Berhanu Girma Degefa (born 22 November 1986) is an Ethiopian

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires endurance, stamina as well as mental strength. Within e ...

who competes in

road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ac ...

events for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. His personal best for the marathon is 2:06:09 hours and he was the 2012 winner of

Grandma's Marathon Grandma's Marathon is an annual road race held each June in Duluth, Minnesota, in the United States. The course runs point-to-point from the city of Two Harbors on Scenic Route 61 and continues along Lake Superior into the city of Duluth. The ...

. Berhanu made his debut over the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

distance in 2009, competing at the Casablanca Marathon and finishing fifth with a time of 2:15:57 hours. His next outing at the 2010

Valencia Marathon The Valencia Marathon (also known as Marathon Valencia Trinidad Alfonso EDP for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon road running event hosted by Valencia, Spain since 1981. It is categorized as a Platinum Label Road Race by World Athletic ...

saw a three-minute improvement to 2:12:51 hours. He was also fifth at the

Košice Peace Marathon The Košice Peace Marathon (Slovak: Medzinárodný maratón mieru) is an annual road marathon held in Košice, Slovakia, since 1924. It is the oldest marathon in Europe and the third-oldest in the world (after the Boston Marathon, first held ...

that year. He fared less well in 2011, coming 19th at the

Prague Marathon The Prague Marathon (also known as Prague International Marathon (PIM) and Volkswagen Prague Marathon) is an annual road marathon held in the city of Prague in the Czech Republic each May. It was founded in 1995 and has grown to become a si ...

and 13th at the

Twin Cities Marathon The Twin Cities Marathon (TCM) is an annual Marathon (sport), marathon in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area which normally takes place the first weekend in October. The race is often called "The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America" due to ...

, barely managing to dip under two hours and twenty minutes that year.Berhanu Girma
Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 2013-10-22. Berhanu was only 20th at the 2012

Marrakech Marathon The Marrakech Marathon is an annual marathon held in Marrakech, Morocco. Roughly 5000 runners turn out for the event annually. At the inaugural edition of the race in 1987 French runner Jacques Boxberger Jacques "Jacky" Boxberger (16 April 1949 ...

but later set personal bests in the

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcu ...

(61:54 minutes in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

) the marathon, the latter in a winning time of 2:12:25 hours at

. He set a

10K run 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...

best of 28:46 minutes at the

Corrida de Langueux The Corrida de Langueux is an annual 10 kilometres road running competition which is held in Langueux, Brittany, France every June. The competition is organised by the Union Athlétique Langueux. The elite 10K races for men and women have IAA ...

, where he was eighth. He was also the runner-up at that year's

. He was further down the rankings in his first two marathons of 2013, coming 14th at the

Tiberias Marathon The Tiberias Marathon is an annual marathon road race held along the Sea of Galilee in Israel. At approximately 200 meters below sea level, this is the lowest course in the world. The competition was first held in 1977, and also hosts the annual I ...

and eighth at the Chongqing Marathon, but he made a surprise breakthrough at the

Amsterdam Marathon The Amsterdam Marathon (branded TCS Amsterdam Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon (42.195 km) in Amsterdam in the Netherlands since 1975. The road race has a Platinum Label from World Athletics. During the event, there a ...

with a performance of 2:06:09 hours to finish runner-up to the defending champion

Wilson Chebet Wilson Kwambai Chebet (born 12 July 1985, in Marakwet District) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialises in road running competitions. He has a marathon best of 2:05:27 hours. He began competing internationally in 2005 and ...

. In 2019, he was the 11th finisher at the Daegu International Marathon in

Daegu, South Korea Daegu (, , literally 'large hill', 대구광역시), formerly spelled Taegu and officially known as the Daegu Metropolitan City, is a city in South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; it is ...

. His time was 2:14:50.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Girma, Berhanu Living people 1986 births Ethiopian male long-distance runners Ethiopian male marathon runners Canadian male long-distance runners Canadian male marathon runners Ethiopian emigrants to Canada Naturalized citizens of Canada