Deriba Merga Ejigu ( am, ደርባ መርጋ አጅጉ; born 26 October 1980) is an Ethiopian professional

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

. He mainly competes in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

. He finished fourth in that event at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

and went on to win the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by several cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ...

the following year. His personal best for the distance is 2:06:38 hours. He also competes in

half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...

races and his time of 59:14 minutes in 2008 was the fastest that year. He won the 2006 Paris Half Marathon and took the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...

at the

2007 All-Africa Games The 9th All-Africa Games took place between 11 and 23 July 2007 in Algiers, the capital city of Algeria. Algiers is the first city to hold All-Africa Games for a second time. The 1978 All-Africa Games were held there. Besides Algeria, only Niger ...

a year later.

Career

He was born in the

Welega Province Welega (also spelled Wollega; ; am, ወለጋ) was a province in western Ethiopia, with its capital city at Nekemte. It was named for the Wollega Oromo, who are the majority of the population within its boundaries. Welega was bordered on the ...

west of

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

and he headed to the capital in 2005 to pursue a running career after winning some regional races. Merga made his international debut in 2006, winning the Paris Half Marathon in a time of 60:45. Later that year, he finished sixth at the

2006 IAAF World Road Running Championships The 1st IAAF World Road Running Championships were held in Debrecen, Hungary on 8 October 2006, the women's race starting at 11:00 and the men's race at 13:00. This was the first time the title of World Road Running Champion had been competed f ...

, helping Ethiopia to a

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receiv ...

in the team competition. In December that year he won the

Montferland Run Pfixx Solar Montferland Run is an annual 15-kilometres road running competition held in 's-Heerenberg, Montferland, Netherlands. It was first organised in 1996 and typically takes place on the first Sunday in December. Unlike many elite level road ...

15 km race in a course record time of 42:48. He took the

at the

but just missed out on a medal at the

2007 IAAF World Road Running Championships The 2007 IAAF World Road Running Championships were held in Udine, Italy on 14 October 2007. Detailed reports on the event and an appraisal of the results were given both for the men's race and for the women's race. Medallists Race results ...

, finishing in fourth place. He made his

debut at the Fukuoka Marathon in December 2007, finishing second to Sammy Wanjiru. He opened 2008 with a win at the

World's Best 10K The World's Best 10K (WB10K) is a road race of 10 kilometers celebrated in San Juan, Puerto Rico every year. It is certified by the Association of International Marathons and Road Races (AIMS) and by the International Amateur Athletic Federat ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

. He finished sixth at London in April that year, running a personal best of 2:06:38. In August, he finished fourth in the Olympic marathon, after being passed by teammate Tsegay Kebede in the final 400 m. Later in the year he won the Delhi Half Marathon, and defended his title in 2009. In May 2009, he sped to victory at the

World 10K Bangalore The World 10K Bengaluru (known as the TCS World 10K Bengaluru for sponsorship (commercial), sponsorship reasons by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)) is an annual 10 kilometres road running competition which takes place in Bangalore, India. ...

, holding off a challenge from Mark Kiptoo. Merga won the Chevron Houston Marathon in 2:07:52, setting a course record in the process. He was disappointed, however, having wanted to run a 2:05, a time bettered by only a handful of runners. Three months later, Merga won the 113th

on April 20, 2009, with a time of 2:08:42. Merga endured a very fast start and made a solo break for the finish, winning firmly by almost a minute. In May, he ran a 27:23 10k in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the c ...

. Merga set his sights on defending his title at the

2010 Boston Marathon The 2010 Boston Marathon was the 114th running of the annual marathon race in Boston, United States and was held on April 19. The elite men's race was won by Kenya's Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot in a time of 2:05:52 hours and the women's race was won ...

and upped the race tempo around the 18-mile mark. He moved away from the pack but was followed by

Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot (born August 10, 1988) is a Kenyan marathon runner. He is known as a "true marathoner" who rarely races other distances. He finished fifth or better in the first four international marathons he has entered. Biography ...

and Tekeste Kebede. Merga faded in the final stages and ended up in third place. He returned to defend his crown at the World 10K Bangalore in May, but was half a minute off the pace and finished in fourth place. Later that month he ran at the Ottawa 10K and was third in a time of 28:41, finishing behind the pacemaker, Lelisa Desessa, who continued for the victory. He set a course record of 1:02:31 at the Bogota Half Marathon in August, easily seeing off the more favoured Zersenay Tadese and Isaac Macharia. He entered the Chuncheon Marathon in October as the provisional favourite but dropped out of the race after 35 km. He put the disappointment behind him at the Major General Hayelom Araya 15km Championships in February 2011, where he dominated his national rivals – his time of 41:54.84 left him with a winning margin of 45 seconds and brought him an African all-comers record for the distance. He headed to the

Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon is an annual half marathon held in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. History The first event, in 2007, saw Samuel Wanjiru breaking the world record A world record is usually the best global and most important ...

soon after and immediately assumed the lead in the race, running a world best for 8 km and winning the event in a time of 59:25 minutes. His first marathon of 2011 came at the

Lake Biwa Marathon The was a marathon race held in Otsu, Shiga, Japan. It was one of the prominent marathons in Japan. It was a male only competition and had IAAF Gold Label status.Nakamura, Ken (2010-03-07)Tsegay takes Lake Biwa crown IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-0 ...

in Japan and a duel between Deriba and Wilson Kipsang saw the Ethiopian finish in the runner-up spot. He took his second win of the year over half that distance at the

Yangzhou Jianzhen International Half Marathon The Yangzhou Jianzhen International Half Marathon (Chinese language, Chinese: 扬州鉴真国际半程马拉松赛) is an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance which takes place in April in Yangzhou, People's Republic of ...

. He attempted to defend his Bogotá Half Marathon title but was beaten by some distance by Geoffrey Mutai. He ran at the Frankfurt Marathon in October but could not keep up with the near-world record pace set by

Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich (born 15 March 1982) is a Kenyan professional athlete who specialises in long-distance running, competing in events ranging from 10 km to the marathon. He was the bronze medallist in the marathon at the 2012 Summer ...

and dropped out at the 30 km point. Quick racing was again too much for him as he dropped out of the Dubai Marathon in January 2012 after having run the first half in 1:02:21. He finished second at the 2012

New York City Half Marathon The New York City Half Marathon (branded as the United Airlines NYC Half) is an annual half marathon road running race from Brooklyn's Prospect Park to Manhattan's Central Park via the Manhattan Bridge, held since 2006. It passes through o ...

, being overtaken by Peter Kirui in the final stages. He came third at the

Bay to Breakers Bay to Breakers is an annual footrace in San Francisco, California typically on the third Sunday of May. The phrase "Bay to Breakers" reflects the fact that the race starts at the northeast end of the downtown area a few blocks from The Embarc ...

but had a very slow outing at the

Shanghai Marathon The Shanghai International Marathon is an annual marathon in late autumn hosted by Shanghai, China, since 1996. The marathon is categorized as a Platinum Label Road Race by World Athletics. The marathon starts at the '' Bund Bull'' and fini ...

where he held on to finish tenth in a time of 2:21:14 hours. His fortunes reversed at the Houston Half Marathon in 2013 as he was runner-up behind

Feyisa Lilesa Feyisa Lilesa (Afaan Oromo: Fayyisaa Leellisaa; born 1 February 1990) 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 s ...

Personal bests

Half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...

– 59:14 (New Delhi, 2008) *

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

– 2:06:38 (London, 2008)

International competitions

Road race wins

References

External links