Nibret Melak and Anchinalu Dessy produced World Leading Times at the Dubai Jubilee Marathon.
Another first-time marathoner continued Dubai’s remarkable tradition when Ethiopia’s Nibret Melak took a stunning victory in the Dubai Marathon on Sunday (February 1), becoming the ninth male debutant to win.
Melak could hardly have asked for a more convincing introduction to distance. From the early stages the race hinted at something special, with a strong lead group of six men still intact as they crossed the 25km mark. However, with around 32km to go, the Ethiopian made his decisive move, jumping clear and immediately stretching the field.
As the kilometers ticked by, the big question was whether Melak, untested over the marathon distance, could maintain the relentless pace he set. He responded by maintaining his pace all the way to the line to clock 2:04:00, the fastest marathon time of the year so far.
That mark puts her ahead of Olympic champion Tamirat Tola’s 2:05:40 set by Ooredoo at the Doha Marathon just two weeks ago.
The 26-year-old arrived in Dubai with many credentials. He owns a half-marathon personal best of 59:06, set in his victory in Lisbon three years ago, and later that season finished seventh at the half-marathon world championships in Riga. Earlier in his career, Melak also qualified for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, although he did not advance in the 5,000m.
He has recently enjoyed considerable success on the track, winning the 10,000m title at the African Championships in 2024, along with a silver medal over 5,000m, before adding another 10,000m gold at the Pan African Games later that year.
“I was very well prepared and my goal was always to win in my debut,” said Melak, who belongs to the same Addis Ababa training group as Ethiopia’s Olympic marathon champion Tamirat Tola. “My big goal in the future is to break the world record.”
In Dubai, not only the winning time, but also the advantage stood out. Melak opened up a commanding gap in the closing stages, leaving the fight for the rest of the podium behind him.
Rwanda’s John Hakizimana and Ethiopia’s Yasin Haji battled for second and third place, with Haji finishing runner-up in 2:05:52 and Hakizimana trailing in 2:06:04. Both athletes recorded personal best results. Haji significantly improved his previous best of 2:07:47 set in Frankfurt, while Hakizimana improved on his previous best of 2:08:18.
A remarkable 18 men fell under the 2:10 barrier, helping Dubai’s progress.
The women’s race provided a much more dramatic contest, with the outcome decided until the closing kilometres.
A 69:27 half marathon split set the stage for a strong early pace that resulted in a sizeable lead group. However, it was Ethiopia’s Moulie Dekebo Hailemariam who was most in control throughout the first half, repeatedly positioning himself at the front of the box. Dekebo was returning to Dubai after finishing 10th in his marathon debut in 2018.
As the pace picked up from halfway, the field began to fall. The blistering pace thinned the pack significantly, leaving just two women in contention: Dekebo and fellow Ethiopian Anchinalu Desi Genene, 23.
Desi won a sensational maiden victory in Seville last year and arrived in Dubai with a personal best of 2:22:17. The pair ran step by step until Dekebo made his move with around 5km to go, opening a clear gap and taking the win.
However, the race took a sharp turn around 40km when Dekebo visibly struggled at the drinks station, losing momentum as he struggled to keep fluids down. Desi closed in quickly, passed her competition and pulled away for a memorable win.
Desi crossed the line in 2:18:31, smashing her personal best by nearly four minutes.
Dekebo regrouped after the setback to hold on for second place in 2:18:43, a significant improvement on her previous best of 2:25:35. Ethiopia completed a clean sweep of the podium as Fantu Worku, who was the fastest entrant on paper, finished third in 2:19:08, bettering his lifetime best of 2:21:57.
All three women fell under the 2:20 barrier, highlighting the speed-friendly conditions on offer in Dubai.
Organizers of the Jubilee Dubai edition, including events over shorter distances, recorded a total of 20,000 entries. 4,000 of them took part in the marathon, which holds the record for the largest and fastest race over the Arabian Peninsula’s classical distance.
