Dejene Debela

Dejene Debela Gonfa is an Ethiopian marathon runner who broke through on the international circuit in the late 2010s with a string of victories in Asia and his fastest performances on the World Marathon Major stage. Born on 9 January 1995, he established himself as a consistent sub-2:10 marathoner across a busy global schedule.

Debela won the Xiamen International Marathon in back-to-back years, taking the 2018 title in 2:11:22 and defending it in 2019 in 2:09:26. He also won the Beijing Marathon in September 2018 in 2:12:08. His career-best performance came at the 2019 Chicago Marathon, where he finished second in 2:05:46, the same race in which Brigid Kosgei set a women's world record. He also placed second at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Marathon in 2:07:06.

After a period disrupted by injury, Debela returned to win the Istanbul Marathon in November 2024, crossing the line in 2:11:40 in strong winds that blew apart any chance at the course record. He described it as the biggest win of his career and said he believed he could still improve on his personal best.