Getenesh "Gete" Wami Degife (

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

: ጌጤነሽ 'ጌጤ' ዋሚ ደግፌ born January 28th 1974 in Debre Berhan) is an Ethiopian former

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 stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who competed in cross country, track, and

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

events. Her brother, Mulugeta Wami, is also a professional marathon runner.

Biography

Gete won the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

at the 1999 World Championships in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

, with a time of 30:24.56, which was a new African record and Championships Record. She also won the 10,000 m gold medal at the 1999 All-Africa Games that year. She is a two-time winner of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, having taken the long race title in 1996 and then the short race title in 2001. Gete won the 2006 Berlin Marathon, finishing in front of Salina Kosgei and Monika Drybulska on September 24. She was expected to beat the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

over 15 km during the

Zevenheuvelenloop The Zevenheuvelenloop (; English: Seven Hills Run) is an annual Road running, road race of 15K_run, 15 kilometres held in and around Nijmegen, Netherlands. It was first organised in 1984 and has grown to be one of the largest road races in th ...

in and around

Nijmegen Nijmegen ( , ; Nijmeegs: ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and the ninth largest of the Netherlands as a whole. Located on the Waal River close to the German border, Nijmegen is one of the oldest cities in the ...

on 19 November 2006, but failed. Gete finished in second position during the race, nine seconds behind Mestewat Tufa, who finished in 47:22. In 2007, Gete won the Berlin Marathon again. She competed in the New York Marathon thirty-five days later and she finished 23 seconds behind

Paula Radcliffe Paula Jane Radcliffe Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 17 December 1973) is a British former long-distance runner. She is a three-time winner of the London Marathon (2002, 2003, 2005), three-time New York Marathon champion (2004, 2007, 200 ...

. Her second-place finish gave her the

World Marathon Majors The World Marathon Majors (WMM) sponsored by Abbott Laboratories is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on seven major marathon races recognised as the most high-profile o ...

Series Title, earning herself the $500,000 jackpot.Radcliffe, Wami Steal Show in New York
Runners Web, 6 November 2007. In August 2008, Gete dropped out of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Marathon, after running in the lead pack for much of the race, as did her teammate Berhane Adere. The last outing of her career came at the 2009 London Marathon, where she came in ninth with a time of 2:26:54.

International competitions

Road races

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gete Wami 1974 births Living people Sportspeople from Amhara Region Ethiopian female long-distance runners Ethiopian female marathon runners Olympic athletes for Ethiopia Olympic silver medalists for Ethiopia Olympic bronze medalists for Ethiopia Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships athletes for Ethiopia World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Cross Country Championships winners Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) African Games gold medalists for Ethiopia African Games gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1995 All-Africa Games World Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Ethiopian sportswomen 21st-century Ethiopian sportswomen