Bizunesh Deba (born 8 September 1987), also known as ''Buzunesh Deba'', is a

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

-based

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

n long-distance runner. Her personal best for the marathon is 2:19:59, set during the Boston Marathon in 2014. A prolific

runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

since 2009, she is a winner of the California International Marathon,

San Diego Marathon The Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon is an annual marathon foot-race held in San Diego, California. Established in 1998, it is the original race in the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series. The event includes a half marathon.Cruz, Dan (2010-06-07)Lim ...

Los Angeles Marathon The Los Angeles Marathon (formerly known as the City of Los Angeles Marathon) is an annual running event typically held each spring in Los Angeles, California, since 1986. The marathon was inspired by the success of the 1984 Summer Olympic Ga ...

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 ...

, Boston Marathon, and

Twin Cities Marathon The Twin Cities Marathon (TCM) is an annual 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 a course that win ...

. She has finished in the top ten three times at the

New York City Marathon The New York City Marathon (currently branded TCS New York City Marathon after its headline sponsor (commercial), sponsor) is an annual Marathon (sport), marathon () that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest mar ...

Career

Her first international appearance for Ethiopia came in the long race at the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where she came 33rd overall. She competed on the track in Japan in 2004, running a best of 15:52.33 minutes for the 5000 metres, but it was another five years until she established herself as a

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 ...

specialist. Basing herself in

The Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New York ...

, alongside her fellow marathon runner and husband Worku Beyi, she began to compete in road races in the United States in 2009.Rosenthal, Bert (2011-06-06)
Deba blazes 2:23:31 at San Diego Marathon - Keflezighi has homecoming triumph in Half-Marathon
IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-06-06. She won the Fairfield Half Marathon in June and in July she was the runner-up in the women's section of the Buffalo 4-Mile Chase, That September she won the Charleston Distance Classic 15-miler and then made her debut over the marathon, winning on her first try at the

Quad Cities Marathon Quad as a word or prefix usually means 'four'. It may refer to: Government * Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a strategic security dialogue between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States * Quadrilateral group, an informal group which in ...

with a time of 2:44:22 hours. Two months later she ran at the

and came seventh, significantly improving her best time to 2:35:54 hours. In an untraditional decision for an elite runner, she ran her third marathon in the space of three months at the California International Marathon and she won the race in a time of 2:32:17 hours.California International Marathon
ARRS (2011-12-06). Retrieved on 2011-06-06. She began 2010 with a personal best of 1:12:50 hours to win at the Naples Half Marathon and a win at the National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer in

Jacksonville Beach Jacksonville Beach is a coastal resort city in Duval County, Florida, United States. It was incorporated on May 22, 1907, as Pablo Beach, and would later change its name to Jacksonville Beach in 1925. The city is part of group of communities col ...

followed soon after. She extended her winning streak to seven straight wins by taking the women's titles at the

Broad Street Run The Blue Cross Broad Street Run, which has taken place in Philadelphia on the first Sunday in May since the early 1980s, is the largest (40,689 runners in 2012) 10-mile road race in the United States. Course The race starts at T.S. Park, in the ...

, Newport 10000,

UAE Healthy Kidney 10K The UAE Healthy Kidney 10K was an annual road running event over 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) that took place in May in New York City in the United States. The event featured both an elite-level men's race and a general mass race for fun runners. Almo ...

(with a personal best run of 2:31:35), and the Fairfield Half Marathon. She was tenth at the

Peachtree Road Race The Peachtree Road Race (branded AJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is an American 10-kilometer run held annually in Atlanta. After being held on Independence Day from 1970 to 2019, the race was cancelled because of the COVID pand ...

on July 4, but returned to her winning ways at the Buffalo 4-Miler and Chris Thater Memorial 5K.Buzunesh Deba
. Posso Sports. Retrieved on 2011-06-06. Deba secured her third marathon win of the year at the

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in October, running a personal best of 2:27:23 hours and beating second placed Svetlana Ponomarenko by almost eight minutes. She returned to the major race at the 2010 New York City Marathon and came tenth, although her time of 2:29:55 hours was her second run under the 2:30:00-mark. As in the previous year, she closed the season at the California Marathon and she retained her title, bringing her yearly tally to four marathon wins in five appearances.

2011

At the beginning of 2011, Deba defeated pre-race favourite Mare Dibaba to win the

. She took a second straight victory at the Newport 10000 and then repeated that feat at the Healthy Kidney 10K in New York. She started the

with a quick pace and reached the halfway marker in 1:09:53 hours. Her second half was not as fast but she still won the race in a new personal best of 2:23:31 hours – a time that also beat

Joan Benoit Joan Benoit Samuelson (born May 16, 1957) is an American marathon runner who was the first women's Olympic Games marathon champion, winning the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She held the fastest time for an American woma ...

's record for the fastest marathon in California, set at the 1984 Olympic marathon more than 26 years earlier. Deba had also surpassed the best time set by her husband, who remarked: "I will try harder to get the record back. I will not sleep anymore". Two months later she came third at the

Beach to Beacon 10K The Toronto-Dominion Bank Beach to Beacon 10K is a road running event that takes place along the coastline of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. It begins at Crescent Beach State Park and ends at the Portland Head Light in Fort Williams Park. Starting out ...

. She placed second at the 2011 New York City Marathon with her new personal best, 2:23:19 hours.

2012

She was set to compete at the 2012 Boston Marathon but was a late withdrawal due to a foot injury. She returned to competition in 2013 at the

Houston Marathon The Houston Marathon is an annual marathon usually held every January in Houston, Texas, United States, since 1972. With thousands of runners and spectators, it is the largest single day sporting event in the city. It is run concurrently wi ...

and her run of 2:24:26 hours was enough for second place behind Merima Mohammed. 2013?

2014

In 2014, Deba ran the New York Half in 1:08:59, and won the

2014 Boston Marathon The 2014 Boston Marathon took place in Boston, Massachusetts, on Monday, April 21 (Patriots' Day). It was the 118th edition of the mass-participation marathon. The race is organized by the Boston Athletic Association. On account of the 2013 ...

in 2:19:59, a title awarded in December 2016 after Rita Jeptoo was disqualified over doping. On November 2, 2014, she placed 9th among the women's field in the TCS New York City Marathon with a time of 2:31:40.

2015

In 2015, Deba finished third in the Boston Marathon with a time of 2:25:09.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deba, Bizunesh Living people 1987 births Ethiopian female long-distance runners Ethiopian female marathon runners Boston Marathon female winners