Elite race/athlete profiles
Another extraordinary strong race is expected when the 52nd edition of the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON takes place on 27th September. The event stands like no other marathon for superfast times. 13 world records were broken at Germany’s most spectacular road race. This is a record in itself since there is no other marathon worldwide where so many global marks were set.
It is possible that another chapter can be added to this unique series. The leading women runner on the start list is an athlete who has already set a world record at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON: Tigst Assefa triumphed here three years ago with 2:11:53. Among others she will face the defending champion, Rosemary Wanjiru of Kenya.
In the men’s race a group of Ethiopian world-class runners are now the favourites. Among them is Guye Adola, who has won the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON in 2021.
Sebastian Hendel (Marathon Team Berlin) is the fastest German runner on the start list. Two years ago he improved to 2:07:33 at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. Among the German women Esther Pfeiffer (Düsseldorf Athletics) is likely to take centre stage. She is capable of running a national top time.
Together with the races in Boston, Chicago, London, New York, Tokyo and more recently Sydney as well as Cape Town from 2027 the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON forms the Abbott World Marathon Majors (AWMM). The race is also a Platinum Label Road Race of World Athletics – the highest category in global running.
The Men’s Race
The depth of the Berlin elite field is once again very strong. Seven athletes on the start list have top-class personal bests of under 2:05:00. A total of around 30 have already run under 2:08:00 – a time that was still world-class a good 25 years ago and was only beaten for the first time in Berlin in 1995.
Since Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe had to cancel his start in Berlin due to an injury, a group of Ethiopian athletes are now regarded as favourites. Guye Adola is a runner who set his strong personal best at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON and has even won the race before.
In 2017 Adola finished second behind Kenya’s superstar Eliud Kipchoge. On that occasion he ran an unofficial debut world record of 2:03:46 which remains his personal best. In 2021 Guye Adola won the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON in 2:05:45, leaving even legendary runner Kenenisa Bekele behind him. This spring Adola won the Rotterdam Marathon and with a time of 2:03:54 came closer to his personal best than in any other race.
Getaneh Molla (PB: 2:03:34) and Shura Kitata, who improved to 2:03:59 earlier this year, will also be ones to watch. And at least one other Ethiopian has the potential to improve significantly in Berlin: Selemon Barega is the 10,000 m Olympic champion from Tokyo 2021. In the marathon the 26-year-old has so far achieved 2:05:00.
Kenenisa Bekele returns once more to the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, which he has won twice (2016 and 2019), narrowly missing out on the world record on both occasions. In 2019 he set his personal best of 2:01:41 here. At 44 the Ethiopian running legend is unlikely to be among the first few finishers, but the former Olympic long-distance champion, world record holder and world champion is still capable of a strong performance.
No fewer than 14 Japanese runners with personal bests of between around 2:06 and 2:08 feature on the start list. The big number of athletes in this time bracket could also help some German runners, provided they are in the form to challenge their personal bests.
Aaron Bienenfeld (Düsseldorf Athletics) ran his marathon debut in Hamburg at the end of April and impressed straight away with a strong time of 2:08:47. Bienenfeld’s marathon debut was the fastest ever by a German runner. His performance in Hamburg now raises hopes for a further improvement.
Three more German top runners are returning to the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. Haftom Welday (TB Hamburg Eilbeck) has already shown promising form this year, improving his time to 2:08:13 in Barcelona in March. The 36-year-old, who is preparing for the Berlin race in Ethiopia, aims to improve further. Johannes Motschmann (Marathon Team Berlin) will make another attempt to finally break 2:10:00. So far the 32-year-old’s best time is 2:10:39. In the spring he was forced to withdraw from the Hanover Marathon early in the race due to injury. Sebastian Hendel (Marathon Team Berlin) hopes for a fine race as well. Two years ago he surprised everyone here with a strong personal best of 2:07:33. Since then however he has been repeatedly held back by health issues and injuries.
The Women’s Race
There is a big favourite in the women’s race: Ethiopia’s Olympic silver medallist Tigst Assefa is set to return to the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON and aims to regain the world record. The 29 year-old has already won the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON twice, causing a sensation on both occasions: in 2022 the Ethiopian improved her time by almost 20 minutes to 2:15:37 and a year later she broke the world record, taking the mark to new dimensions with 2:11:53. The Olympic marathon silver medallist from Paris 2024, who also won silver at the 2025 World Championships, is the current world record holder for women-only races (without male pacemakers). Tigst Assefa first broke the record in London in 2025 with 2:15:50 before improving her mark this spring to 2:15:41 during her successful title defence in London. She now aims to use the fast course to reclaim the overall world record which currently stands at 2:09:56.
Defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru is the most likely contender to pose a threat to Tigst Assefa. The 31 year-old Kenyan finished second in her debut at the 2022 BMW BERLIN-MARATHON with 2:18:00. Last year she triumphed in heat with 2:21:05 despite being extremely exhausted. Rosemary Wanjiru will certainly attempt to break her personal best of 2:16:14 in Berlin.
Bedatu Hirpa, Dera Dida and Zeineba Yimer are three Ethiopian runners capable of strong performances. Hirpa won last year’s Dubai Marathon with 2:18:27 and went on to triumph in Paris a few months later. This year she finished second in Osaka with 2:19:54. Dida was second behind Hirpa in Dubai in 2025 with a personal best of 2:18:32 and then missed out on victory by just a few seconds again at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. Yimer improved to 2:18:47 to take third in Barcelona this March.
The depth of the women’s elite field is also very strong. Eight runners with personal bests under 2:20:00 are on the start list. A further eight have already run sub 2:23:00.
Esther Pfeiffer (Düsseldorf Athletics) could provide a German highlight. The 28-year-old has the potential to clock a national top time in only her second marathon. In 2023 she won her debut in Cologne virtually unchallenged in 2:37:00, securing the German championship title in the process. She has not run the distance since then. The wife of top German marathon runner Hendrik Pfeiffer improved her half marathon PB to 67:25 at the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON in March, continuing a strong development. She may even attack the 18 year-old German record: Back in 2008 Irina Mikitenko won the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON with 2:19:19.
Like her husband Kristina Hendel is also looking to return to fine form at the BMW BERLIN MARATHON. Her four year old personal best stands at 2:27:29. Since achieving that time in Hamburg she has been repeatedly hampered by injury problems. Anna Langerwisch, who competes for Marathon Team Berlin as well, achieved a significant improvement this year in Prague, clocking 2:32:13. With this result the 24 year-old joined the extended German elite in only her second marathon. She could improve further in Berlin.
Men
| First name | Family name | Date of birth | Nationality | Personal best | Best race |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gabriel | Geay | 10.09.1996 | TAN | 2:03:00 | 2. Valencia 22 |
| Getaneh | Molla | 10.01.1994 | ETH | 2:03:34 | 1. Dubai 19 |
| Guye | Adola | 20.10.1990 | ETH | 2:03:46 | 2. Berlin 17 |
| Shura | Kitata | 09.06.1996 | ETH | 2:03:59 | 1. Sevilla 26 |
| Dejene | Hailu | 29.12.2003 | ETH | 2:04:15 | 3. Sevilla 26 |
| Erick | Sang | 15.09.2000 | KEN | 2:04:30 | 3. Hamburg 25 |
| Selemon | Barega | 20.01.2000 | ETH | 2:05:00 | 7. Tokyo 26 |
| Taresa | Tolosa | 15.06.1998 | ETH | 2:05:17 | 5. Hamburg 26 |
| Tadu | Abate | 11.09.1997 | ETH | 2:05:38 | 6. Tokyo 23 |
| Asefa | Boki | 26.09.1997 | ETH | 2:05:40 | 2. Amsterdam 24 |
| Kenya | Sonota | 30.05.1993 | JPN | 2:05:59 | 8. Tokyo 23 |
| Tsubasa | Ichiyama | 08.04.1996 | JPN | 2:06:00 | 10. Tokyo 25 |
| Kiyoto | Hirabayashi | 04.12.2002 | JPN | 2:06:14 | 5. Osaka 26 |
| Yuhei | Urano | 01.11.1997 | JPN | 2:06:23 | 13. Tokyo 25 |
| Hidekazu | Hijikata | 27.06.1997 | JPN | 2:06:26 | 2. Otsu 21 |
| Yusuke | Nishiyama | 07.11.1994 | JPN | 2:06:31 | 9. Tokyo 24 |
| Naoki | Koyama | 12.05.1996 | JPN | 2:06:33 | 3. Osaka 24 |
| Andamlak | Belihu | 20.11.1998 | ETH | 2:06:40 | 4. Berlin 22 |
| Kazuya | Nishiyama | 05.11.1998 | JPN | 2:06:45 | 6. Osaka 23 |
| Daisuke | Uekado | 11.12.1993 | JPN | 2:06:54 | 9. Tokyo 20 |
| Jie | He | 27.12.1998 | CHN | 2:06:57 | 4. Wuxi 24 |
| Sebastian | Hendel | 01.12.1995 | GER | 2:07:33 | 17. Berlin 24 |
| Shin | Kimura | 08.02.1994 | JPN | 2:07:34 | 14. Tokyo 24 |
| Richard | Yator | 04.06.1998 | KEN | 2:07:36 | 21. Tokyo 26 |
| Ken | Nakayama | 24.02.1997 | JPN | 2:07:39 | 17. Osaka 26 |
| Shunsuke | Shikama | 07.01.2001 | JPN | 2:07:44 | 19. Osaka 26 |
| Shoma | Hosoya | 13.02.2000 | JPN | 2:07:48 | 13. Osaka 25 |
| Yuto | Imae | 26.01.1998 | JPN | 2:07:56 | 21. Osaka 26 |
| Wu | Xiangdong | 17.01.1994 | CHN | 2:08:04 | 10. Osaka 24 |
| Guojian | Dong | 16.03.1987 | CHN | 2:08:12 | 14. Osaka 24 |
| Haftom | Welday | 13.03.1990 | GER | 2:08:13 | 11. Barcelona 26 |
| Emanuel | Dinday | 09.09.1999 | TAN | 2:08:18 | 3. Daegu 26 |
| Laban | Kiplimo | 05.01.1993 | KEN | 2:08:23 | 3. Milan 26 |
| Aoi | Ota | 26.08.2002 | JPN | 2:08:31 | 2. Gold Coast 25 |
| Aaron | Bienenfeld | 25.09.1997 | GER | 2:08:47 | 16. Hamburg 26 |
| Felix | Kurui | 28.10.1998 | KEN | 2:09:13 | 28. Tokyo 26 |
| Tendai | Zimuto | 25.07.1995 | ZIM | 2:09:30 | 3. Enschede 24 |
| Joseph | Panga | 26.06.1995 | TAN | 2:09:35 | 9. Berlin 25 |
| Paulo | Paula | 08.07.1979 | BRA | 2:09:51 | 19. Sevilla 22 |
| Jake | Smith | 19.05.1998 | GBR | 2:11:00 | 1. Pulford 21 |
| Tom | Hendrikse | 11.08.1998 | NED | 2:11:07 | 15. Rotterdam 24 |
| Jiahao | Wang | 06.07.2000 | CHN | 2:11:17 | 29. Sevilla 26 |
| Will | Nation | 02.03.1992 | USA | 2:11:14 | 7. Sacramento 25 |
| Charlie | Sweeney | 16.01.1999 | USA | 2:11:28 | 31. Boston 26 |
| Yohan | Zaradzki | 21.09.1994 | BEL | 2:12:28 | 11. Kopenhagen 26 |
| Lars | Dewall | 29.09.2000 | USA | 2:12:30 | 37. Boston 26 |
| Zhangxing | Yang | 20.04.2002 | CHN | 2:12:36 | 7. Beijing 25 |
| Alexandru | Corneschi | 17.07.1991 | ROU | 2:12:39 | 22. Berlin 23 |
| Florian | Von Muschwitz | 23.03.1993 | GER | 2:15:03 | 21. Hamburg 22 |
| Jakob | Lange | 05.08.1995 | GER | 2:16:43 | 47. Sevilla 26 |
| David | Gärtlein | 11.06.1992 | GER | 2:18:01 | 91. Tokyo 26 |
| Julian | Großkopf | 01.02.2000 | GER | 2:18:17 | 15. Hannover 26 |
Women
| First name | Family name | Date of birth | Nationality | Personal best | Best race |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rosemary | Wanjiru | 09.12.1994 | KEN | 2:16:14 | 2. Tokyo 24 |
| Tigst | Assefa | 03.12.1996 | ETH | 2:11:53 | 1. Berlin 23 |
| Bedatu | Hirpa | 28.04.1999 | ETH | 2:18:27 | 1. Dubai 25 |
| Dera | Dida | 26.10.1996 | ETH | 2:18:32 | 2. Dubai 25 |
| Zeineba | Yimer | 17.06.1998 | ETH | 2:18:47 | 3. Barcelona 26 |
| Bosena | Mulatie | 21.11.2001 | ETH | 2:19:00 | 3. Berlin 24 |
| Misgane | Alemayehu | 23.09.2004 | ETH | 2:19:08 | 2. Paris 26 |
| Bekelech | Gudeta | 11.10.1997 | ETH | 2:19:39 | 2. Seoul 26 |
| Evaline | Chirchir | 02.02.1998 | KEN | 2:20:33 | 4. Valencia 24 |
| Deshun | Zhang | 21.02.1996 | CHN | 2:20:53 | 9. Tokyo 25 |
| Gadise | Mulu | 14.11.1997 | ETH | 2:20:59 | 2. Ljubljana 24 |
| Eebbisee | Addunyaa | 11.10.2006 | ETH | 2:21:13 | 2. Mailand 26 |
| Aminet | Ahmed | 11.02.2000 | ETH | 2:21:24 | 6. Amsterdam 24 |
| Rika | Kaseda | 02.03.1999 | JPN | 2:21:55 | 7. Berlin 22 |
| Mao | Uesugi | 16.08.1995 | JPN | 2:22:11 | 4. Nagoya 25 |
| Pascaline | Jelagat | 26.04.1998 | KEN | 2:22:44 | 1. Rom 26 |
| Manon | Trapp | 01.08.2000 | FRA | 2:23:38 | 2. Sevilla 25 |
| Natsuki | Omori | 22.06.1994 | JPN | 2:23:45 | 5. Nagoya 26 |
| Fatima | Gardadi | 20.03.1992 | MAR | 2:24:06 | 5. Osaka 26 |
| Jacqueline | Gaughan | 27.10.1999 | USA | 2:24:40 | 2. Sacramento 24 |
| Rino | Goshima | 29.10.1997 | JPN | 2:24:44 | 7. Nagoya 26 |
| Kodi | Kleven | 26.05.1992 | USA | 2:24:48 | 14. Boston 26 |
| Margaux | Sieracki | 17.06.1999 | FRA | 2:25:50 | 8. Amsterdam 25 |
| Fadouwa | Ledhem | 28.09.1987 | FRA | 2:25:50 | 27. Valencia 23 |
| Lucy | Reid | 02.12.1992 | GBR | 2:26:37 | 4. Malaga 24 |
| Ayumi | Morita | 17.04.1996 | JPN | 2:26:48 | 2. Hofu 25 |
| Mary | Munanu | 12.12.1994 | KEN | 2:26:59 | 2. Linz 26 |
| Kristina | Hendel | 13.05.1996 | GER | 2:27:29 | 5. Hamburg 22 |
| Annie | Bothma | 26.12.1995 | RSA | 2:27:45 | 1. Durban 26 |
| Allie | Kieffer | 16.09.1987 | USA | 2:28:12 | 7. New York 18 |
| Maya | Weigel | 01.07.1995 | USA | 2:28:45 | 5. Sacramento 25 |
| Rebecca | Schmitt | 30.07.1992 | USA | 2:28:47 | 6. Sacramento 25 |
| Katja | Goldring | 11.08.1990 | USA | 2:29:01 | 5. Sacramento 22 |
| Tessa | Barrett | 09.02.1996 | USA | 2:30:11 | 10. Sacramento 25 |
| Annie | Heffernan | 05.07.1996 | USA | 2:30:26 | 5. Sacramento 24 |
| Jana | Soethout | 28.12.1989 | GER | 2:31:09 | 9. Rotterdam 26 |
| Rutendo | Nyahora | 11.11.1988 | ZIM | 2:32:00 | 15. Frankfurt 23 |
| Anna | Langerwisch | 13.08.2001 | GER | 2:32:13 | 6. Prag 26 |
| Monica | Hebner | 05.08.1999 | USA | 2:32:40 | 7. Sacramento 24 |
| Thea | Heim | 26.07.1992 | GER | 2:33:25 | 26. Valencia 22 |
| Cara | Zollenkopf | 09.06.1998 | GER | 2:36:05 | 5. Düsseldorf 25 |
| Esther | Pfeiffer | 04.09.1997 | GER | 2:37:00 | 1. Köln 23 |
| Alemaddis | Eyayu | 30.10.1999 | ETH | Debut | Debut |
| Ludwina | Chepngetich | 08.04.1998 | KEN | Debut | Debut |
| Sisilia | Panga | 28.12.1997 | TAN | Debut | Debut |
Prize Money Men and women
- 30.000 Euro
- 15.000
- 10.000
- 8.000
- 6.500
- 5.000
- 4.000
- 3.000
- 2.000
- 1.500
Time Bonus
| Men | Euro | Women | Euro | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First sub | 2:02:00 | 30.000 | 2:15:00 | 30.000 |
| First/Second Sub | 2:03:00 | 15.000 | 2:17:00 | 15.000 |
| New World Record | - | 50.000 | - | 50.000 |
Time bonus is not cumulative, one athlete receives one time bonus only.
Only the first two runners can earn a time bonus and only the winner/s can receive the world record bonus.
Sebastian Hendel
Germany / Marathon Team Berlin
Birthdate: 1.12.1995
Personal Best: 2:07:33 (Berlin, 2024)
Abbott World Marathon Majors
| Date | Race | Placement | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21.9.25 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | DNF | DNF |
| 29.9.24 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | 17 | 2:07:33 |
Additional Marathons
| Date | Race | Placement | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.12.25 | Valencia Marathon | DNF | DNF |
| 28.4.24 | Hamburg Marathon | 10 | 2:08:51 |
| 8.10.23 | Munich Marathon | 5 | 2:10:14 |
| 23.4.23 | Vienna Marathon | 9 | 2:11:29 |
| 9.10.22 | Munich Marathon | 4 | 2:10:37 |
Career Notes
Sebastian Hendel caused a surprise when he was the fastest German runner of the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON 2024. He improved his PB significantly to 2:07:33 and moved up to fifth place on the German all-time list.
However in the wake of his greatest success things no longer went well for Sebastian Hendel. Due to illness he had missed the spring season in 2025 and had then focused on the BMW BERLIN MARATHON. However the unusually hot weather did not suit him. As a number of other elite athletes he withdrew from the race, stopping after 30 k. At his second attempt at the Valencia Marathon in December he did not finish as well. Hip problems forced him to withdraw. These persisted throughout the first half of 2026 so that he was unable to compete in either the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON or the Hamburg Marathon.
Sebastian Hendel is now looking to make another attempt at the BMW BERLIN MARATHON. Berlin is usually a good place for 30 year-old. It was here that he set his personal bests in the three major road distances. Back in 2021, at the third Berlin Invitational 10 km race – one of the few races held worldwide during the pandemic lockdowns – he ran a personal best of 28:35 that still stands today. Two years later he improved his PB to 61:52 at the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON, and in 2024 he ran 2:07:33 at the BMW BERLIN MARATHON.
Sebastian Hendel’s strengths clearly are the long distance road events. He showed his best performances so far in the half marathon and the marathon. But originally he ran middle and long distances on the track. For some years now his focus is on the roads. Running his debut at the half marathon distance he took second place at the 2021 German championships in Hamburg with 62:28. It took over a year before he then ran his first marathon in Munich with 2:10:37. He finally broke 2:10:00 when he ran 2:08:51 at the Hamburg Marathon in 2024. Then he further improved at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON.
Personal Background
Sebastian Hendel started running in an athletics club at a young age. But it was only when his father Udo Hendel took over coaching him that he prospered. At local and then regional level he started winning track, cross country and road championship races. After completing his A levels in 2014 he received a scholarship for sport at New York’s Iona College. There he met his wife, Croatia’s long distance runner Kristina Bozic. Before their son was born in October 2016, they stopped their scholarships in New York. Since then the family lives near Zwickau, Germany. Kristina Hendel has a marathon PB of 2:27:29 and competes for Germany since 2022.
Haftom Welday
Germany / TB Hamburg Eilbeck
Birthdate: 13.3.1990
Personal Best: 2:08:13 (Barcelona, 2026)
Abbot World Marathon Majors
| Date | Race | Placement | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21.9.25 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | DNF | DNF |
| 29.9.24 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | DNF | DNF |
| 27.8.23 | World Championships, Budapest | 14 | 2:11:25 |
| 25.9.22 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | 11 | 2:09:06 |
| 26.9.21 | BMW BERLIN-MARATHON | 13 | 2:13:47 |
Additional Marathons
| Date | Race | Placement | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15.3.26 | Barcelona Marathon | 11 | 2:08:13 |
| 6.4.25 | Hannover Marathon | 2 | 2:11:06 |
| 19.1.25 | Houston Marathon | 12 | 2:11:27 |
| 18.2.24 | Sevilla Marathon | 21 | 2:08:29 |
| 3.12.23 | Valencia Marathon | 30 | 2:08:24 |
| 23.4.23 | Hamburg Marathon | 8 | 2:09:40 |
Career Notes
Haftom Welday has not run any other race over the classic distance as often as the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. On 27 September he will be making his fifth appearance at Germany’s most spectacular road race. He ran his debut here and clocked his first sub 2:10:00 in Berlin. Most recently however he did not finish on two occasions. In 2024 he faltered after an extremely fast early pace and withdrew; in 2025, like many other elite runners, he gave up due to unusually high temperatures.
When running events started to come back in 2021 after the Corona lockdowns Haftom Welday achieved a breakthrough in Berlin: He improved by over four minutes at the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON. Then he came back to the capital and ran a 2:13:47 debut at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON.
One year later he improved his marathon PB significantly in Berlin, running 2:09:06. At that time he was number six on the German alltime list. Welday was selected for the World Championships’ marathon in Budapest in 2023. In hot weather conditions he achieved a fine 14th place and was the fastest German. However despite improving to 2:08:24 in Valencia later in the year he did not manage to qualify for the Olympic Games. A sub 2:07:05 was necessary for selection.
This year Haftom Welday ran a 2:08:13 PB in Barcelona in March. It was already his third sub 2:08:30 time, which suggests that he might be in for bigger improvement on Berlin’s fast course.
Personal Background
Haftom Welday had Eritrean citizenship but grew up in Ethiopia’s Tigray region. “I liked to play football and was not fond of running at all“, recalled Haftom Welday, who fled the region in 2014. Coming through the Sahara and then crossing the Mediterranean Sea he arrived in Germany and lived in Pattensen near Hannover. “I realised that I was able to run fast when I had to run three kilometres to catch a bus. Then I did the Deutsches Sportabzeichen (a popular German sporting certificate) and Friedrich Weber, who recorded my performances for the Sportabzeichen, spotted my talent and supported me. At that time I was 25,“ reports Haftom Welday on his website. At the end of 2021 Haftom Welday moved to Hamburg together with his wife and the three children. In 2022 he received German citizenship. His dream is to run the marathon at the Olympic Games. To reach this goal he joined the extremely competitive training group of Gemedu Dedefo in Addis Ababa. The renowned coach takes care of a large number of world-class runners, among them the Olympic marathon champion Tamirat Tola.
Aaron Bienenfeld
Germany / Düsseldorf Athletics
Birthdate: 25.9.1997
Personal best: 2:08:47 (Hamburg, 2026)
Marathon Race
| Date | Race | Placement | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26.4.26 | Hamburg Marathon | 16 | 2:08:47 |
Career Notes
Aaron Bienenfeld will run the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON with a little “delay“. He had originally planned to make his debut over the 42.195 km here a year ago. However he was then offered a last-minute opportunity to compete in the 10,000 m at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Bienenfeld finished 23rd at these championships. Aaron Bienenfeld postponed his marathon debut until this spring. He ran an excellent race in Hamburg at the end of April. With a time of 2:08:47 he matched exactly the former German record of Jörg Peter, which stood for over two decades. With Peter he currently shares tenth place in the list of the fastest German runners of all time. It was also the fastest marathon debut ever by a German runner.
With his performances over shorter distances Aaron Bienenfeld had already shown that he had the potential for a good marathon. However the fact that he achieved this so successfully on his debut gives cause for hope that he will continue to improve.
In the early years of his career Aaron Bienenfeld mainly competed in middle- and long-distance track events. During a pandemic lockdown in November 2020 he then ran an elite-only half marathon race in Dresden. Finishing second behind Richard Ringer in 62:33 he achieved a remarkable improvement of just under six minutes. After that however the focus returned to the track and on occasion cross-country running. In 2023 he ran the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON and improved to 61:51. Five months later Bienenfeld finished 32nd at the World Half Marathon Championships in Riga with 61:49. Further personal bests in the half marathon and over 10,000 m in 2024 and 2025 (61:45 and 27:42.83 respectively) laid a very solid foundation for his successful marathon debut in Hamburg.
Personal Background
Aaron Bienenfeld was running under the radar for a long time since he lives mainly in the USA since early 2018. The athlete from Frankfurt (Main) had received a running scholarship and went on to study marketing at the University of Cincinnati and later in Oregon, a mecca for US long-distance running. He ran most of his races in the US where he developed strongly.
