Adugna and Omare take Hyundai Half Marathon titles

In the men’s elite race, with the course record (1:00:12, held by Titus Ekiru) on the line, the lead pack stayed shoulder to shoulder until the final kilometre, where Zerihun Adugna dropped a late surge to break the tape in 1:02:01. Making his debut over 21.1 km, the Ethiopian held off Uganda’s Titus Musau (1:02:05) by four seconds, with Kenyan Brian Kogo crossing just two seconds back in 1:02:07.

The women’s contest blew open earlier, as Dolphine Omare threw down a decisive break around the 17-kilometre mark to solo home in 1:07:25. The Japan-based Kenyan, making her European racing debut, put 49 seconds into compatriot Margret Chacha (1:08:14), while Ethiopia’s Kuftu Tahir drifted back to finish over a minute and a half behind in 1:09:04.

Omare looked well on course record pace (1:06:54, set by Peres Jepchirchir in 2019) through the middle splits before tying up in the closing stages. Her 1:07:25 finish still ranks as the fifth-fastest winning mark in race history.

In the domestic battle, Miguel Borges was first home among the Portuguese men, clocking 1:05:25 for 11th overall, while Salomé Rocha secured a top-ten finish in the women’s field, crossing in 1:14:09 for ninth.