LELISA DESISA AND RUTH CHEPNGETICH TO BE HONOURED WITH THE 2019 AIMS ‘BEST MARATHON RUNNER’ (BMR) AWARDS
The world running organisation the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) is delighted to announce Lelisa Desisa (Ethiopia) and Ruth Chepngetich (Kenya) as the male and female winners of the AIMS Best Marathon Runner Awards for 2019.
The AIMS Athletes’ Nomination Committee has decided that for this year (1 October 2018 to 6 October 2019) Lelisa Desisa and Ruth Chepngetich were the outstanding candidates for the Male/Female Best Marathon Runner Awards 2019 based upon their performances.
Lelisa Desisa (29) has had a very impressive year. On 4 November 2018 he won the TCS New York City Marathon in a time of 2:05:59, his third win in a World Marathon Major, having previously won the Boston Marathon in 2013 and 2015.
On 5 October 2019, Lelisa became the World Champion in the Marathon by running 2:10:40 at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar.
Ruth Chepngetich (25) won the Marathon World Title at the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar in a time of 2:32:43.
During the 2018-19 season she also added wins at the Istanbul Marathon, Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon, Vodafone Istanbul Half Marathon, Seiryu Half Marathon & the Media Maraton de Bogota.
Both athletes secured their World Titles under the most testing of conditions in Qatar, with temperatures in excess of 30C and humidity around 70% despite both races starting at midnight.
The achievements of the two athletes will receive global recognition during the seventh annual AIMS ‘Best Marathon Runner’ Awards Gala in Athens, Greece on the night of Friday 8 November 2019.
About the AIMS ‘Best Marathon Runner’ Awards Gala
The purpose of the BMR Award Gala is to:
I. Announce and honour the best male and female Marathon runners of the year through the AIMS BEST MARATHON RUNNER (BMR) Award.
II. Recognise and honour exceptional Marathon figureheads and personalities for their contribution to the development of the Marathon movement.
III. Publicise and promote the best practice and initiatives of AIMS members (460+ race organisers) through the establishment of special environmental and social awards.
IV. Enhance the role, programs and services of AIMS.
The event will be staged in Athens, Greece on Friday 8 November 2019 and is co-organised with the Hellenic Athletics Federation (SEGAS), ‘Athens Marathon. The Authentic.’ and the Region of Attica, held under the kind sponsorship of the ‘Greek National Tourism Organisation’ and ‘Athens International Airport’.
Previous Male Recipients of the AIMS Best Marathon Runner Award
2013 – Wilson Kipsang (Kenya)
2014 – Dennis Kimetto (Kenya)
2015 – Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)
2016 – Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)
2017 – Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)
2018 – Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)
Previous Female Recipients of the AIMS Best Marathon Runner Award
2013 – Edna Kiplagat (Kenya)
2014 – Florence Kiplagat (Kenya)
2015 – Mare Dibaba (Ethiopia)
2016 – Jemima Sumgong (Kenya)
2017 – Mary Keitany (Kenya)
2018 – Gladys Cherono (Kenya)
Notes to Editors
IMAGERY
Please find enclosed the following images which have been provided for your use (with details of their copyright crediting that require to be included)
Lelisa Desisa – click here to download. Photo Credit/Copyright: Matthew Quine/IAAF
Ruth Chepngetich – click here to download. Photo Credit/Copyright: Matthew Quine/IAAF
About AIMS
AIMS is a member based organisation and since being established in 1982 has grown to a membership of more than 460 of the world’s leading distance races, from over 120 countries and territories. AIMS Members come from every continent on the planet and include the ‘Athens Marathon. The Authentic’ formed on the legend of Pheidippides, the Greek soldier-runner who ran from the town of Marathon to Athens in 490 BC to announce the Persians had been defeated in the ‘Battle of Marathon’. Other AIMS members include many of the world’s greatest distance races in history such as the Beijing, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, Comrades, New York, Paris & Tokyo Marathons. The three key objectives of AIMS are:
- To foster and promote distance running throughout the world
- To work with the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) on all matters relating to international road races.
- To exchange information, knowledge and expertise among members of the association
For further information on AIMS please visit: www.AIMS-worldrunning.org.
For further information, please contact:
Peter McLean, Director of Public Relations
Association of International Marathons & Distance Races
C/o PMPR Excellence Ltd,
Windsor House, 15 Kirklee Terrace,
Kelvinside, Glasgow, Scotland, G12 0TJ
Mobile:00-44-(0)-774-037-1909
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Web: www.prexcellence.com
