Hailemaryam Kiros and Sifan Hassan pulled off thrilling wins at the Sydney Marathon on Sunday as the race made it’s debut as a member of the marathon majors club.
Kiros emerged from a pack of just over a dozen runners to win the men’s race in 2:06:06 while Hassan was aggressive from the start and took the women’s race in 2:18:22. Both marks are new course records.
Sydney was elevated as part of the World Marathon Majors last November, beating out races in cities like Cape Town, South Africa and Shanghai, which were candidate races. The new status put Sydney alongside Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin, Tokyo and New York as majors, with Sydney becoming the seventh.
Changes for Sydney went into effect quickly as officials implemented a ballot system and bumped the general field up to 35,000 participants — a 10,000 person boost.
Kiros made a statment with his win but was locked in with a lead pack that held tight until the late stages of the race. He pulled away at 40km when it was apparent that Addisu Gobena would not make a surge to the finish. Gobena was second in 2:06:16
while Tebello Ramakongoana finished third in 2:06:47. The win also gave Kiros a new course record.
“The competition was very tough,” Kiros said. “They are strong fields, but we worked together and now we are here.”
Eliud Kipchoge, the two-time Olympic champion, was in the mix for most of the race and held pace with the lead pack well thorough the halfway point when it was still not clear who would make a move and break away. But before the 35km mark, Kipchoge drifted off of the pack and finished ninth in 2:08:31.
“I’m happy to go across the finish line. I have nothing to prove,” Kipchoge said after the race. “My mission is to bring all the people together. Let us surpass 55,000 — actually — next year to run here. It’s a beautiful course. It’s a course whereby there is no other in this world.”
Hassan, still riding from the momentum of her three-medal showing at the Paris Olympics — that included a stunning finish to win the gold in the marathon — showed dominance from the start in Sydney on Sunday.
She was hyped as a favorite but faced a field that featured six women who all clocked sub-2:19 times previously.
But Hassan’s quick start appeared to pay off and the pacers visibly guided the lead pack in the early stages. By the 10km point, that same group of five blazed through in 32:12 with a 1:10:01 time as the race reach its halfway point.
At the 35km mark, Hassan switches gears and drifted ahead of Brigid Kosgei with by defending champion Workenesh Edesa beginning to fade. And by 40km, Hassan crossed the mark at 2:11:39 and held a seven second lead over Kosgei.
Hassan took the win in 2:18:22 for the course record and Kosgei was second in 2:18:56. Both are the first women to run under 2:20 on Australian soil. Edesa took third in 2:22:15.
“I pushed so hard to the finish,” Hassan said after her win. “I started too hard and I learned my lesson. I am happy this is the first race I have finished without drama. I learn a big lesson every time.
2025 Sydney Marathon Top Results
Men
Hailemaryam Kiros Kebedew (Ethiopia) – 2:06:06
Addisu Gobena Aga (Ethiopia) – 2:06:16
Tebello Ramakongoana (Lesotho) – 2:06:47
Mustapha Houdadi (Morocco) – 2:07:17
Edward Cheserek (Kenya) – 2:07:38
Masato Arao (Japan) – 2:07:42
Laban Korir (Kenya) – 2:08:06
Felix Kiptoo Kirwa (Kenya) – 2:08:18
Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) – 2:08:31
Victor Kipchirchir (Kenya) – 2:09:08
Women
Sifan Hassan (Netherlands) – 2:18:22
Brigid Jepchirchir Kosgei (Kenya) – 2:18:56
Workenesh Edesa Gurmessa (Ethiopia) – 2:22:15
Kumeshi Sichala (Ethiopia) – 2:22:50
Evaline Chirchir (Kenya) – 2:23:13
Ai Hosoda (Japan) – 2:23:27
Leanne Pompeani (Australia) – 2:24:47
Jessica Stenson (Australia) – 2:28:56
Lisa Weightman (Australia) – 2:29:34
Abigail Nordberg (Australia) – 2:35:43
Men’s wheelchair
Marcel Hug (Switzerland) – 1:27:15
Tomoki Suzuki (Japan) – 1:33:29
Gerard Schipper (Netherlands) – 1:37:34
Samuel Rizzo (Australia) – 1:38:19
Kota Hokinoue (Japan) – 1:39:1 4
Josh Cassidy (Canada) -1:39:28
Ryuichi Kawamuro (Japan) – 1:45:02
Jake Lappin (Australia) – 1:53:07
Rafael Botello (Spain) – 1:53:41
Sho Watanabe (Japan) – 1:57:46
Women’s wheelchair
Susannah Scaroni (USA) – 1:44:52
Eden Rainbow-Cooper (Great Britain) – 1:53:41
Vanessa Cristina de Souza (Brazil) – 1:58:56
Tsubasa Nakamine (Japan) – 2:00:04
Patricia Eachus (Switzerland) – 2:13:32
Michelle Wheeler (USA) – 2:17:20
Linden Williamson (USA) – 2:20:20
