(Reuters) – Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw smashed the half marathon world record on Sunday, finishing in one hour, three minutes, 43 seconds at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon in Larne, Northern Ireland, to shave 19 seconds of the previous mark.
The previous record was set by Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich in Istanbul on April 4.
Yehualaw, who is the first woman to break 64 minutes for the half marathon, finished just over six minutes ahead of Kenya’s Jane Nyaboke, with Britain’s Rose Harvey completing the podium.
“This was a dream come true for me,” the 22-year-old Yehualaw said. “I have tried twice before to break the world record but it didn’t happen, but I’m so happy it happened today in Larne.”
Ethiopia’s national record holder Jemal Yimer won the men’s race, finishing one second ahead of his compatriot Tesfahun Akalnew, with Kenya’s Shadrack Kimining coming third.
(Reporting by Simon Jennings in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)
