Catherine Nyambura Ndereba is a retired Kenyan marathon runner. Between 2003 and 2008, she finished in the top two in five successive global championship marathons. Ndereba has twice won the marathon at the World Championships in Athletics and won silver medals at the Summer Olympic Games in 2004 and 2008. She is also a four-time winner of the Boston Marathon and a two-time winner of the Chicago Marathon. It was at the latter in 2001 that she broke the women's marathon world record with a time of 2:18:47.
Deena Michelle Kastor is an American long-distance runner. She was a holder of American records in the marathon (2006-2022) and numerous road distances. She won the bronze medal in the women's marathon at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece. She is also an eight-time national champion in cross country.
Sabrina Mockenhaupt is a German long-distance runner who specialises in track events and the marathon. She is a two-time winner of the Cologne Marathon and has also won the Frankfurt Marathon and the Berlin Half Marathon. She represented Germany at the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics and was the 3000 metres bronze medallist at the 2005 European Indoor Championships. She has a marathon best of 2:26:21, set at the 2010 Berlin Marathon.
Kara Goucher is an American long-distance runner. She was the 10,000 meters silver medalist at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics and represented the USA at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics. She made her marathon debut in 2008 and finished third the following year at the Boston Marathon.
Sally Jepkosgei Kipyego is a Kenyan-born American long- and middle-distance runner. She was the silver medalist in the 10,000 metres at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics and the silver medalist in the same race at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She has a personal record of 30:38.35 minutes for that event and her 5000 metres best of 14:30.42 minutes makes her the second fastest Kenyan woman for the distance.
Namibia competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China.
René Kalmer is a South African runner who has competed over distances ranging from 800 metres to the marathon. She represented South Africa at the 2008 Summer Olympics, running in the 1500 metres. She then represented South Africa again at the 2012 Summer Olympics, competing in the marathon.
Helalia Lukeiko Johannes, also known as Hilaria Johannes, is a Namibian long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. She holds the Namibian records in the 10 km, 20 km, half marathon and marathon events.
Lisa Jane Weightman is an Australian long distance runner and four time Olympian who specializes in the marathon event. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics she came 26th in the Women's marathon with a time of 2:34.19, 7 minutes behind the eventual winner, Peres Jepchirchir.
Rasa Drazdauskaitė is a Lithuanian long-distance runner. She represented her country at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, finishing 37th in the marathon. She represented Lithuania again at London 2012, finishing in 27th place.
Namibia competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom from July 27 to August 12, 2012. This was the nation's sixth consecutive appearance at the Olympics.
Desiree "Des" Nicole Linden is an American long-distance runner. She represented the United States in the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics women's marathon. In 2018, she won the Boston Marathon, becoming the first American in 33 years to win the woman's category in the event. She holds the women's 50K world record of 2:59:54.
Djibouti competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, from July 27 to August 12, 2012. This was the nation's seventh appearance at the Olympics.
Lesotho competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, which was held from 27 July to 12 August 2012. The country's participation at London marked its tenth appearance in the Summer Olympics since its début at the 1972 Summer Olympics. The delegation included three track and field athletes; Tsepo Ramonene, Mosito Lehata and Mamorallo Tjoka, and one swimmer; Masempe Theko. Ramonene and Lehata qualified for the Games by meeting qualification standards, while Tjoka and Theko made the Olympics through wildcard places. Tjoka was selected as the flag bearer for the opening ceremony while Lehata held it at the closing ceremony. Ramonene finished last in the men's marathon and was revived by medical personnel during the event. Lehata did not progress to the semi-finals of the men's 200 metres and Tjoka finished in 90th in the women's marathon. Theko finished 73rd overall in the women's 50 metre freestyle and did not progress to the semi-finals of the event.
Slađana Perunović-Pejović is a Montenegrin long-distance runner and holder of several Montenegrin records. She placed 77th out of 118 in the 2012 Olympic marathon. She did not finish her 2016 Olympic marathon.
Pauline Curley is an Irish marathon runner. At age thirty-nine, she represented Ireland for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, and competed in the women's marathon. She ran and finished the race in sixty-third place, with a time of 2:47:16. She also achieved her personal best, when she placed ninth at the 2008 Fortis Marathon in Rotterdam, Netherlands, with a time of 2:39:05. On 25 August 2013 she ran Longford Marathon, Ireland with a time of 2:44:22.
Tabitha Tsatsa is a Zimbabwean marathon elite veteran runner. She set both a national record and a personal best time of 2:29:20, by finishing fourth at the 2008 Dong-A Seoul International Marathon, held in Seoul, South Korea.
Ana Maria Guerreiro Dias is a Portuguese long-distance and marathon runner. She is a four-time Olympian, and a multiple-time national record holder for the long-distance running. She also set a personal best time of 2:28:49, by finishing fourth in the women's race at the 2003 Berlin Marathon.
Namibia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's seventh consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics.
Maor Tiyouri is an Israeli Olympic long-distance runner, former national record holder of Israel in the 5000 metres, and a three-time Israeli national champion – in the 1,500 m and 5,000 m in 2013, and the 1500 m in 2015.
Namibia 
