By David Monti, @d9monti
(c) 2025 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved
(04-May) — Ethiopia’s Lemi Berhanu Hayle, the 2016 Boston Marathon champion, successfully defended his title at the 30th anniversary edition of the ORLEN Prague Marathon this morning. In warm, sunny and slightly windy conditions, the 30 year-old dropped a fast second-half split of 1:01:47 to win in 2:05:14, just five seconds shy of the event record of 2:05:09 set by 2024 London Marathon winner Alexander Mutiso Munyao of Kenya. Berhanu is now the first man ever to win back-to-back Prague Marathons.
The women’s title went to another Ethiopian, 20 year-old Bertukan Welde Sura, who ran a personal best 2:20:55 (halves of 1:09:59 / 1:10:56). Her mark was the fourth-fastest time ever on the flat Prague course.
Berhanu, who represents adidas, was part of a strong lead pack that went through 10 km in 29:43. He was joined by Felix Kipkoech of Kenya, Andualem Belay Shiferaw of Ethiopia, Debesay Desale Teklemariam of Eritrea, Tetsuya Yoroizaka of Japan, and Andrew Colley of the United States. Those six athletes were still close together at halfway, although Teklemariam had a slight lead over the others, 1:03:25 to 1:03:27.
But by 25 km, both Yoroizaka and Colley had fallen back, and Berhanu and Kipkoech were left at the front (1:15:18). At that point, Berhanu decided to show all of his cards. He dropped a 14-flat 5 km split through 30-K and put the race away. By the finish he had more than a two-minute gap on Kipkoech, who finished second in a personal best 2:07:19. Yoroizaka held steady in the second half, and finished third in 2:09:10. Shiferaw finished fourth in 2:09:35, and Colley ran a personal best 2:09:46 in fifth. Teklemariam, who was the race leader at halfway, finished sixth in 2:10:01.
“I’m very happy that I am here for the second time (as the) winner,” Berhanu said through an interpreter in his post-race broadcast interview. He continued: “The wind was very difficult in some places around the river area.”
Berhanu now has 12 career marathon victories since winning in his debut in Zürich in 2014.
In only her second marathon, Sura ran a smart race on the women’s side. She and Kenya’s Evaline Chirchir were together at 10 km (33:06), and halfway (1:09:59). A chase group of three women –Kenya’s Pascalia Chepkogei and Vivian Jepkemei Melly, and Ethiopia’s Netsanet Gudeta Kebede– were about 10 seconds back. The trio of chasers got within three seconds of the two leaders by 25 km (1:23:44), but a strong push by Sura in the next 5-kilometer segment gave her a six-second lead by 30 km. That gap would expand to 20 seconds by 35 km, and ultimately increased to 30 seconds by the finish. She ran the final stages of the race alone.
“When you think she has run the last 45 minutes or so on her own, it’s been a magnificent effort,” said commentator Tim Hutchings on the event broadcast.
Chirchir took second in 2:21:25, and third place went to Chepkogei in 2:22:11. Melly and Kebede, who were part of the three-woman chase group, finished fourth and fifth in 2:22:25 and 2:25:16, respectively. It was the first time that the race saw four women inside of 2:22:30.
Both Berhanu and Sura earned EUR 15,000 in prize money. Berhanu also picked-up a EUR 7,000 bonus for sub-2:06, and Sura earned a EUR 4,000 bonus for breaking 2:22:00.
The race also served as the Czech championships, and the national titles went to Yann Havlena on the men’s side (2:21:11, 12th place), and Olympian Tereza Hrochova on the women’s side (2:34:03, 7th place). The Czech champions earned CZK 15,000 each, about EUR 602, in addition to any open prize money.
A total of 5753 runners crossed the finish line in Old Town Square. The event, a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race, was founded 30 years ago in 1995 when the winners were Tumo Turbo of Ethiopia (2:12:44) and Svetlana Tkach of Moldova (2:39:33).
VIDEO STILL: Lemi Berhanu Hayle after winning the 2025 ORLEN Prague Marathon (video still via RunCzech)
VIDEO STILL: Bertukan Welde Sura winning the 2025 ORLEN Prague Marathon (video still via RunCzech)
Hayle_2.jpg
By David Monti, @d9monti
(c) 2025 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved
(04-May) — Ethiopia’s Lemi Berhanu Hayle, the 2016 Boston Marathon champion, successfully defended his title at the 30th anniversary edition of the ORLEN Prague Marathon this morning. In warm, sunny and slightly windy conditions, the 30 year-old dropped a fast second-half split of 1:01:47 to win in 2:05:14, just five seconds shy of the event record of 2:05:09 set by 2024 London Marathon winner Alexander Mutiso Munyao of Kenya. Berhanu is now the first man ever to win back-to-back Prague Marathons.
The women’s title went to another Ethiopian, 20 year-old Bertukan Welde Sura, who ran a personal best 2:20:55 (halves of 1:09:59 / 1:10:56). Her mark was the fourth-fastest time ever on the flat Prague course.
Berhanu, who represents adidas, was part of a strong lead pack that went through 10 km in 29:43. He was joined by Felix Kipkoech of Kenya, Andualem Belay Shiferaw of Ethiopia, Debesay Desale Teklemariam of Eritrea, Tetsuya Yoroizaka of Japan, and Andrew Colley of the United States. Those six athletes were still close together at halfway, although Teklemariam had a slight lead over the others, 1:03:25 to 1:03:27.
But by 25 km, both Yoroizaka and Colley had fallen back, and Berhanu and Kipkoech were left at the front (1:15:18). At that point, Berhanu decided to show all of his cards. He dropped a 14-flat 5 km split through 30-K and put the race away. By the finish he had more than a two-minute gap on Kipkoech, who finished second in a personal best 2:07:19. Yoroizaka held steady in the second half, and finished third in 2:09:10. Shiferaw finished fourth in 2:09:35, and Colley ran a personal best 2:09:46 in fifth. Teklemariam, who was the race leader at halfway, finished sixth in 2:10:01.
“I’m very happy that I am here for the second time (as the) winner,” Berhanu said through an interpreter in his post-race broadcast interview. He continued: “The wind was very difficult in some places around the river area.”
Berhanu now has 12 career marathon victories since winning in his debut in Zürich in 2014.
In only her second marathon, Sura ran a smart race on the women’s side. She and Kenya’s Evaline Chirchir were together at 10 km (33:06), and halfway (1:09:59). A chase group of three women –Kenya’s Pascalia Chepkogei and Vivian Jepkemei Melly, and Ethiopia’s Netsanet Gudeta Kebede– were about 10 seconds back. The trio of chasers got within three seconds of the two leaders by 25 km (1:23:44), but a strong push by Sura in the next 5-kilometer segment gave her a six-second lead by 30 km. That gap would expand to 20 seconds by 35 km, and ultimately increased to 30 seconds by the finish. She ran the final stages of the race alone.
“When you think she has run the last 45 minutes or so on her own, it’s been a magnificent effort,” said commentator Tim Hutchings on the event broadcast.
Chirchir took second in 2:21:25, and third place went to Chepkogei in 2:22:11. Melly and Kebede, who were part of the three-woman chase group, finished fourth and fifth in 2:22:25 and 2:25:16, respectively. It was the first time that the race saw four women inside of 2:22:30.
Both Berhanu and Sura earned EUR 15,000 in prize money. Berhanu also picked-up a EUR 7,000 bonus for sub-2:06, and Sura earned a EUR 4,000 bonus for breaking 2:22:00.
The race also served as the Czech championships, and the national titles went to Yann Havlena on the men’s side (2:21:11, 12th place), and Olympian Tereza Hrochova on the women’s side (2:34:03, 7th place). The Czech champions earned CZK 15,000 each, about EUR 602, in addition to any open prize money.
A total of 5753 runners crossed the finish line in Old Town Square. The event, a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race, was founded 30 years ago in 1995 when the winners were Tumo Turbo of Ethiopia (2:12:44) and Svetlana Tkach of Moldova (2:39:33).
VIDEO STILL: Lemi Berhanu Hayle after winning the 2025 ORLEN Prague Marathon (video still via RunCzech)
VIDEO STILL: Bertukan Welde Sura winning the 2025 ORLEN Prague Marathon (video still via RunCzech)
