Tag Archives: Buzunesh Deba

Buzunesh Deba Ready for Boston

April 19, 2014 Tadias Magazine

Tadias Magazine
By Sabrina Yohannes

Published: Saturday, April 19th, 2014

New York (TADIAS) — After placing second at the New York City marathon in November, when Buzunesh Deba of Ethiopia was preparing for next Monday’s 2014 Boston marathon, she came down with a respiratory infection that cost her several weeks of training starting late January. She expected that interruption to affect her race at the New York City half marathon, which took place on March 16, in temperatures below the freezing point.

“It was very cold, and my muscles were tight,” said Buzunesh. “I was with the leaders til about 8 miles, I think.” Things changed at a turn on the course. “I was at the back of the pack when a strong wind came and it flung me back, and after that I was separated from the group,” she said in an interview. “It was very windy and I couldn’t close the gap. After that, at about 9 miles, it was again very windy, and there wasn’t anyone near me, and I got left behind.”

Nevertheless, in a field that included reigning Olympic 10,000m silver medalist Sally Kipyego, 2013 Frankfurt and 2011 Boston marathon champion Caroline Kilel of Kenya and others, the New York City resident Buzunesh managed to finish second behind Kipyego in 1 hour, 8 minutes and 59 seconds.

“Based on that result, I believe I’ll run well in Boston, with God’s help, because it’s my best time,” said Buzunesh. “In 2011, when I ran 2 hours and 23 minutes [to place second in the New York marathon], I had run 1:09:55 [for the half marathon].”

Her 2014 half marathon finish and its nearly 1-minute improvement on her personal best (PB) was all the more meaningful because of her interrupted training in the lead-up to the race. “In fact, when I went into the race, I was thinking I may even be forced to drop out because I’d been sick and might not have enough energy,” she said.

“The training I’ve done after that has gone well to date,” she said this week from her winter training base in high-altitude Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she spent most of the time since mid-December, before leaving Thursday for Boston. “I believe that that New York half marathon PB will help me in Boston, and it gives me confidence.”

“This year, we’ve increased the speed work she does,” said her husband and coach Worku Beyi, adding that she upped the number of fast repetitions of 400m, and that she has also prepared for the hills on the Boston course. “The place where we train in Albuquerque is very hilly,” he said. “We did our last long run on Sunday.”

He is aware of the challenges Buzunesh, whose fastest marathon time is her 2011 New York 2:23:19, faces in Boston. “Right now, Buzuye is 10th on the entry list in Boston in terms of time,” he said, using an affectionate form of his wife’s name. “They are very tough opponents.”

The stacked line-up for Monday’s women’s race includes Ethiopians Mare Dibaba, who ran 2:19:52 in Dubai in 2012 and won in Xiamen, China in 2:21:36 this January, and former world 10,000m silver medalist Meselech Melkamu, who won Frankfurt in 2012 in a course record 2:21:01.

The field also includes a bevy of fast Kenyans like the defending Boston champion and favorite Rita Jeptoo, who won October’s Chicago marathon in 2:19:57, current Chicago and former Boston runner-up Jemima Sumgong (PB 2:20:48), Eunice Kirwa (PB 2:21:41), and former Boston champions Sharon Cherop (PB 2:22:28) and Kilel (PB 2:22:34).

“We come hoping to win,” said Worku. “One thing I admire about Buzuye is that she has no fear.”

It was running with no fear that took Buzunesh to eight marathon wins in the United States including course record wins in the 2011 San Diego and Los Angeles marathons (defeating Mare Dibaba in the latter).

It was running with no fear that took Buzunesh twice to the podium in the prestigious New York City marathon, where in 2011, she finished behind compatriot Firehiwot Dado but ahead of runners like the former world half marathon champion Mary Keitany of Kenya, who had won London in 2:19:19 just seven months prior; and Kilel, who had a PB nearly a minute faster than Buzunesh going in to the race.

“She puts her hard work on display,” said Worku. In the 2013 New York marathon, Buzunesh ran from the front along with her training partner Tigist Tufa, maintaining the pace she had trained for, and disregarding the field behind her, building up a lead of nearly three minutes at one point.

She was only caught in the final miles of the race by then-London champion Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya, who won ahead of Buzunesh’s 2:25:56 second place. The women left in Buzunesh’s wake included the world champion Edna Kiplagat of Kenya, who had run 2:19:50 for second place in London a year earlier.

Both the New York and Boston races are among the major marathons of the world, assembling top fields.

Buzunesh’s 2014 half marathon PB may not result in a subsequent marathon PB in Boston, like it did in 2011 in New York. “I’ve heard the weather is variable: One time, it’s warm; another time, windy; another time cold,” she said. “The weather will be decisive, and there’s also the fact that I don’t know the course, so I’ll know better when I’m in the race.”

Buzunesh was entered in the Boston marathon in 2012, but didn’t run it due to an injury. Last year, she had run the Houston marathon in January, placing second there in 2:24:26, and she was in New Mexico during the running of the 2013 Boston marathon on April 15, when bombs went off near the finish line several hours into the race. With masses of non-professional runners on the course and spectators lining it, the explosions left three dead and many seriously injured.

“We were watching coverage of the race on television, when we saw what happened,” said Buzunesh. “I was so shocked.”

“It’s tragic what happened last year,” she said. “This year, the security level will be increased. It will be like New York was last year. It was very good. They had greatly increased security measures from the start all the way to the finish line.”

Race organizers and Boston law enforcement officials have outlined tightened security procedures and an increased police presence leading up to and on race day this year.

“I don’t think there’ll be anything to be concerned about or anything to fear for us elite athletes or the mass runners,” added Buzunesh.

Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa won the men’s race last year, and gave his medal to the City of Boston afterwards as a gesture of empathy for what the city and its residents experienced. Lelisa is back this year, and favored to win again, after a spectacular year. He added a world championship marathon silver medal in Moscow last August to his April Boston win, which itself came after a victory in Dubai that January. He won a fast Ras Al Khaimah (UAE) half marathon this February.

Kenya’s reigning Chicago champion Dennis Kimetto is regarded as Lelisa’s toughest opponent, and his compatriot, the former 10K world record-holder Micah Kogo, will also be looking to upgrade his 2013 Boston second-place finish.

The strong 2014 field includes Ethiopians Gebre Gebremariam, the former world cross country and 2010 New York marathon champion, who was third in Boston in 2011 and 2013; former Los Angeles marathon champion and 2014 Dubai runner-up Markos Geneti; and 2013 Rotterdam champion and 2012 Chicago third-placer Tilahun Regassa.

American Ryan Hall, who was third in Boston in 2009 and has since finished just off the podium twice, is also coming to the race from Ethiopia, having spent time training there.

Others coming from Addis Ababa include the nation’s 2013 world championships 10,000m bronze medalist Belaynesh Oljira, who was 5th in the Dubai marathon last year, and the 2012 and 2013 Tokyo marathon runner-up Yeshi Esayias in the women’s race.

The Boston marathon takes place on the Patriots’ Day holiday celebrated in Massachusetts on Monday, April 21, with the elite women’s race kicking things off at 9:32am Eastern time, while the men’s race starts shortly thereafter.
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The race will be televised live throughout the U.S. on the Universal Sports channel.

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UPDATE: Interview with Buzunesh Deba: Eyeing the 2012 NYC Marathon

October 23, 2012 Tadias Magazine 1 Comment

UPDATE: 2012 New York City Marathon Canceled

Tadias Magazine
By Jason Jett

Updated: Thursday, October 25, 2012

New York (TADIAS) – Having come so close to winning last year’s New York City Marathon, finishing second by a mere four seconds, Buzunesh Deba will be chasing victory again in one of the world’s greatest marathons which eluded her and instead was grasped by Ethiopian compatriot Firehiwot Dado a year ago.

Firehiwot, who pulled away from Buzunesh over the last 200 yards of the 26.2 miles event, will not defend her crown this year after withdrawing from the race last week with what her manager said was a foot injury.

This time around Buzunesh faces 2012 London Olympics marathon winner Tiki Galena and 2011 World Marathon Champion Edna Kiplagat of Kenya, among a deep elite international field.

This will be Buzunesh’s fourth New York City Marathon; she finished seventh in 2009 and 10th in 2010. A resident of the Bronx, she will be a hometown favorite and she knows the course well.

She also knows most of her competition — both their faces and their paces. There is no awe or intimidation when she speaks of the other elite runners, only self-confidence and the conviction that if she runs as well as she is capable she will win.

“I believe I will win, it is my dream,” said Buzunesh. “God will decide.”

She trains diligently, some say maniacally, six days a week, but she says the seventh day she devotes to attending St. Mary of Zion Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church in Yonkers, New York. An Orthodox Christian, her bedroom is decked with illustrations of the Virgin Mary. And, born in the Asela region of Ethiopia, Buzunesh said: “When I am running, and I get tired, I call on God,” she said. “That is my power.”

Buzunesh has trod through some valleys since her podium finish a year ago in Central Park. She spent the winter training at altitude in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She was accompanied by her husband Worku Beyi, who is also her coach and manager. Their relocation was made easier by sharing living quarters and training schedules with friends Genna Tufa, Serkalem Abrha and Atalelech Asfaw — all among a group of Ethiopian runners who left New York for the benefits of living and training at high altitude.

Returning to New York in April, Buzunesh was poised to stake her claim at a World Marathon Majors championship by following her second-place finish in New York with a win at the Boston Marathon. (Top-finishers in the New York City, Boston, Chicago, London and Berlin marathons compete for the $500,000 prize awarded every two years.)

Training had gone well winter into spring leading up to Boston. However, after completing her final pre-marathon track workout just days before the race Buzunesh miss-stepped, turning an ankle, as she walked off the synthetic surface and onto the stadium infield.

Neither prayer nor treatment could chase away the pain in time for Buzunesh to compete in the Boston Marathon. Ultimately, she was not able to return to running until mid-summer. Unable to train, Buzunesh became a spectator of the sport as she followed the race results of her friends and rivals during sleepless nights.

“When I am training, I go to bed early,” she said. “But when I could not run I would be up two and three o’clock in the morning on my computer.”

Buzunesh finally resumed training in August, and competed for the first time this year at the Rock n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon on Sept. 16. She finished eighth, in a time of 1:14:54.

The result was mind-boggling to running experts, fellow competitors and even enthusiasts: Buzunesh had run 1:09:18 over the half-marathon distance in winning the 2011 Rock n’ Roll San Diego Marathon in 2:23:31. Yet she ran five minutes slower over an equally fast Philadelphia course (Sharon Cherop of Kenya won the race in 1:07:19, followed by Mare Dibaba of Ethiopia in 1:07:44.).

Buzunesh was disappointed, of course. And Worku did a bit of head-scratching before reasoning it was simply a bad day.

“I don’t know what happened,” he said. “I saw her that day and she looked heavy.”

“She was not able to run fast that day, but she had had only six weeks of training at the time,” he added. “She will have had six more weeks before New York.”

There are critics that doubt Buzunesh will be competitive this year, let alone win. They point to Philadelphia, and note that she has barely raced this year.

“Look at her Philadelphia Rock n’ Roll results,” said Hicham EL Mohtadi, an agent-manager of runners based in New York City including Ethiopian Mekides Bekele. “She had lots of time off from competing on a high level due to injury. She still is not at full-force. I don’t see her being a factor in this year’s marathon.”

Mohtadi noted that despite these issues he is still rooting for Buzunesh. He added: “Though I’d love to see her win it because she’s a dear friend and a lovely young lady.”

Bill Staab, president of West Side Runners New York, which supports a large number of Ethiopian runners in the city, said Worku is the best barometer of Buzunesh’s chances.

“Due to her foot injury last April and the fact that her time at the Rock n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon was not up to her PR (personal record), it is hard to judge her chances.” he said. “But we all know Buzunesh trains with fervor.”

Buzunesh’s resilience has been further tested in recent weeks. Worku’s father died in early October, and there were several days of mourning. The funeral in Ethiopia took her husband and coach away from their marathon training for several more days.

And then there are the stomach cramps that Buzunesh said contributed to her being unable to hold the lead after pulling Firehiwot Dado along in overtaking Mary Keitany of Kenya at the 25-mile mark last year in New York. Firehiwot would pass Buzunesh in the final mile, and Keitany finished third. (Keitany, who won the 2012 London Marathon and was fourth in the London Olympics marathon, is not competing this year in New York.).

“She gets cramps after some workouts,” a concerned Worku said of his wife. “There is pain, and sometimes she throws up.”

Buzunesh hopes the problem does not recur during the marathon. She knows from training runs of 24 miles in Central Park and 26 miles on the New York Greenway along the Hudson River that she can cover the marathon distance without such pain.

And, she has her own belief-system for support. Buzunesh radiates a confidence steeped in humility. She does not boast, or deride other runners; she simply believes in herself. It is a belief rooted in her faith, which she takes as much care recharging every Sunday as she does her body following training sessions other days of the week.

Having a husband who is a good cook helps when it comes to revitalizing the body. A training-table dinner last week in the Buzunesh and Worku’s home, an apartment in Kingsbridge, consisted of a salad of green leaf, tomatoes, avocados, green peppers and oil-vinegar dressing, a vegetable medley of carrots, potatoes and broccoli, halved hard-boiled eggs and chunks of white-meat chicken.

While Buzunesh and Worku prefer traditional Ethiopian cuisine, or injera, they eschew it during training season in favor of lighter fare. Vitamin bottles and other supplements cover a tabletop in their home. Buzunesh noted she takes supplements when she remembers — indicating with her face and hands that often she does not. However, she is more reliant on the energy-electrolyte drinks that Worku prepares before and after workouts.

Buzunesh and Worku occasionally can be spotted running in Central Park or Riverside Park, but the bulk of work occurs at their favorite training site — Rockefeller State Park in Tarrytown, NY. Van Cortlandt Park, near their home, is their most-frequented site given its proximity.

They elected not to train at altitude for this marathon, having decided sufficient benefits can be gained simply through hard and smart training in New York. That belief has Buzunesh undaunted by Galena, Misikir Mekonnen and Kenyan runners coming directly from high altitude to compete in New York.

Hours after Buzunesh finished the 2011 New York City Marathon, reporters and photographers gathered around her and Worku following a news conference in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel at Columbus Circle. Hugging his wife, a beaming Worku held up his other hand leaving scant daylight between the thumb and index finger.

“She came this close,” he said. “She made a little mistake. We will correct it for next year.”

On Nov. 4, 2012 the couple will learn whether or not they were successful in making the necessary correction.
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Below are slideshow of photos taken during Buzunesh’s morning training session on Saturday, October 20th, 2012.

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Watch: Victory Dinner for NYC Marathon Champions

November 9, 2011 Tadias Magazine

Tadias Magazine
Events News

Updated: Thursday, November 10, 2011

New York (TADIAS) – Firehiwot Dado and Buzunesh Deba were greeted like homecoming queens with cheers and applause as they arrived for dinner at the Queen of Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant in Manhattan on Sunday evening, following their stunning victory at the 2011 ING New York City Marathon.

Firehiwot Dado, 27, won her debut NYC Marathon in 2:23:15, followed by her childhood friend, New Yorker Buzunesh Deba, four seconds later. It was one of the closest women’s finish in the race history.

“This is my first time coming to New York,” Firehiwot said. “It’s one of the top five [international] competitions. That I won prepares me and gives me hope for the next Olympics.” She added: “My goal is to win gold at the Olympics.”

The New York media had shown up at the midtown eatery after learning that the local hero would be dining there. Buzunesh Deba was visibly emotional as fans, friends, and strangers waited for a chance to hug and kiss her.

Buzunesh, 24, who led Firehiwot until the two overtook Mary Keitany of Kenya, said running in her Bronx neighborhood had inspired her to pick up the pace and added that she was pleased with the result because “my friend won.”

“We lived in the same town, and ran on the same team,” Buzunesh told Tadias earlier in the day.

“I want to thank the people of New York and the people of my country and everyone that supported us,” Buzunesh said. “Frehiwot and I showed good competition and with God’s grace we were victorious.”

Watch: Homecoming Reception For New York Marathon Winners at Queen of Sheba Restaurant

Watch: Firehiwot Dado & Buzunesh Deba take the top-two spots at 2011 NYC Marathon

Watch: Geoffrey Mutai Wins 2011 Men’s NYC Marathon – From Universal Sports

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Photo credit: Firehiwot Dado and Buzunesh Deba, 1-2 in New York. (Getty Images)

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Buzunesh Deba Eyes NYC Marathon

October 26, 2011 Tadias Magazine 8 Comments

Tadias Magazine
By Jason Jett

Updated: Thursday, October 27, 2011

New York (TADIAS) – Buzunesh Deba “is not in the local race, she is in the big race this time,” her husband-coach Worku Beyi emphasized last week in reference to the Ethiopian-born runner’s bid to become the first New Yorker to win the New York City Marathon since 1976 — before the race left Central Park to touch all five boroughs and become the world’s largest marathon.

On November 6 she will pursue the $130,000 overall top prize that goes to the first man and woman finishing the 26.2-mile race through Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan.

Deba has the runner’s resume to be considered among the top five in the elite women’s field at the 2011 New York City Marathon.

Last June she won the Rock n’ Roll San Diego Marathon in 2:23:31, blazing the first half of the downward course in 1:09:53. Three months earlier she won the Honda Los Angeles Marathon. Last year she was victorious at the Twin Cities and Grandma’s marathons in Minnesota.

Deba was among the top-10 finishers both times she competed over the marathon distance in New York City, finishing 10th, in 2:29:55, last year and seventh two years ago in 2:35:54.

The New York City Marathon is a demanding 26 miles, 385 feet (42.195 kilometers), with five climbs onto bridges, that runners seeking fast times typically avoid in favor of running over relatively flat courses in Berlin or Chicago.

Beyi insists if the weather is pleasant, Deba has a good chance of beating the New York City Marathon course record of 2:22:31.

“In San Diego she ran the first 5K in 16:0-something,” he said. “Her 10k time was 32 minutes, she was on world-record pace. Then until 23 miles, she was on sub-2:20 pace.”

The husband-coach told Tadias that he first met Deba when she was age 13, and a year later attended one of her races, positioning himself along a clearing about 400 feet from the finish line.

“Buzunesh was second, a good distance behind the leader, when she came by,” said Beyi. “I shouted ‘go, go, go’ the next thing I knew she began to run faster. She passed the other girl and won the race.”

“When I congratulated her after the race I asked her how did she manage to pass the other girl so quickly?” he continued. “She said, ‘You gave me power. You are my power.'”

His wife’s pre-New York marathon workout routines peaked this fall to 130 miles a week, covered in two-a-day training sessions. Recently, Deba has slowed to about 90 miles a week with robust-morning and easy-evening sessions.

“Nutrition is very important for running a marathon,” Beyi said. “Marathon training is very hard, you have to eat properly. Up to one month before the marathon we ate a lot of meat and injera, but injera makes you heavy. Now we eat mostly vegetables, with a little chicken and some lamb soup.”

Deba gives a lot of credit for her success to Beyi — both his training and cooking.

Beyi, a world-class athlete, competes less now because of a medical condition and instead focuses on coaching Deba. Quite a cook also, friends say, Beyi said he prepares their meals so Deba can stay off her feet after training.

For Deba, the ascension was gradual. She arrived in New York on an athlete’s visa in 2007, and her early performance was hampered by chronic ankle problems.

With uneven success, she competed across the country at various races. It was not until September 2009 that Deba ran her first race over a 26.2-mile course — The Quad Cities (Iowa) Marathon — and won.

She found her winning stride, and with coaching from Beyi and altitude training in New Mexico, victories followed at the 2009 and 2010 California International Marathon as well as in Minnesota, Los Angeles and San Diego.

Buzunesh Deba trains under the watchful eye of husband-coach Worku Beyi as members of the Manhattan College Jaspers track and field team look on at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx on Monday, October 24, 2011. (Photo by Jason Jett for Tadias Magazine).

Buzunesh Deba, far right, holds trophy after winning the 2010 Chris Thater Memorial 5K in Binghamton, New York. (Photo by Jason Jett)

Now Deba is on the brink of a life-changing achievement. If she wins the New York City Marathon next week, it would mark the first time a female runner has left her homeland as an adult and rose to world-class status on the North American road-racing circuit. Only Khalid Khannouchi, who was born in Morocco and lived first in Brooklyn and then in Ossining, NY, has done that to date, winning the 1999 Chicago Marathon in a world-record time of 2:05:42 that since has been broken. Meb Keflezighi, winner of the 2009 New York City Marathon, was born in Eritrea but as a child moved with his family to the United States and grew up in San Diego.

In recent days, Deba has been besieged with media requests – which included interviews with The New York Times and The New York Daily News.

With a victory in New York, Deba would take a big step from her colleagues who survive by the same pattern she had followed in the U.S. until this year — racing here and there, virtually anywhere, to secure enough funds to support themselves and send home to family in Ethiopia.

More than dozen Ethiopian runners living in New York and Washington, D.C., are pursuing with season-highlight anticipation that New York City Marathon race-within-a-race from which Deba is attempting to move on. For them there is still gleam in the prospect of being the first city resident or New York Road Runners member to finish, and the money that comes with the distinction.

Pride unites the network of Ethiopian runners who live in and around New York, training in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, Rockefeller State Park in Tarrytown and in Manhattan’s Central Park.

The pride is both for their homeland and in their resettlement in a country that offers greater opportunities — if they can find them amid all the competition from other Ethiopian nationals not to mention Kenyans, and East Europeans on the running circuit.

Friendships survive the race competitions, in which one runner’s success often means another’s failure in monetary terms ranging from several hundred to thousands of dollars.

Schadenfreude is a reality after each race, with everyone getting to share in it at some point as they hope for better for themselves in their next competition.

That is the manner in which relations within the network are affected by the hands of fate. One’s success is shared; one’s failure means there is opportunity for some other runner to move up.

The New York City Marathon brings local media attention to the running community each year. The scrutiny has not always been embraced by its members.

Nearly three years ago Village Voice reporter Graham Rayman extensively interviewed Ethiopian and Kenyan runners living in the Bronx for a post-New York City Marathon story. Rayman and photographer Jesse Reed spent days into weeks interviewing and photographing the runners in their homes as well as at training grounds in Van Cortlandt and Rockefeller State parks.

The result was a front-page story with a full-page picture of Ethiopian runner Abiyot Endale, who has photogenic looks to match his athletic prowess. However, photoshopped onto the bib of Endale’s running shirt was the headline: Will Run For Food.

The Ethiopian running community in New York was outraged.

Kassahun Kabiso, a Bronx runner who was featured in the report, said Rayman had befriended the runners and they had accepted him and his photographer into their homes and apartments. “He was our friend,” Kabiso said. “Maybe his editors changed the story.”

Rayman did not respond to a request for comment sent to his email account at the Village Voice.

The article, published December 17, 2008, is still viewable online along with additional comments but sans the cover photograph shown below.

The Ethiopian running community in New York is still stinging from the article, and wants the world to know that while their lifestyle is not luxurious neither is it impoverished.

“That was a bad article,” Beyi said, shaking his head, after leading Deba through a training session last week.

Endale and Derese Deniboba, who live at a Perry Avenue address in the Bronx that for the past six years has been home for Ethiopian runners, note that while they may live four people to an apartment the conditions are clean and well-maintained, if not spartan.

Deniboba recently recalled a conversation he had last summer with his absentee landlord.

“He called me over and said, ‘You know, you are not like the tenants I used to have. You guys are quiet, and never cause any trouble. Where are you from?'”

“I told him Ethiopia,” said Deniboba. “Then he asked, ‘What you do?'”

“I told him we are runners,” added Deniboba. “Then he said, ‘You guys are disciplined, you are in good shape. None of you are fat. I think I will take up running, too.'”

Will Run For Glory

Deba is running the New York City Marathon for the glory and the money.

Her six-figure annual earnings and a $40,000 Mizuno sponsorship, along with a 2011 Honda Insight hybrid car that was part of her prize for winning in Los Angeles, has her and Beyi preparing to buy a house in their adopted city — as she pursues United States citizenship.

Should Deba not win the New York race, but finish second, she would earn $65,000; plus bonus. A third-place finish would net her $40,000, fourth $25,000, fifth $15,000, and so on, plus bonuses.

November 6 likely will be a big payday for all the hard work and discipline Deba has put in every day the past few months, including rainy days on which Beyi suggested she rest but she insisted on going out and running in the rain for hours.

“I will do my best,” Deba said this week with a confident smile, which may have been a bit of humility coming from a runner who, when asked by a reporter after winning the 2009 California International Marathon at what point did she know she had won the race, replied: “At the start line.”
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Buzunesh Deba: New York’s Hope at ING NYC Marathon

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Buzunesh Deba: New York’s Hope at ING NYC Marathon

October 9, 2011 Tadias Magazine 3 Comments

Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff

Updated: Monday, October 10, 2011

New York (TADIAS) – The New York Daily News highlights the Bronx-based long-distance runner Buzunesh Deba, who is preparing for the upcoming ING New York City Martahon. If Deba wins the race next month, she will become the first New Yorker to claim hometown victory in the annual fall race.

“Buzunesh Deba is a 24-year-old former gymnast who grew up in the town of Asela in Ethiopia’s Rift Valley, and now lives in a fifth-floor walkup on West 195th St. in the Bronx,” writes Wayne Coffey for the Daily News. “The apartment has…a few dozen trophies and medals, all of them the fruits of Deba’s rapidly ascending marathoning career.” He adds: “A month from now, in the ING New York City Marathon, Deba will endeavor to add to the collection – not only by scoring the greatest victory of her life, but by becoming the first New Yorker to win the five-borough race.”

“I hope to make the New York Road Runners, my husband as well as myself proud,” Deba told the newspaper, speaking through an Amharic interpreter.

Buzunesh Deba ran the 11th-fastest marathon in the world earlier this year at the Dodge Rock n’ Roll San Diego Marathon, finishing the race in the fastest time ever run by a woman in California.

“It’s remarkable to think that there could be a champion hiding in plain sight, training in our parks and streets right here in New York City,” Says Mary Wittenberg, CEO of the New York Road Runners.

Events

Ethiopian Runners in the U.S. Vying for a Level Field With Athletes From Ethiopia

June 7, 2011 Tadias Magazine 9 Comments

Tadias Magazine
By Jason Jett

Published: Tuesday, June 7, 2011

New York (Tadias) – Buzunesh Deba of New York City ran the 11th-fastest marathon in the world this year in scorching the course on Sunday at the Dodge Rock n’ Roll San Diego Marathon.

Deba, an Ethiopian, won the event by nearly two minutes after completing the first-half of the course alongside fellow countrywoman Misikir Mekkonin. She finished the race in 2:23:31, while Mekkonin, who lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was runner-up in a personal best time of 2:25:21.

Deba’s performance on Sunday was described by elite runners coordinator Matthew Turnbull as “one that will make people stand up and take notice.”

It also raises the question: are Ethiopian runners in the United States closing the competitive gap with their compatriots from home?

During the course of the running season in the United States and Canada, major events often come down to a contest between Ethiopians who reside in America and Ethiopians who live in Ethiopia — with many of the runners who travel direct from Addis Ababa being members of the Ethiopian National Athletics Team.

Add in highly competitive Kenyan runners, both those who train in North America and others who travel direct from Kenya, and North America-based Ethiopian runners face a daunting challenge at every competition.

In an attempt to level the field, U.S. based Ethiopian runners are abandoning New York City and Washington, D.C., and seeking high-altitude training grounds of their own

Alemtsehay Misganaw, one of the most consistent athletes on the North America running circuit the past five years, escapes winters by going home to Ethiopia and training at high-altitude from early December to late March — essentially experiencing a second summer each year.

In this seasonal migration she is not alone among runners in the United States. There is a cadre of Ethiopians and Ethiopian-Americans who have found athletic success in America. Serkalem Abra, Genna Tufa and Atalalech Ketema – all seasoned veterans on the North American circuit, also spent last winter at various training sites in and around Addis Ababa, returning to the United States just in time for the spring start of the running season.

With a foot in both countries, either as permanent U.S. residents or traveling with multi-year athletic visa, the runners’ winter mission is to gain enough benefit from Ethiopian altitude-training to be competitive from April to November in races in North America.

Deba, Mekkonin, and other runners who do not spend winter in Ethiopia are training at mountainous locales in this country so they, too, can travel direct from altitude to competitions.

Alemtsehay Misganaw, center, and Mikael Tesfaye, to her left, with
Ethiopian National Athletics Team member Abraham Yilma, right, at
the Jan Meda training course in Addis Ababa. (Photo by Jason Jett).

Belainish Gebre, who won the 2010 Honolulu Marathon, has trained the past three years in Flagstaff, Arizona. Aziza Aliyu, winner of the 2011 ING Miami Marathon, trained last winter in Albuquerque.

Successes speak well for Diaspora athletes, but can they actually catch up to runners who both live and train in Ethiopia?

Misganaw, who won the Virginia Beach Yeungling Shamrock 8K in March and April’s Kentucky Derby Festival Mini-Marathon, said she still has a good base from winter altitude-training and only wishes she could import her coach from Ethiopia.

Mikael Tesfaye has coached Misganaw the past two winters in the absence of her coach-brother Sofonias Ajanew, who in 2009 relocated from Addis Ababa to Luanda to train the Angolan Olympic Team’s track squad.

Tesfaye, a protégé of Ajanew, is an elite runner in his own right, having finished 10th in the 2007 Lebanon Marathon and served as a pacemaker in finishing the 2009 Poznan (Poland) Marathon. Misganaw said her chief benefit from Tesfaye’s coaching comes when pacing through rugged training sessions at sea level in New York City’s Central Park.

Misganaw trained six weeks in the summer of 2009 with Gebre in Flagstaff, and after returning to New York City decided expert coaching and a quality pacemaker can help offset a lack of year-round altitude training.

Retta Feyissa, the coach and manager of Aliyu, said training in Arizona or New Mexico is an option but there is nothing comparable to the rigorous workouts to be had in Ethiopia.

He said, “Many of the Ethiopian runners living in the USA cannot afford to go back and forth to Ethiopia to train for specific races. Training in New Mexico is advantageous, but it is not like training in Ethiopia where you can eat organically and readily find training partners.”

Bill Staab, president of West Side Runners’ Club, which sponsors and advises a large number of international runners based in New York and Washington, said “ideally an Ethiopian runner in the U.S. might live in, say, New York City, go to Albuquerque in the winter and then once a year travel to Ethiopia for two months of intense training for a specific event such as the ING New York City Marathon.”

However, Deriba Merga and Dire Tune, both dominant Ethiopian distance runners, do not see the gap between runners based here and there being closed in World Major races such as the Boston Marathon or the ING New York City Marathon.

“In Ethiopia the conditions are better, the altitude is greater,” Merga, winner of the 2009 Boston Marathon, said after winning the Ottawa 10K last week. Tune, speaking in Amharic, agreed.

“Also, the coaching is better,” added Merga. “Here, one runner has this coach and another has that coach. Runners have their own coach.”

“In Ethiopia we all have the same coach, we are a team,” he said, pointing around a lunch table to 2008 Boston Marathon winner Tune and 2004 Olympian Ejegayehu Dibaba.

“And the culture is different in Ethiopia,” Merga added. “There is more discipline, and a focus on training.”

Asked if such discipline and focus means day-after-day cycles of only running, eating and sleeping, Merga said there is free time in the runners’ schedules.

“I have a car, and I take my girlfriend out to the movies or to a restaurant,” he said. “We like to have a good time.”

Dibaba smiled, and then put her hand over her mouth and the discussion came to an end. Speaking in Amharic, Dibaba said she has free time but “that part of my life is private.”
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Video: Post-race interview with Buzunesh Deba at the 2011 Dodge San Diego Marathon

About the Author:
Jason Jett is a New York based freelance journalist.

Cover Image:
The photograph shows the first two women to come through Petco Park during the 2011 San Diego Rock-n-Roll marathon. The location is past near the 5 mile marker. The runner in front is Buzunesh Deba, the eventual winner of the marathon. She finished the race in 2:23:31, the fastest time ever run by a woman in California. (Photo by Justin Brown).
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Featured, News

Sign of Spring: Ethiopian Runners Renew Domination of U.S. Road Races

March 23, 2011 Tadias Magazine 5 Comments

Above: Ezkyas Sisay (L), and Gebre Gebremariam (R) head
the field rounding a curve in Central Park early into the 2011
New York City Half Marathon – Photo credit: OhSnapper.com.

Tadias Magazine
By Jason Jett

Published: Wednesday, March 23, 2011

New York (Tadias) – Just as sure as March in North America brings the return of foliage, warm weather and long days, it signals the continuation of Ethiopian domination of foot-race competitions in city streets and parks across the United States.

The fickleness of spring, however, did prompt a number of “what ifs” from runners on both coasts last weekend.

Gebre Gebremariam, who last November won the ING New York City Marathon, was runner-up Sunday in the New York City Half Marathon which looped Central Park before coursing through Times Square and finishing in Lower Manhattan.

Gebremariam, a favorite to win the race, pulled away from Mo Farah, a native Somali who now lives in Great Britain, in the last 25 meters only for Farah to counter with a victorious sprint to the finish line. Farah finished the 13.1-mile event in 60:23, with Gebremariam two seconds back.

“I don’t like the cold,” Gebremariam said after the narrow loss to Farah, one of the hottest runners in the world the past year who was making his half-marathon debut.

Girma Tesfaye, an Ethiopian who splits residency between his homeland and the Bronx, NY, finished fourth in 60:35, and Ezkyas Sisay, an Ethiopian who trains in Flagstaff, AZ, was 10th in 61:56. Girma Tola, who was fifth in the 2008 competition, finished 14th this time in 62:46.

The only Ethiopian runner who said he did not mind the cold weather was Girma, who after the race chastised himself for not finding the reserve in the homestretch to overtake third-place finisher Galen Rupp of the United States.

“For me, the weather was very nice,” Girma said, noting a year ago he finished 10th at the event. “I like it cold. It was fantastic for me. The weather, and the course.”

From left: Ezkyas Sisay and Tesfaye Girma, both of Ethiopia, Gomes Dos Santos Marilson of Brazil, Alistair Cragg of Ireland, Galen Rupp of the United States, Mo Farah of Great Britain, Kigen Kipkosgei Moses of Kenya and Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia, near Mile 2 in Central Park during the New York City Half Marathon – which took place on a perfect day for running, March 20, 2011. (Photo credit: OhSnapper.com)

Ethiopians also represented in the women’s division of the NYC Half. Werknesh Kidane, Gebremariam’s wife and a pre-race favorite, finished fifth in 1:09:32, acknowledging afterwards that she was slowed as the first morning of spring mustered temperatures only in the 30s. Shewarge Alene, the sister of noted Ethiopian runner Alene Reta, was fourth in 1:09:25.

“It was good, but not very good because of the weather,” said Alene. “I am happy with the time in my first half-marathon in New York. I will keep training and keep trying to do my best.”

Gebremariam’s second-place finish was worth $10,000, while Girma earned $3,500 and Sisay $400. Alene was awarded $3,500, and Kidane $2,500.

Across the country in a rain-deluged Southern California, Ethiopians swept the Honda Los Angeles Marathon.

Markos Geneti, who trains in Flagstaff, AZ, was the overall winner in a course record 2:06:35. He won the first-place award of $25,000 and a Honda Insight EX car valued at $23,000, plus the $100,000 prize for the first person to cross the finish line under a gender challenge in which professional women were given a 17:03 head start.

The women’s division winner was Buzunesh Deba, who lives in the Bronx and trains in New Mexico, in 2:26:34. The bronze medal for third-place was claimed by Mare Dibaba of Ethiopia in 2:30:35. Deba won $25,000 and a car, while Dibaba won $10,000.

“I didn’t like the rain,” Deba said afterwards. “My husband (Ethiopian runner Worku Beyi) wanted me to run 2:24, but I don’t like running in the rain.”

At the Yeungling Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA, Alemtsehay Misganaw of Manhattan was runner-up Sunday in the half marathon, finishing the windy, waterfront course in 1:15:06. A day earlier Misganaw won the women’s division of the event’s 8K competition in 26:59. Misganaw’s weekend earnings totaled $2,000.

“It was funny,” Misganaw said of her runner-up finish in the feature event, adding she did not know whether to laugh or cry.

“The last two miles I was taking it kind of easy and a lady passed me, but I didn’t see her,” she explained. “It was windy, and my eyes were watery. She looked like a boy, and had on a cap. The race official leading the women’s field was riding his bike beside me the whole way. He didn’t see her either. He thought I was the first woman, too.

Misganaw continued, “At the finish line the announcer said, ‘Yesterday’s winner is second today,’ and I said ‘What?’ The bicycle guy was upset too, and apologized. I smiled, but wanted to cry. I told the winner, ‘You’re lucky,’ and she said, ‘I know.'”
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About the Author:
Jason Jett is a New York based freelance journalist. He writes on human interest stories as well as specialized reports for niche audiences on various subjects including sports and fitness. He has worked in the news business for thirty years.

Watch: 2011 New York City Half Marathon- Highlight Video (NYRR)

Featured

Cheer on Marathon Runners at Columbus Circle

November 2, 2010 Tadias Magazine

Above: Haile Gebrselassie (L) and Derartu Tulu will represent
Ethiopia at New York City Marathon on Sunday November 7th.

Tadias Magazine
Events News

Updated: Saturday, November 6, 2010

Special Note:
Ethiopian fans plan to gather at Columbus Circle, which has bleachers set up for spectators and a special stage sponsored by Continental Airlines to provide inspiration for the final .2 miles.

You can take the 1, D, or A train to 59th (8th avenue).

Check the official New York City Marathon website for race time.

Haile and Derartu Expected to Take Charge at NYC Marathon
Published: Tuesday, November 2, 2010

New York (Tadias) – Long-distance running legends Haile Gebrselassie and Derartu Tulu are widely expected to lead the charge in their respective categories at Sunday’s New York City Marathon.

Gebrselassie, who has more than 130 major-race victories under his belt and is the current world record-holder, will run the New York City Marathon for the first time. Although questions have been raised about the possibility that the double Olympic 10,000-meter gold medalist may not be able to conquer the difficult New York City Marathon route in world record time, his agent says he remains motivated and optimistic. “We have to be realistic; we know there are not that many opportunities left,” Jos Hermens of the Netherlands told The New York Times. “But in his mind, he is so competitive, he feels he can run half a minute or a minute faster in ideal conditions and in good health.” Gebrselassie will be joined by fellow Ethiopian Gebre Gebremariam and the professional men’s defending champion Meb Keflezighi of the United States, among others.

In the pro women’s field, two-time Olympic 10,000m champion Derartu Tulu, the first Ethiopian woman to win the New York City Marathon, will defend her title while leading a pack of other women from her country. Other participating Ethiopian female athletes include the 2010 Boston Marathon champion Teyba Erkesso, Werknesh Kidane, and Bronx resident Buzunesh Deba. Derartu also faces tough competition from American Shalane Flanagan, the 2008 Beijing Olympic bronze medalist, and Mary Keitany of Kenya, the 2009 World Half Marathon champion – both making their marathon debut – as well as from experienced marathoners like Ludmila Petrova and Inga Abitova of Russia.
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2010 Abebe Bikila Award Goes To Paul Tergat of Kenya

Meanwhile, one of Haile Gebrselassie’s professional rivals, Paul Tergat of Kenya – considered to be one of the most accomplished long-distance runners of all time – will receive the 2010 Abebe Bikila award for his contributions to distance running. Tergat, who retired in 2009, will be honored at a ceremony preceding the Continental Airlines International Friendship Run on Saturday, November 6, also here in New York City.

The New York Times highlights the long and friendly competition between the Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes: “Their rivalry has been one of the richest in running history and symbolizes the development of distance running by Ethiopia (Gebrselassie) and Kenya (Tergat). Over the course of a decade, Gebrselassie, 37, and Tergat, 41, ruled the distance running world,” NYT notes. “From 1996 to 2000 Gebrselassie won titles in the 10,000 meters at the world championship and Olympic Games. Tergat finished second each time. Gebrselassie set the 10,000 world record (26 minutes 43.53 seconds) in 1995 until Tergat broke the record (26:27.85) in 1997. Gebrselassie reclaimed the record (26:22.75) in 1998, now held by Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele (26:17.53).”

The annual prize , named after Ethiopian legend and double Olympic marathon winner Abebe Bikila, has been awarded to athletes since 1978, and it honors individuals who have made a significant contribution to the sport of long-distance running. Per Wiki: “Past winners of the award include: Olympic gold medallists Frank Shorter, Rosa Mota and Lasse Virén; world record breakers Paula Radcliffe, Khalid Khannouchi and Paul Tergat; and multiple major marathon winners Grete Waitz, Alberto Salazar and Joan Samuelson. While the award has typically been associated with elite level runners, particularly marathon runners, it has also been given to non-athletes. Fred Lebow – creator of the New York Marathon – became the first person to win the award who was not a professional athlete in 1995. The 2001 award was given to Mayor of New York Rudy Guiliani on the basis of his dedication to the city in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. The 2009 winner, long-time road running organizer and event director Allan Steinfeld, was the third non-professional athlete to receive the award.”

If You Go:
New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 7
Daylight savings time ends at 2:00 a.m. on Sun.,
Don’t forget to set your clocks.

Ethiopian fans plan to gather at Columbus Circle, which has bleachers set up for spectators and a special stage sponsored by Continental Airlines to provide inspiration for the final .2 miles.

You can take the 1, D, or A train to 59th (8th avenue).

Check the official New York City Marathon website for race time.

You can also catch the race on TV, Web, and Mobile. Learn more at the officail webiste of the ING New York City Marathon.

Video: Past Champions of the New York City Marathon—

Video: Haile Announcement—

Video: What’s On Now on NYRR’s Marathon Channel (Watch Live)

Watch live streaming video from nyrr at livestream.com

Cover image photo credit: Haile Gebrselassie by Marco Steybe and Derartu Tulu by photorun.net.

Ethiopian Business and Lifestyle