Tigist Assefa from Ethiopia shattered the women's world marathon record in Berlin on Sunday, crossing the finish line in two hours 11 minutes 53 seconds.
She took more than two minutes off the previous world record of 2:14:04, which had been set by Kenya's Brigid Kosgei at the Chicago Marathon in 2019.
"I didn't expect to run this fast, that is to say to break 2:12, but it is the result of hard work. As for being now a favorite for the Olympic Marathon next year, it is up to the National Committee to select me for the team," she said after the race.
The athlete reached the half-way mark in 1:06:20, putting her on track to smash the world record by more than a minute. She had no problem maintaining her pace and by the 37km point she was just three seconds per kilometer slower than Kipchoge's time at the same stage.
Kenya's Sheila Chepkirui managed to hold on to second place with a run of 2:17:49, while Tanzania's Magdalena Shauri finished third in 2:18:41, setting a national record.
African glory was completed in the men's race that was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge in 2:02:42, more than a minute off his own world record set in the German capital in 2022.
Ethiopia's Tigist started running marathons in March last year. Previously, she was an 800-meter specialist. In March 2022, she made her debut at the marathon distance at the Riyadh Marathon in Saudi Arabia, finishing seventh with a time of 2:34:01.
At the Berlin Marathon in September last year, she stopped the clock at 2:15:37, an improvement of over 18 minutes, setting the third-fastest women's mark ever at the time and an Ethiopian record.