Tigst Assefa targets faster time on Berlin Marathon return on September 27
Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa returns to Berlin on September 27, 2026, seeking to improve her 2:11:53 personal best against a field that includes defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru.
In short
- Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa returns to Berlin on September 27, 2026, seeking to improve her 2:11:53 personal best against a field that includes defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru.
Tigst Assefa will return to the Berlin Marathon on September 27, 2026, with a chance to improve the performance that made the Ethiopian runner a world-record holder on the same course three years ago.
Fana reported her return on September 25, 2026. The organiser’s current media guide confirms Assefa heads the women’s entry list and will face Kenya’s defending champion Rosemary Wanjiru. Assefa won in Berlin in both 2022 and 2023; her second victory came in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 53 seconds, still her personal best. [Source: Berlin Marathon media guide](https://www.bmw-berlin-marathon.com/presse/media-guide).
In a September 24, 2026, race preview published by the Frankfurt Marathon, Assefa said through an interpreter that she was well prepared and wanted to lower her best time. The preview puts the current world record at 2:09:56, making an improvement on her own mark and reclaiming the global record two distinct targets.
Other Ethiopian entrants include Bedatu Hirpa, Dera Dida and Zeineba Yimer. The preview says Wanjiru is aiming to run below 2:15 rather than follow world-record pace, pointing to different pacing plans among the leading contenders. [Source: September 24 race preview](https://www.frankfurt-marathon.com/berlin-marathon/).
The race will be Assefa’s third Berlin Marathon appearance, according to the organiser. Her return brings her back to the course where she achieved both of her previous victories in the event.
