Ethiopians Buze Diriba and Lemi Berhanu claimed victory at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon today.

Despite the wet conditions, 32-year-old Diriba stormed to victory in 2:16:12, setting a new women's course record. Berhanu also came close to breaking the course record. His winning time of 2:03:33 was just three seconds shy of the record. Noah Schutte (2:09:35) and Mikky Keetels (2:30:35) were the fastest Dutch runners, with Keetels setting a new personal best.

Diriba surprises with course record
The women's race was dominated for much of the distance by four Ethiopian athletes: last year's winner Aynalem Desta, Buze Diriba, Mestawut Fikir and Meseret Belete. After 30 kilometres, Fikir was unable to maintain the high pace. At the 40-kilometre mark in Vondelpark, Diriba accelerated, leaving her compatriots behind. After a conservative start, the course record of the Platinum Label marathon suddenly came within reach.

Making her Amsterdam debut, Diriba crossed the finish line in 2:16:12, smashing the previous course record by 41 seconds. The previous record had been held by Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:16:52) since 2024. Diriba also significantly improved her personal best, which previously stood at 2:19:34.
"I'm used to running races with elevation changes, and this was one of my first flat marathons. That's why I was able to run so fast. It was tough today, but I'm extremely happy," said Diriba.


Aynalem Desta finished second in 2:17:06, while Meseret Belete completed the all-Ethiopian podium in 2:18:02.

The Dutch women also delivered strong performances in Amsterdam. Mikky Keetels arrived in the capital with ambitious goals, aiming to finish in under 2:30. Although she narrowly missed that target, she did set a new personal best of 2:30:34. Bregje Smits also significantly improved her previous best, finishing in 2:30:57 and taking almost 20 minutes off her personal record.

Keetels said: "I genuinely think the TCS Amsterdam Marathon is the best race there is. You get so much encouragement from supporters along the course. I'm happy with my personal best, but with better weather conditions, I think I could have gone even faster."

Berhanu finishes just outside course record
The men's race turned into a thrilling battle. A large leading group stayed together throughout the first half of the marathon, but in the closing kilometres, the contest came down to a duel between experienced Ethiopian runner Lemi Berhanu and Kenya's Nicholas Kipkorir, who recently finished second at the World Half Marathon Championships.

Competing in only his second marathon, Kipkorir ran aggressively and tried to put his rival under pressure, but Berhanu remained unfazed. The Ethiopian, making his third appearance in Amsterdam, kept his composure before launching his decisive attack in the colourful surroundings of Vondelpark. Kipkorir was unable to respond.
As the runners entered the Olympic Stadium, cheered on by an enthusiastic crowd, there was still suspense over whether the course record of 2:03:30, held by Kenya's Geofry Kipchumba, would be broken. Ultimately, 32-year-old Berhanu crossed the finish line in 2:03:33. Kipkorir finished second in 2:03:39, followed by fellow Kenyan Patrick Mosin in 2:03:58. Never before had all three podium finishers in Amsterdam run under 2:04.

Berhanu was overjoyed with his victory. After two previous appearances at the Amsterdam Marathon, he had finally secured the win.
"I've trained incredibly hard for this for five months, and I've always been strong in tough conditions, but today I was also really fast. It's fantastic to run the fastest time of my career in this city."

Noah Schutte completed the marathon distance in 2:09:35, making him the fastest Dutch runner, ahead of veteran Khalid Choukoud, who finished in 2:14:10.
"I had hoped for a battle with Khalid over the final five kilometres, but that didn't happen. Of course, you're also focused on running your own race. I felt strong today and took a good step towards the level I'm aiming for."

Thousands of runners take part
Sportevenementen Le Champion is bringing a total of 65,000 people into action this weekend. On Sunday, 32,000 runners took part in the TCS Amsterdam Marathon, followed later in the afternoon by 15,000 participants in the Mizuno Half Marathon.

The two-day programme also featured the Samsung Galaxy 7.5K, the Kids Run and the Heroes Run for athletes with disabilities on Saturday.
The next edition of the TCS Amsterdam Marathon will take place on Sunday, 31 October 2027.