Less than ten months after winning the 2023 Dubai Marathon, Ethiopian star Dera Dida has confirmed she will return to the UAE to defend her Dubai crown on January 7. Earlier this year, Dida – wife of former Dubai Marathon winner and Marathon World Champion Tamirat Tola – stormed through with two kilometres remaining to take the women’s event in 2h:21:11 at EXPO City Dubai, while her brother-in-law Abdisa Tola made it a unique family double by clinching the men’s title. It’s familiar ground for Dida who competed over the route in both 2018 and 2020 finishing seventh and fifth respectively. “When I took the lead in Dubai, I was sure I’d win,” said Dida, a two-time Ethiopian National Champion at 5,000 and 10,000m and a two-time World Cross Country Championship silver medallist. The 2024 Dubai Marathon is supported by adidas, Dubai Duty Free, EXEED by Al Ghurair, the Channel 4 Radio Network, the ITP Media Group, Bisleri Water, Biofreeze, the Dubai Sports Council, Dubai RTA, Dubai Police, Dubai Municipality and SIRO One Za'abeel, the first fully integrated Fitness + Recovery hotel in Dubai.

Source: Ethiopian News December 22, 2023 11:30 UTC