Aychew Bantie Dessie

The 24-year-old Ethiopian Aychew Bantie arrives for his Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon debut after a busy year on the road in 2019.

He performed creditably in all three marathons he contested, winning the Hengshui title in China in September after beginning the year with second place in Mumbai in 2:10:05.

In Prague in May he ran the fastest marathon of his career so far, finishing third in 2:06:23, an improvement of almost two minutes over his previous best, set when finishing runner-up at the 2018 Kosice Marathon in Slovakia with 2:08:15.

In so doing Bantie played his part in the oldest marathon in Europe – Kosice was first held in 1924. He should be in good shape to attack his personal best on Dubai’s fast course, having won the Heerenberg 15km in the Netherlands last month in 43:34.

Age

24

Country

Ethiopia

Best Time

2:06:23

(3rd, Prague, 2019)