the World 10K Bangalore
in May and was fifth in a time of 28:35.
Feyisa made his senior breakthrough the following year, stepping up a level at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
and scoring a senior team silver medal by finishing in 12th place. That April he headed to the United States
to compete in the Crescent City Classic
in New Orleans. He set a 10K best of 28:20 to finish as runner-up behind Mark Kiptoo
. He upped the distance by running at the Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon in September. He set a time of 1:02:15 but again he was beaten into second place by a Kenyan rival, this time in the form of William Chebor. He made his marathon debut he following month, competing at the Dublin Marathon
. He took the lead from two-time winner Aleksey Sokolov
and went unrivalled in his first race over the distance, beating Solokov by a margin of a minute and a half. His time of 2:09:12 was a strong debut run, although he missed the course record by five seconds.
He improved further at the Xiamen International Marathon
in January 2010, breaking Samuel Muturi Mugo
's year-old course record with a time of 2:08:47 to gain his first win at a major marathon. He knocked a significant margin off that time at the Rotterdam Marathon
, where he finished in 2:05:23. This time made him the third fastest Ethiopian (and non-Kenyan runner) ever behind compatriots Haile Gebrselassie
and Tsegay Kebede. However, this time only brought him fourth place in Rotterdam as the competition was one of the strongest ever – podium finishers Patrick Makau, Geoffrey Mutai
, Vincent Kipruto
all moved into the top-10 all-time fastest marathon runners. He ran at the 2010 Chicago Marathon
in October and kept pace with the race leaders, Tsegaye Kebede and Sammy Wanjiru, up to the 20-mile mark. He faded behind them afterwards, however, and finished in third with a time of 2:08:10. Feyisa Lilesa was among the earlier front runners of the Delhi Half Marathon the following month, but eventually finished in fifth place.
He ran at the Rotterdam Marathon in April 2011, but was somewhat off the pace and finished seventh, more than six minutes behind the winner.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. He became the youngest man to run under 2:06 when he set his personal best (2:05:23) in the men's marathon at the 2010 Rotterdam Marathon
Rotterdam Marathon
The Rotterdam Marathon is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April of every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World...
. This makes him the third fastest Ethiopian runner ever over the distance, behind Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is an Ethiopian long-distance track and road running athlete. He won two Olympic gold medals over 10,000 metres and four World Championship titles in the event. He won the Berlin Marathon four times consecutively and also had three straight wins at the Dubai Marathon...
and Tsegay Kebede. He won the Dublin Marathon
Dublin Marathon
The Dublin Marathon is an annual marathon in Dublin, Ireland, normally held on the last Monday in October, which is a public holiday in Ireland. Held each year since 1980, in 2007 there were about 11,000 race participants, half of whom were from overseas....
in 2009 in his debut race and then won the Xiamen International Marathon
Xiamen International Marathon
The Xiamen International Marathon is an annual marathon race held in January in the coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province, People's Republic of China. It is one of the prominent marathon races of the year...
in 2010.
Career
He entered international competition in 2008 and his first major competition was the 2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships2008 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Holyrood Park at Edinburgh, Scotland on 30 March 2008. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...
, where his 14th place finish in the junior race helped the Ethiopians to the team silver medal
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
s. He ran at the inaugural edition of the World 10K Bangalore
World 10K Bangalore
The World 10K Bangalore is an annual 10 kilometres road running competition which takes place in Bangalore, India. The competition was first held in 2008 and usually takes place in late May...
in May and was fifth in a time of 28:35.
Feyisa made his senior breakthrough the following year, stepping up a level at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 37th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Al Bisharat Golf Course at Amman, Jordan on 28 March 2009. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...
and scoring a senior team silver medal by finishing in 12th place. That April he headed to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to compete in the Crescent City Classic
Crescent City Classic
The Crescent City Classic is an annual 10-kilometer race held on Easter weekend in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States....
in New Orleans. He set a 10K best of 28:20 to finish as runner-up behind Mark Kiptoo
Mark Kiptoo
Mark Kosgey Kiptoo is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 metres.He was born in Lugari. One of his earliest major events was the 2007 Military World Games, where he won the 5000 m and took second place behind compatriot John Cheruiyot Korir over 10,000 metres...
. He upped the distance by running at the Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon in September. He set a time of 1:02:15 but again he was beaten into second place by a Kenyan rival, this time in the form of William Chebor. He made his marathon debut he following month, competing at the Dublin Marathon
Dublin Marathon
The Dublin Marathon is an annual marathon in Dublin, Ireland, normally held on the last Monday in October, which is a public holiday in Ireland. Held each year since 1980, in 2007 there were about 11,000 race participants, half of whom were from overseas....
. He took the lead from two-time winner Aleksey Sokolov
Aleksey Sokolov
Aleksey Vladimirovich Sokolov is a marathon runner. He represented his country at the 2008 Summer Olympics. He won the Dublin Marathon twice and was Russia's national marathon champion in 2007...
and went unrivalled in his first race over the distance, beating Solokov by a margin of a minute and a half. His time of 2:09:12 was a strong debut run, although he missed the course record by five seconds.
He improved further at the Xiamen International Marathon
Xiamen International Marathon
The Xiamen International Marathon is an annual marathon race held in January in the coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province, People's Republic of China. It is one of the prominent marathon races of the year...
in January 2010, breaking Samuel Muturi Mugo
Samuel Muturi Mugo
Samuel Muturi Mugo is a Kenyan athlete who specialises in long distance running, particularly the marathon. He also competes under the name Sammy Mugo....
's year-old course record with a time of 2:08:47 to gain his first win at a major marathon. He knocked a significant margin off that time at the Rotterdam Marathon
Rotterdam Marathon
The Rotterdam Marathon is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April of every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World...
, where he finished in 2:05:23. This time made him the third fastest Ethiopian (and non-Kenyan runner) ever behind compatriots Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is an Ethiopian long-distance track and road running athlete. He won two Olympic gold medals over 10,000 metres and four World Championship titles in the event. He won the Berlin Marathon four times consecutively and also had three straight wins at the Dubai Marathon...
and Tsegay Kebede. However, this time only brought him fourth place in Rotterdam as the competition was one of the strongest ever – podium finishers Patrick Makau, Geoffrey Mutai
Geoffrey Mutai
Geoffrey Kiprono Mutai is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in road running competitions...
, Vincent Kipruto
Vincent Kipruto
Vincent Kipruto Limo is a Kenyan long distance runner who specialises in the marathon. He made his debut in the event in 2008 and won the Paris Marathon a year later...
all moved into the top-10 all-time fastest marathon runners. He ran at the 2010 Chicago Marathon
2010 Chicago Marathon
The 2010 Chicago Marathon took place on Sunday, October 10, 2010. Over 38,000 runners took part, the most in the race's history.Kenyan Samuel Wanjiru won the men's event with a time of 2:06:24, beating Ethiopian Tsegaye Kebede by 19 seconds. Russian Liliya Shobukhova won the women's event with a...
in October and kept pace with the race leaders, Tsegaye Kebede and Sammy Wanjiru, up to the 20-mile mark. He faded behind them afterwards, however, and finished in third with a time of 2:08:10. Feyisa Lilesa was among the earlier front runners of the Delhi Half Marathon the following month, but eventually finished in fifth place.
He ran at the Rotterdam Marathon in April 2011, but was somewhat off the pace and finished seventh, more than six minutes behind the winner.
Personal bests
| Event | Time (h Hour The hour is a unit of measurement of time. In modern usage, an hour comprises 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds... :m Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... :s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 km | 28:20 | New Orleans, United States | 11 April 2009 |
| Half marathon Half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a... |
1:02:08 | Rotterdam Rotterdam Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre... , Netherlands |
11 April 2010 |
| Marathon Marathon The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race... |
2:05:23 | Rotterdam Rotterdam Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre... , Netherlands |
11 April 2010 |
- All information taken from IAAF profile.
Achievements
| Representing | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Dublin Marathon Dublin Marathon The Dublin Marathon is an annual marathon in Dublin, Ireland, normally held on the last Monday in October, which is a public holiday in Ireland. Held each year since 1980, in 2007 there were about 11,000 race participants, half of whom were from overseas.... |
Dublin, Ireland | 1st | Marathon | 2:09:12 |
| 2010 | Xiamen International Marathon Xiamen International Marathon The Xiamen International Marathon is an annual marathon race held in January in the coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province, People's Republic of China. It is one of the prominent marathon races of the year... |
Xiamen Xiamen Xiamen , also known as Amoy , is a major city on the southeast coast of the People's Republic of China. It is administered as a sub-provincial city of Fujian province with an area of and population of 3.53 million... , PR China |
1st | Marathon | 2:08:47 |
| Rotterdam Marathon Rotterdam Marathon The Rotterdam Marathon is an annual marathon that has been held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands since 1981. It has been held in April of every year since the third edition in 1984, and attracts many top athletes. It has also been ranked as one of the top 10 marathons in the world by Runner's World... |
Rotterdam, Netherlands | 4th | Marathon | 2:05:23 | |
| 2011 | World Championships 2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011.... |
Daegu Daegu Daegu , also known as Taegu, and officially the Daegu Metropolitan City, is a city in South Korea, the fourth largest after Seoul, Busan, and Incheon, and the third largest metropolitan area in the country with over 2.5 million residents. The city is the capital and principal city of the... , South Korea South Korea The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south... |
3rd | Marathon 2011 World Championships in Athletics – Men's Marathon The Men's marathon at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics was held starting and finishing at Gukchae-bosang Memorial Park on September 4. Abel Kirui was the defending champion.... |
2:10:32 |