Kenenisa Bekele Beyecha is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He was the world record holder in both the 5000-metre and 10000-metre from 2004 until 2020. He won the gold medal in both the 5000 m and 10,000 m events at the 2008 Summer Olympics. At the 2004 Olympics, he won the gold medal in the 10,000 m and the silver medal in the 5000 m.
Zersenay Tadese Habtesilase is a retired Eritrean long-distance track and road running athlete. He held the men's half marathon world record from 2010 to 2018. His bronze medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2004 Athens Olympics made him the first ever Eritrean Olympic medallist, and his 20-km title at the 2006 IAAF World Road Running Championships also made him the country's first athlete to win at a world championship event. He does not use a sprint finish to win races; his strategy relies on a combination of efficient running and fast pace setting.
Hailu Mekonnen is an Ethiopian runner, who specializes in the 5000 metres and cross-country running.
Abebe Dinkesa Negera is an Ethiopian professional long-distance runner who specializes in the 10,000 metres. He came to prominence with a silver medal at the 2004 African Championships in Athletics and he won a bronze medal in the same event two years later. He is the sixth fastest ever over the 10,000 m with a best time of 26:30.74 set in 2005.
Eyerusalem Kuma is an Ethiopian long-distance runner, who competes in marathons. She has a personal best of 2:24:55 hours for the distance and was the 2009 winner of the Amsterdam Marathon.
Teyba Erkesso Wako is an Ethiopian runner who specializes in road running as well as cross-country running.
Bezunesh Bekele Sertsu is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who specializes in cross-country running and marathons.
Koren Jelela, also known as Koren Jelila Yal, is an Ethiopian long-distance runner.
Tadese Tola is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He has represented Ethiopia at World championship level in cross country, road running, and on the track.
Pak Song-chol is a North Korean long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. His personal best time is 2:12:41 hours in 2007, winning the Pyongyang Marathon. He has represented North Korea at the Summer Olympics on two occasions and the 2010 Asian Games. He won a silver medal at the 2009 East Asian Games, running in the half marathon.
Solomon Molla is an Ethiopian athlete who specialises in long distance running, including the marathon. He has a personal best of 2:08:46 hours that event and won the 2008 JoongAng Seoul Marathon. He is a two-time participant at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.
Feyisa Lilesa is an Oromo long-distance runner from Ethiopia. He became the youngest man to run under 2:06 when he ran 2:05:23 in the men's marathon at the 2010 Rotterdam Marathon. He set his personal best of 2:04:52 in the marathon when he came in second place at the 2012 Chicago Marathon.
Daniele Meucci is an Italian athlete who specialises in long-distance running, including track running, cross country and road running who won twenty medals at international level.
Ayad Lamdassem El Mouhcine is a Moroccan-born long distance runner who competes for Spain internationally. He has represented Spain twice in the 10,000 metres at the Summer Olympics as well as the European Athletics Championships.
Amane Gobena Gemeda is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who competes primarily in road running events. She has a marathon best of 2:23:50 hours.
Ayele Abshero Biza is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who mainly competes in cross country and road races.
Merima Mohammed Hasen is an Ethiopian professional long-distance runner who competes in road running events, including the marathon. Her personal best of 2:23:06 hours for the distance makes her the second fastest teenager ever over the 42.195 kilometres (26.219 mi) distance. She has won marathons in Düsseldorf, Nice and Ottawa. She represented Ethiopia at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in 2011.
Geoffrey Kipsang Kamworor is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner. He won the silver medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics. Kamworor claimed victories at the World Half Marathon Championships three times in a row from 2014 to 2018. He took individual titles at the World Cross Country Championships in 2015 and 2017, and finished third in 2019. He won his first World Marathon Major at the 2017 New York City Marathon and regained his title in 2019, after a second-place finish in 2015. Kamworor also placed second at the 2023 London Marathon and earned three other podium finishes at a World Marathon Majors.
Kim Mi-gyong is a North Korean long-distance runner. She competed in the marathon at the 2012 Summer Olympics, placing 74th with a time of 2:38:33.
Tilahun Regassa Dabe is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who mainly competes in road running competitions. He has a half marathon best of 59:19 minutes and has won the Zayed International Half Marathon and Lille Half Marathon. He made his marathon debut at the 2012 Chicago Marathon and ran the third fastest ever debut of 2:05:27 hours.
