Lucy Wangui Kabuu is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 and 10,000 metres events. She has represented Kenya twice at the Summer Olympics, finishing in the top ten of the 10,000 m race in both 2004 and 2008. Her personal bests of 14:33.49 minutes for the 5000 m and 30:39.96 minutes for the 10,000 m make her one of Kenya's fastest ever runners in the events.
Joanne Marie Pavey MBE is a British long-distance runner representing Europe, Great Britain and England in a career notable for its longevity, range and consistency. A World, European and Commonwealth medallist, Pavey won her only senior title when she claimed the 10,000 m gold medal at the 2014 European Championships in Zürich, ten months after giving birth to her second child, to become the oldest female European champion in history at the age of 40 years and 325 days.
Meselech Melkamu is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. She defeated Meseret Defar to win the 5000 metres gold medal at the 2008 African Athletics Championships, but she is better known for her 29:53.80 run over 10,000 metres in 2009, which until August 2016 ranked her second on the all-time list behind world record holder Wang Junxia. She is one of seven woman in history to break the 30-minute barrier and one of four Ethiopians to accomplish the feat.
Kayoko Fukushi is a Japanese long-distance runner, who specializes in the 5000, 10,000 metres and marathon. Fukushi represented Japan at the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. She was the bronze medallist in the marathon at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics. She holds a marathon best of 2:22:17 hours.
Sentayehu Ejigu Tamerat is an Ethiopian long-distance runner, who specializes in the 3000 and 5000 metres. She represented Ethiopia at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Genzebe Dibaba Keneni is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. A 1,500 metres 2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist, she won a gold medal in this event and a bronze in the 5,000 metres at the 2015 World Championships. Genzebe is the current world record holder for the indoor events of the one mile, 3,000m and 5,000m.
Gloria Marconi is an Italian long-distance runner.
Hitomi Niiya is a Japanese professional long-distance runner who competes in track, cross country running and marathon races. Niiya competed for Japan at the 2012 Summer Olympics. She is a two-time silver medallist at the Asian Athletics Championships and has represented Japan three times at the World Athletics Championships. She represents Team Toyota Industries in national competition.
Hellen Onsando Obiri is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner. She is the only woman to have won world titles in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country. Obiri is a two-time Olympic 5,000 metres silver medallist from the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she also placed fourth over the 10,000 metres. She is a two-time world champion after winning the 5,000 m in 2017 and again in 2019, when she set a new championship record. Obiri also took world bronze for the 1,500 metres in 2013 and silver in the 10,000 m in 2022. She won the 3,000 metres race at the 2012 World Indoor Championships, claimed silver in 2014, and placed fourth in 2018. She is the 2019 World Cross Country champion. Obiri triumphed in the 2023 Boston Marathon, her second marathon race. She places fifth in the half marathon on the world all-time list.
Inés Melchor is a Peruvian long-distance runner. She competed in the marathon at the 2012 Summer Olympics, placing 25th with a time of 2:28:54. In September 2014 she placed 8th at the Berlin Marathon with a time of 2:26.48, new Peruvian national record and the South America area record. Melchor also holds Peruvian records for the 5000 and 10,000 metres on the track.
Sifan Hassan is an Ethiopian-born Dutch middle- and long-distance runner. She is most recognized for her versatility in running championship and world leading performances in widely disparate distances. She completed an unprecedented triple at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, winning gold medals in both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres and a bronze medal for the 1,500 metres. Hassan is the only athlete in Olympic history to win medals across a middle-distance event and both long-distance races in a single Games. She is only the second woman to complete an Olympic distance double.
Gudaf Tsegay Desta is an Ethiopian middle- and long-distance runner. She is the current world record holder for 5,000 m (14:00.21), set at the 2023 final Diamond League event, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon. Eugene is also where she won the World Athletics Championships on 5,000 m in 2022. At the World Athletics Championships, Tsegay also won the gold medal for 10,000 metres in 2023; a bronze for the 1,500 metres in 2019, and silver in 2022. She is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist in the women's 5,000 metres. She is a two-time World Indoor Championship 1,500 m medallist, claiming bronze in 2016 and gold in 2022. She is also the world indoor record holder for the 1,500 m, setting previously in this event world under-18 (current) and U20 (former) records.
Genet Yalew Kassahun is an Ethiopian professional long-distance runner who competes in track, cross country and road running events. Her half marathon best of 66:26 minutes is the Ethiopian record and ranks her in the top ten all-time for the sport.
Jacob Kiplimo is a Ugandan long-distance runner. He is the world record holder for the half marathon, which he set on 21 November 2021 in Lisbon with a time of 57:31. He is also the 2020 Tokyo Olympic 10,000 metres bronze medallist and won bronze in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Kiplimo earned gold medals for the 5000 metres and 10,000 m at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He is the 2020 World Half Marathon champion. He won silver and gold medal at the 2019 and 2023 World Cross Country Championships respectively.
Letesenbet Gidey is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who holds two world records and one world best. In the 10,000 metres, she is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist, 2019 World silver medallist, and 2022 World champion.
Gladys Chesir Kiptagelai is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes over distances from 3000 metres up to the marathon. She was a gold medallist at the Youth Olympics and a silver medallist at the African Games in 2015.
Caroline Chepkoech Kipkirui is a Kenyan-Kazakhstani professional long-distance runner who competes in distances from 3000 metres to the half marathon. She has worked at the Altay Athletics club in Kazakhstan since 2017 Coach by Ken Rotich Kenya and USA Richards Anderson she train with a group of number of athletes and others. At junior level she was twice African champion and shared in the team gold medal at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.
Beatrice Chebet is a Kenyan long-distance runner. In 2022, she won the silver medal in the 5000 metres at the World Championships, and became Commonwealth, African and Diamond League champion. Chebet claimed the gold medal for the women's senior race at the 2023 World Cross Country Championships.
The 2018 African Cross Country Championships was the fifth edition of the international cross country running competition for African athletes organised by the Confederation of African Athletics. It was held on 17 March in Chlef, Algeria – the first time a North African nation had hosted the event since its re-launch in 2011. There were five races on the program: 10 km for senior men, 10 km for senior women, 8 km for junior men, 6 km for junior women, and an 8 km mixed relay.
Tsehay Gemechu is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. She finished fourth in the 5000 metres at the 2019 World Athletics Championships. Gemechu won the 10,000 metres at the 2019 African Games. She placed second at the 2023 Tokyo Marathon.
Ethiopia 
