The 28-year-old is the first woman to break 2:00 in the 800 meters and 2:20 in the marathon.
tendon injury prevented her from training in spikes and ultimately led her to switch to road racing.
After a two-year break to recover from the injury, she made her road 10K debut in the fall of 2018, running 34:35 in Dubai. The following spring, she improved by nearly three minutes to win Germany’s Oelder Sparkassen-City-Lauf 10K in 31:45, and she debuted in the half marathon, running 1:08:25 at the Medio Maraton de Valencia in Spain.
“She did not have to run, but when you need some money to survive after two years of pandemic, no races, it’s tough to say no to an appearance fee,” Demadonna wrote.Assefa’s training continued to progress under Dedefo, whom Demadonna says was mentored by renowned Italian coaches Renato Canova and Gabriela Nicola, coach ofGetty Images
In the spring and early summer, Assefa won five races and set personal bests in the half marathon and the 10K . Based on her results and Demadonna’s professional relationships, she was accepted into the elite field for Berlin. “Not easy for an 800 meter runner to switch to the marathon, but maybe she was fast in 800 meter and not an 800-meter runner,” he wrote. “Finally, she found her way, and I think she can even run faster although the condition of the weather in Berlin were extremely good with no wind at all and 12 degrees and a pacer dedicated for her.