Ababel Yeshaneh from Ethiopia and Kibiwott Kandie from Kenya emerged winners of the 2020 Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon, held at Al Marjan Island on Friday.

Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, has honoured the winners of the event, highlighting Emirate’s commitment to promoting a healthy lifestyle for all people.

Sheikh Saud said the event highlighted the positive image of the Emirate and underlined RAK’s ability to host major events. The day that saw a record-breaking number of runners tackled the various race formats, Yeshaneh became the fastest woman in history over 21.0975KM with a time of 64:31 while Kandie triumphed in 58:58.

Renowned as the world’s fastest half marathon, the 14th edition of the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon attracted 5,200 professional and novice runners across a variety of categories that included full and half marathon, a relay, 5 km and a 1 km fun run.

Offering a total prize purse of Dhs1,219,000, the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon this year covered a brand new course, located against the stunning backdrop of the Arabian Gulf. Yeshaneh claimed victory in a new women’s world record time for the half marathon in a time of 64:31, smashing the previous record by 20 seconds and outdoing her previous personal best by over a minute.

Yeshaneh continues to enjoy success in the UAE having been victorious in the 2018 ADNOC Abu Dhabi Marathon. She was followed by Brigid Kosgei in second place with a time of 64:49, beating her personal best by 39 seconds as well as the old world record. Third place award went to Kenya’s Rosemary Monicah, who secured a time of 65:34, a world record for a debut.  

In the men’s race, Kandie beat his personal best by 34 seconds with a time of 58:58. Second place went to Alexander Mutiso of Kenya, with a time of 59:16, followed 31 seconds later by Ethiopia’s Mule Wasihun with a time of 59:47.  

Yeshaneh commented: “I’m very happy with the result. When I woke up this morning I did not expect to break the world record. I intended to run fast and beat my personal best. It was a very competitive race as I was up against Brigid who is the marathon record holder, so my plan was to keep pace with her and it worked.”

Kandie said: “I trained very hard ahead of this race and so I am not a surprised by my time. I knew that I could get a time under 59 minutes but the victory is sweet.”