Press Release - Frankfurt Marathon - 9/23/13

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    Defending Champion Meselech Melkamu Returns, While Women's Field is 
       Strengthened Still Further With Three Sub-2:22 Performers

Defending champion Meselech Melkamu will return to the scene of her triumph 
last year when she runs the BMW Frankfurt Marathon on 27th October. The 
Ethiopian produced the third fastest marathon debut ever by a woman when 
setting a course record of 2:21:01 in 2012. For good measure, she will be 
competing in the strongest women's field ever assembled for Germany's 
oldest city marathon. Three more runners with personal bests inside 2:22 
have been added to the field. Organisers expect around 15,000 athletes to 
take part in the 32nd edition of the BMW Frankfurt Marathon. Entries are 
still accepted online at: www.bmw-frankfurt-marathon.com. The event is 
an IAAF Gold Label Road Race.
   
28 year-old Meselech Melkamu is the second fastest 10,000 m runner of all 
time and holds the African record at the distance. After a great career on 
the track and also in Cross Country the Ethiopian is now concentrating on 
the marathon. "In the future I want to run times in the marathon that are 
as good as the ones I've achieved in the 10,000 metres," said Meselech 
Melkamu, when she was in Frankfurt a year ago. Her personal best at 10,000 
m stands at 29:53.80 minutes, less than 23 seconds outside the world 
record. 

After her winning debut at the BMW Frankfurt Marathon 2012, Meselech 
Melkamu finished fifth in this year's London Marathon, gaining selection 
for the World Championships' marathon in August. In sweltering conditions 
in Moscow Melkamu was in the leading group until the final stages of the 
race. Around five kilometres from the finish she suffered muscle problems 
and then dropped out. "Our information is that she recovered quickly from 
the Moscow race. Meselech was able to train without problems on the days 
after she had dropped out. It was after that when she decided to run 
another marathon this year and come back to the BMW Frankfurt Marathon," 
said Christoph Kopp, who is in charge of the elite athletes in Frankfurt. 
He added: "Meslech intends to defend her title and she wants to run a fast 
time." 

A very fast time and possibly a course record might well be needed for 
victory in Frankfurt on 27th October. Besides Meselch Melkamu there are 
three runners in the field who have personal bests of sub 2:22. Tirfi 
Tsegaye is the second fastest in the field behind Meselech Melkamu with a 
PB of 2:21:19. She ran that time when she was second in the Berlin Marathon 
2012. This year Tsegaye took the Dubai Marathon in January with 2:23:23 and 
was then fifth in Boston (2:28:09). 

Eunice Jepkurui (Kenya), who was second in Amsterdam in 2012 with 2:21:41, 
and Mamitu Daska (Ethiopia/2:21:59) complete the impressive trio who have 
run below 2:22. Daska clocked her personal best when she won in Frankfurt 
in 2011and this will be her third consecutive appearance. In 2012 she also 
achieved a podium finish with third place in 2:23:52. 

Another world-class runner to be taken into account was an earlier addition 
to such a competitive women's field: Caroline Kilel will return to the BMW 
Frankfurt Marathon where the Kenyan won three years ago in 2:23:25. The 
following year she set what remains her personal best with victory at the 
2011 Boston Marathon with 2:22:36.

Information and online entry is available at: www.bmw-frankfurt-marathon.com

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