Ebenyo Kebede to defend Tata Steel World 25K crowns

Kolkata, Dec 3 (PTI) Daniel Ebenyo of Kenya and Ethiopia's Sutume Kebede will defend their respective titles at the Tata Steel World 25K to be held here on December 15.
    The current event record of 1:11:13 in the men's category is also held by Ebenyo while Kebede holds the women's record with a timing of 1:18:47.
    The World Athletics Gold Label 25K race will have some of the world's best athletes taking the centre stage with an overall prize money of USD 142,214.
    With equal prize money for men and women winners, the top three winners stand to win USD 15,000, USD 10,000, and USD 7,000 respectively. The runners will be further incentivised by an Event Record Bonus of USD 5,000.
    The women's line-up also includes former winner Desi Jisa from Bahrain. She was part of the Bahraini team that took a bronze medal in the World Cross-Country Championships in 2017 and was placed second in the recent Doha (2023) and Seoul (2024) marathons.
    "I am always eager to run again in Kolkata and am happy to be part of the Tata Steel World 25K in 2024," said Jisa.
    Another past champion in Kolkata (2017) is Ethiopia's Degitu Azimeraw. Earlier this year, she won the Barcelona Marathon, clocking 2:19:52. She made a comeback recently from maternity break and finished sixth in the recent edition of the Chicago Marathon in October.
    Her country-mate Alemaddis Eyayu, the winner in this year's Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, is making her debut in 25K.
    Kenyan Viola Chepngeno, who finished third in Delhi last year and Shintayehu Lewetegn, Ethiopia's cross-country World bronze medallist, have also confirmed their entries.
    Early this year, Kebede improved her personal bests in the half marathon (1:04:37) and marathon (2:15:55) to take initial world leads in both events. It has set the tone for faster timing and a keen contest among women runners.
    Ebenyo is aiming to better his timing (1:11:13) from last year, which was just five seconds slower than his country-mate Eliud Kipchoge's 1:11:08, recorded while setting the world record 2:01:09 in the Berlin Marathon two years ago.
    "The Kolkata roads are fast and conditions are ideal. It is a perfect opportunity for me to defend my title and better my timing," Ebenyo said.
    Kenya's Benson Kipruto and Haymanot Alew of Ethiopia will also feature in the men's field.
    Earlier this year, Kipruto won the Tokyo Marathon with a season-leading time of 2:02:16. While doing so, he was officially timed 1:11:39 at 25K. He won the bronze medal in the Paris Olympics this summer.
    Two other notable entries in the men's section are Stephen Kissa and Diriba Girma.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)