Siraj Amda Gena, also known as Giday Amha and Siraj Amda Bene, (born 12 November 1984) 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 stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who specialises in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), 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 ...

. He won his first race in 2010, beating all-comers at the

Rome City Marathon The Rome Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of Rome, Italy. History The competition has also doubled as the Italian Marathon championships on two occasions; in 1983 and 1986. The race date was shifted from the t ...

to set a personal best of 2:08:39.

Career

He began his professional career in 2005 and he set a personal best time of 2:11:26 to finish third in the

Dubai Marathon The Dubai Marathon is an annual road-based marathon hosted by the emirate of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since 1998. The marathon is categorized as a Gold Label Road Race by World Athletics. History Initial era The inaugural Dubai Marat ...

. He returned to the race the following year and came one place further to winning, although he would have won if Joseph Ngeny Kiprotich, initially brought in as a

pacemaker A pacemaker, also known as an artificial cardiac pacemaker, is an implanted medical device that generates electrical pulses delivered by electrodes to one or more of the chambers of the heart. Each pulse causes the targeted chamber(s) to co ...

, hadn't decided to continue and finish the race instead. He competed in Asia for a second time that year and took fifth place at the

Nagano Marathon The Nagano Olympic Commemorative Marathon () is an annual marathon road running, road race which takes place in mid-April in Nagano, Nagano, Nagano, Japan. It is an IAAF Bronze Label Road Race competition. The Nagano Marathon has races for both el ...

, although he was leading the race throughout right until the 30 km mark. He failed to make much progression in the 2007 and 2008; years which were highlighted by a 13th-place finish at the

Amsterdam Marathon The Amsterdam Marathon, currently branded as TCS Amsterdam Marathon, is an annual marathon (42.195 km) in Amsterdam in the Netherlands since 1975. The road running, road race has a IAAF Road Race Label Events, Platinum Label from World Athle ...

and a fourth place at the Nagano Marathon, respectively. He took part in the

Frankfurt Marathon The Frankfurt Marathon (official name as of 2016: Mainova Frankfurt Marathon, until 2015: BMW Frankfurt Marathon, until 2010: Commerzbank Frankfurt Marathon) is a marathon which has taken place every year in Frankfurt am Main since its inception i ...

for the first time in 2009 and although he finished in ninth position, he set a personal best of 2:10:41. Gena began to make his mark on the

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 ru ...

circuit in 2010 as he began the year with a second-place finish behind Denis Ndiso at the Mumbai Marathon (an IAAF Gold Label Road Race). His first ever marathon win soon followed: he ran his fastest ever time (2:08:39) to gain victory at the

. The event was made more special by the fact that it was in honour of the 50th anniversary of Ethiopian

Abebe Bikila ''Shambel'' Abebe Bikila (; August 7, 1932 – October 25, 1973) was an Ethiopian marathon runner who was a back-to-back Olympic marathon champion. He was the first Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist, winning his first gold medal at the 1960 S ...

's Olympic gold in the 1960 Rome Olympic marathon,Sampaolo, Diego (2010-03-21)
Ethiopian double as Rome celebrates Bikila – Rome Marathon report

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

. Retrieved on 2010-03-22. in which he became the first black African to win an Olympic gold medal. Gena marked the occasion by removing his shoes to run

barefoot Being barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead ...

for the last 300 metres, mirroring the shoe-less running style of Bikila and earning a 5000

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists of a stylized letter E (or epsilon), crossed by t ...

bonus in the process. Gena won his second marathon of 2010 in October at the Beijing International Marathon. Cold, wet weather severely affected the race, leaving him shivering as he crossed the line in 2:15:45, but his coach (former runner Haji Adillo) said he thought Gena could run around the 2:06 mark in good conditions. He was one of the favourite for the 2011 Xiamen Marathon in January, but he finished in fifth place. He attempted to retain his title in Rome in March 2011 but had to settle for second place, thirty seconds adrift of winner Dickson Chumba. He ran a half marathon best of 1:02:36 hours at the Göteborgsvarvet, and the Frankfurt Marathon in October saw him improve his marathon best to 2:08:31 hours (finishing in eighth). On November 17, 2013, Gena finished second at the

Istanbul Marathon The Istanbul Marathon (, also known as Türkiye İş Bankası Istanbul Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an international athletics event hosted in Istanbul, Turkey, in November, first held in 1979. It is the only marathon in the world who ...

in a time of 2:13:19 hours behind French athlete

Abraham Kiprotich Abraham Kiprotich (born 17 August 1985) is a Kenyan-French long-distance running, long-distance runner. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon, Men's marathon but did not finish. ...

. He was subsequently promoted to first place following Kiprotich's disqualification for a doping offence.Istanbul Marathon history
. Istanbul Marathon. Retrieved on 2015-06-28.

Achievements

Personal bests

*All information taken from IAAF profile.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gena, Siraj Living people 1984 births Ethiopian male long-distance runners Ethiopian male marathon runners 20th-century Ethiopian people 21st-century Ethiopian sportsmen