World marathon silver medallist Amanal Petros regained his German record with 2:04:03 to finish second in another record-breaking edition of the Valencia Marathon on Sunday (7) morning.
In a race won by Kenya’s John Korir in 2:02:24, Petros ran a well-measured race to move through for the runner-up spot in 2:04:03. Not only did he take back the German record which belonged to Samuel Fitwi with 2:04:56, he also moved to third on the European all-time list behind Belgium’s Bashir Abdi (2:03:36) and France’s Morhad Amdouni (2:03:47).
"I'm very happy that I achieved my goal. My season was very long. My goal was to run a very fast time, and I trained for a long time in Kenya for that...after 25 kilometers, I even expected more in terms of the European record but our pacemaker wasn't feeling well. Not everything went perfectly, but I still have nothing to complain about. A very nice end to the year!" said Petros as quoted by Sportschau.
Just behind Petros, there was a breakthrough performance from Norway’s Awet Kibrab. He ran the fastest ever debut marathon by a European with 2:04:24 to shatter Sondre Nordstad Moen’s national record of 2:05:48 which stood as the European record when he ran that time in the Fukuoka Marathon in 2017.
There was a lot of excitement ahead of Alex Yee’s second marathon and the Olympic triathlon champion finished a brilliant seventh in 2:06:38, a time which had only been bettered among Brits by Mo Farah who holds the British record of 2:05:11.
Yee inched ahead of Olympic fourth-placer Emile Cairess on the British all-time list. Incidentally, Cairess acted as Yee’s pacemaker today.
Ibrahim Chakir was the leading Spanish finisher on home soil, finishing 16th in 2:07:21.
Breakthrough marathons for Herbiet and Vainio
Chloe Herbiet shattered Marleen Renders’ venerable Belgian record to finish third in the women’s race behind Kenyans Joyciline Jepkosgei (2:14:00) and Peres Jepchirchir (2:14:43).
Herbiet finished third in a massive lifetime best of 2:20:38 to shave four minutes off her lifetime best and improve the long-standing Belgian record of 2:23:05 set by Renders when she won the Paris Marathon back in 2002.
And Herbiet might not be done for 2025 just yet. She is also on the entry-list for the senior women’s race in the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Lagoa next Sunday.
One place behind Herbiet, Finland’s Alisa Vainio decimated her national record in her third marathon in less than three months.
Only three weeks after finishing fifth in stifling heat and humidity at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Vainio won the Finnish marathon title in Vantaa in a national record of 2:23:06. Vainio lopped more than two minutes off this recently-set record in Valencia with a 2:20:48 clocking to finish fourth despite dealing with severe pain caused by a blister in the last seven kilometres.
Herbiet and Vainio move to sixth and eighth respectively on the European all-time list.
Meritxell Soler was the leading Spaniard in ninth in 2:23:49 while Julia Mayer also improved her Austrian record to 2:26:09 to finish 14th.
Leading European results
Men
2. Amanal Petos (GER) 2:04:03
3. Awet Kibrab (NOR) 2:04:24
5. Gashau Ayale (ISR) 2:05:29
7. Alex Yee (GBR) 2:06:38
8. Felix Bour (FRA) 2:06:41
9. Filmon Tesfu (NED) 2:06:42
11. Hendrik Pfeiffer (GER) 2:06:45
12. Samuel Fitwi (GER) 2:07:01
13. Phil Sesemann (GBR) 2:07:11
16. Ibrahim Chakir (ESP) 2:07:21
Women
3. Chloe Herbiet (BEL) 2:20:38
4. Alisa Vainio (FIN) 2:20:48
8. Lonah Chemtai Salpeter (ISR) 2:23:45
9. Meritxell Soler (ESP) 2:23:49
10. Natasha Wilson (GBR) 2:24:21
11. Ester Navarrete (ESP) 2:23:31
14. Julia Mayer (AUT) 2:26:08
15. Nora Szabo (HUN) 2:27:06
16. Ines Hamoudi (FRA) 2:27:35
17. Lily Partridge (GBR) 2:27:54
Full results here.