Tigst Assefa, the winner of the Berlin Marathon, suffered a severe injury to her right Achilles tendon while attempting to break the world record. Assefa was close to surpassing Ruth Chepng’etich’s record with only two kilometers left in Sunday’s race when she started limping, showing signs of discomfort. Despite the pain, she continued running but finished 68 seconds behind Chepng’etich’s record set in Chicago in 2024.
It was later revealed that Assefa had experienced a complete rupture of her right Achilles tendon, as confirmed by her representative Gianni Demadonna to The Associated Press on Tuesday. Demadonna explained that Assefa had been struggling with pain since the 31st kilometer but decided to push through until the injury occurred at the 40K mark.
According to Demadonna, Assefa’s tendon was severely damaged, leading her to run the last 500 meters with only her heel, causing further harm. Despite the injury, Assefa completed the race with the third-fastest time ever recorded at 2:11:04. This marked her third victory in Berlin, following her wins in 2022 and 2023, as she aimed to break her own record of 2:11:53 set in 2023.
However, Assefa’s hopes of breaking the record were shattered due to the injury. Chepng’etich had broken Assefa’s record by nearly two minutes in the following year but was subsequently banned for doping violations in 2025. Assefa was on track to achieve a remarkable time of around 2:09:30 or 2:09:40 before the injury occurred.
After crossing the finish line, Assefa collapsed and received medical attention from Haile Gebrselassie and others. She was then flown to Munich for urgent surgery on her ankle, which Demadonna described as a complex procedure. Assefa is expected to undergo further evaluation on Thursday to assess the surgery’s outcome and begin her rehabilitation process.
Demadonna mentioned that Assefa will likely need crutches for approximately six weeks and could potentially resume running in about three months. He expressed uncertainty about her return to marathon racing, suggesting a possible comeback at the London Marathon in 2027. Assefa, though saddened by the setback, remains hopeful for a successful recovery based on the doctor’s advice.
